POSTED: Monday February 16th 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Luge Racing Continues in Calgary

World Champion Medal Winners Hamlin, Grimmette and Martin Return to the Ice

CALGARY, Canada – World Champion Erin Hamlin will enter the Feb. 13 Calgary World Cup wearing the yellow World Champion’s bib. Her teammates Mark Grimmette and Brian Martin will enter the race as the reigning World Championship bronze medalists, a title they’ve won six times in their career. The Calgary World Cup is the penultimate event of this season’s nine-race series.
 
Hamlin (Remsen, N.Y.) shocked the luge world on Feb. 6 by ending Germany’s 99-straight race stranglehold on the top step of the women’s podium. Hamlin, whose hometown Main Street is plastered with congratulatory signs for the newly crowned World Champion, will be joined by World Championship fifth-place finisher Julia Clukey (Augusta, Maine) and seventh-place finisher Ashley Walden (Westborough, Mass. and Lake Placid, N.Y.). First-year National Team member Stacey Young (Merrick, N.Y.), who posted the tenth fastest time of the second heat during the World Championships, will round out the women’s team.
 
The U.S. doubles effort will be lead by Grimmette (Muskegon, Mich. and Lake Placid, N.Y.) and Martin (Palo Alto, Calif. and Lake Placid, N.Y.), who overcame a two-year medal drought and multiple back injuries to take the bronze medal at the Feb. 6 World Championship race. Joining the three-time overall World Cup champions will be Christian Niccum (Woodinville, Wash.) and Dan Joye (Carmel, N.Y.), who finished sixth at the World Championships. The duo were forced to take time off the sled leading up to the big race following the premature birth of Joye’s son, Jett. Racing in their first World Cup event of the season will be Matt Mortensen (Huntington, N.Y.) and Preston Griffall (Salt Lake City, Utah).
 
2002 Olympian Bengt Walden (Westborough, Mass. and Lake Placid, N.Y.) hopes to build on his best-ever international result, sixth place, posted at the World Championships on Feb. 7. Walden, who joined the U.S. team following the 2006 marriage to his wife and teammate Ashley, raced for over 15 years with the Swedish National Team. Tony Benshoof (White Bear Lake, Minn.) hopes to gain momentum in Calgary following his 18th place finish at the World Championships. Benshoof underwent back surgery on Dec. 26, 2008 to relieve back pain caused by slipped and herniated disks. Chris Mazdzer (Saranac Lake, N.Y) will join the men’s squad following his 14th place finish in last weekend’s race.
 
Racing will begin on Friday, Feb. 13 at 6:40 p.m. local time with the women’s competition, followed by the men’s and doubles race on Feb. 14 at 2:55 and 6:00 p.m., respectively. This weekend’s races can be seen at www.universalsports.com
 
For more information on the Fastest Sport on Ice®, log on to www.usaluge.org

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Keywords · Calgary World Cup · luge · Erin Hamlin · Mark Grimmette · Brian Martin

Name: Gordy Sheer
Organization: USA Luge
Email:
Phone: 5185232071

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