Track construction not to blame for luger’s death at Winter Olympics, federation says

The international luge federation blamed the death of Georgian racer Nodar Kumaritashvili at the Vancouver Winter Olympics on his driving mistakes, not track construction.

“A complex series of interrelated events” led to the fatal crash during a training run at the Olympics, the federation said in a report Monday.

“Nodar did commit driving errors starting in curve 15-16, which as an accumulation ended in the impact that resulted in him leaving the track and subsequently hitting a post.”

“Blunt force trauma to the base of his skull'' caused the fatality, the report said.

The federation said that the wall on the left side of the finishing curve of the Whistler track “was deemed to have been correctly calculated and constructed to handle a crash in this area and to prevent the departure from the track by an athlete (under normal crash situations).”

“After an in-depth analysis we concluded that there was no single reason, but a complex series of interrelated events which led to this tragedy,” FIL secretary general Svein Romstad said in a statement on the governing body's website.

David Kumaritashvili, Nodar's father, said pilot error should not be held responsible for a luge death.

“Yes, any sportsman could make a mistake, but it shouldn't result in a tragic and fatal accident,” the father said. “He flew off the track. No matter what mistake he had committed, he should not have flown off it. Security measures must be provided.”

-Associated Press