HISTORY OF LUGE

Competitive luge racing began in Switzerland in the late 1800's but it would be another 60 years before Canadian competitors took up the sport. It wasn't until the late 1950's that bobsledder Vic Emery introduced the sport to Canadians at a ski area in Quebec. Emery, who would go on to win Canada's first Olympic bobsleigh medal at the 1964 Winter Games in Innsbruck, Austria, was also the first Canadian Luge Champion.

​

Despite a long history and well established competitions in Switzerland, Germany and Austria, luge did not appear at the Olympic Games until 1964. Until then, most luge competitions took place on iced alpine roads and sometimes on 'tracks' with banked side walls. The traditional form of the sport evolved into the two disciplines of Olympic luge and Natural luge.

​