Georg Hackl, often named Hackl Schorsch, is a German former luger who was three time Olympic and World Champion. He is known affectionately as Hackl-Schorsch or as the Speeding Weißwurst, a reference to what he looks like in his white bodysuit coming down the luge at fast speeds.
India first participated at the Olympic Games in 1900, becoming the first Asian nation to do so. Norman Pritchard represented the country and won two medals, both silver, in athletics. The nation first sent a team to the Summer Olympic Games in 1920 and has participated in every Summer Games since then. India has competed at several Winter Olympic Games after its debut in 1964.
India sent a delegation to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy from 10–26 February 2006. This was the nation's seventh appearance in a Winter Olympic Games. The Indian delegation consisted of four athletes, two in alpine skiing, one in cross-country skiing, and one in luge. Their best performance in any event was 25th by luger Shiva Keshavan in the men's singles.
India competed at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France, from 6 to 18 February 1968. This was the nation's second appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964.
India competed at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada, from 13 to 28 February 1988. This was the nation's third appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964 and marked its return to the Games after the 1968.
India competed at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, from 8 to 23 February 1992. This was the nation's fourth appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964 and marked its second consecutive appearance after its return to the Games in 1988.
India competed at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, United States, from 8 to 24 February 2002. The country's participation in Salt Lake City marked its sixth appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964.
Bermuda sent a delegation to compete at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan from 7–22 February 1998. This marked the territory's third appearance at a Winter Olympic Games with their first coming in the 1992 Albertville Games. Bermuda's delegation consisted of a single athlete, the luge competitor Patrick Singleton. In the men's singles, he came in 27th place.
Venezuela sent a delegation to compete in the Winter Olympic Games for the first time at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan from 7–22 February 1998. The delegation consisted of a single luge competitor, Iginia Boccalandro. In the women's singles she came in 28th place out of 29 competitors.
Markus Prock is an Austrian luger who competed between 1983 and 2002. Born in Innsbruck, Prock competed in six Winter Olympics winning three medals in the men's singles event with two silvers and one bronze (2002).
Josef "Sepp" Lenz was a West German luger who competed in the 1960s. He won the gold medal in the men's singles event at the 1962 FIL European Luge championships in Weissenbach, Austria.
Shiva Keshavan, is a six-time Olympian and the first Indian representative to compete in luge at the Winter Olympic Games. He set a new Asian speed record at 134.3 km/h (83.5 mph) after beating the previous record of 131.9 km/h (82.0 mph) and won a gold medal in the 2011 Asian Luge Cup at Nagano in Japan.
Three athletes from India participated in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, held between 12 and 28 February 2010. The country's participation in Vancouver marked its eighth appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964.
Three athletes from India qualified for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia held between 7 and 23 February 2014. They initially entered the competition as Independent Olympic Participants due to the ongoing suspension of India's national olympic committee (NOC), the Indian Olympic Association since 2012. However, on 11 February 2014, the IOC reinstated India's NOC, allowing two athletes with pending events to represent India at the 2014 Winter Olympics instead. Shiva Keshavan, participating in Luge, was thus the only independent athlete at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
The men's singles luge competition at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano was held on 8 and 9 February, at Spiral.
India participated at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, held between 9 and 25 February 2018. The country's participation in Pyeongchang marked its tenth appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964.
Three athletes from India qualified for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, held between 7 and 23 February 2014. The country's participation in Sochi marked its ninth appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964.
India competed at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China, from 4 to 20 February 2022. The country's participation in Beijing marked its eleventh appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 1964.
Sledding, encompassing sports such as luge, skeleton, and bobsledding, is popular as a recreational activity in India, but with little participation as a serious sport. However, India has produced a handful of sledding athletes who have been successful at the top level, the most prominent being medal-winning luger Shiva Keshavan. Despite the country's predominantly tropical climate, these winter sports have gained some prominence in recent years due to Indian athletes competing internationally and the growth of winter tourism in the Himalayan regions which have suitable winter conditions. India is considered to have a huge untapped potential for winter sports, including sledding.
Independent Olympic Participants (2014)
