Luge is one of the seven Olympic sports currently contested at the Winter Olympic Games. [1] It has been a constant presence in the Olympic program since its introduction at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, [2] in the form of three events: men's singles, women's singles, and doubles. [lower-alpha 1] A mixed team relay event was contested for the first time at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. [4]
Italian luger Armin Zöggeler is the overall medal leader in the sport, having collected a total of six medals (two gold, one silver, and three bronze) in the men's singles, during the six Winter Games in which he competed (1994–2014). As of 2021, he is the only Olympian to receive six medals in the same event. German luger Georg Hackl was the first Olympian to receive a medal in five consecutive Olympics, from 1988-2002, including three consecutive gold medals.
In the women's event, Germany's Silke Kraushaar leads the medal count with three, one of each color. Steffi Martin and Sylke Otto—at 36, the oldest female individual gold medalist at the Winter Games [5] —are the only lugers with two gold medals in their career. Ortrun Enderlein, representing the United Team of Germany, was the first woman to win the singles event in 1964. She was on the verge of defending her title at the 1968 Grenoble Games, having the best overall time after all the runs, but was disqualified together with fellow countrywomen Anna-Maria Müller (2nd) and Angela Knösel (4th) when it was discovered that the runners in their sleds had been illegally heated before the runs. [6] Müller made up for this by taking the gold medal at the following Games, in Sapporo, Japan.
The most successful pair in the history of the Olympic doubles event was Stefan Krauße and Jan Behrendt, who represented East Germany in 1988 and the reunified German Olympic team from 1992 to 1998, winning four medals: two golds, one silver, and one bronze. East Germany's Hans Rinn and Norbert Hahn, and Austrian brothers Andreas and Wolfgang Linger, are the other pairs to have won two times, both of them in consecutive Olympics. In 1972, two gold medals were awarded to an East German (Horst Hörnlein and Reinhard Bredow) and an Italian pair (Paul Hildgartner and Walter Plaikner), who finished with exactly the same time. To prevent similar situations in future Olympics, the Fédération Internationale de Luge de Course introduced timing equipment that measured accurately to one thousandth of a second, to replace the old equipment that measured in hundredths of a second. [7]
As of the 2018 Winter Olympics, 141 medals (48 gold, 46 silver, and 47 bronze, with two golds in the 1972 doubles event) have been awarded, representing 11 National Olympic Committees (NOC). German lugers—representing the United Team of Germany (1964), West Germany (1968–1988), East Germany (1968–1988), and Germany (1992–2018)—have dominated this sport, collecting a total of 81 medals. There were seven occasions when a single NOC filled the podium with its athletes and in all of them they were German. After 2018, Germany is the current medal-leading NOC in the sport with 37 medals (18 gold, 10 silver, and 9 bronze), followed by East Germany's 29 medals.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Germany (GER) | 6 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 2 |  East Germany (GDR) | 4 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
| 3 |  Italy (ITA) | 3 | 2 | 4 | 9 |
| 4 |  Austria (AUT) | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| 5 |  United Team of Germany (EUA) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 6 | West Germany (FRG) | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 6 |  Russia (RUS) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 |  Soviet Union (URS) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 8 |  United States (USA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 9 |  Latvia (LAT) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 10 nations | 16 | 16 | 16 | 48 |
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Germany | 7 | 7 | 4 | 18 |
| 2 |  East Germany | 4 | 5 | 3 | 12 |
| 3 |  Italy | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 |  Austria | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 5 |  Germany | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 |  Soviet Union | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | West Germany | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| 8 |  Canada | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Russia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 United States | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 10 nations | 16 | 16 | 16 | 48 |
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany (GER) | 6 | 3 | 3 | 12 |
| 2 | East Germany (GDR) | 5 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| 3 | Austria (AUT) | 3 | 4 | 3 | 10 |
| 4 | Italy (ITA) | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| 5 | West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 6 | United States (USA) | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 7 | Latvia (LAT) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 8 | Soviet Union (URS) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 8 nations | 17 | 15 | 16 | 48 |
| Medals | |||||
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany (GER) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 2 | Austria (AUT) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 3 |  Canada (CAN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Russia (RUS) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 5 | Latvia (LAT) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Total | 5 nations | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
Athletes that have won at least two medals are listed below. Medalists are sorted first by the total number of medals, then successively by the number of gold, silver and bronze medals. If a tie is still verified, medalists are ordered chronologically by their first medal.
| Athlete | NOC | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Natalie Geisenberger | Germany (GER) | 2010–2022 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| Silke Kraushaar | Germany (GER) | 1998–2006 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Tatjana Hüfner | Germany (GER) | 2006–2014 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Steffi Martin | East Germany (GDR) | 1984–1988 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Sylke Otto | Germany (GER) | 2002–2006 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Margit Schumann | East Germany (GDR) | 1972–1976 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Ute Rührold | East Germany (GDR) | 1972–1976 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Barbara Niedernhuber | Germany (GER) | 1998–2002 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Susi Erdmann | Germany (GER) | 1992–1994 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Angelika Neuner | Austria (AUT) | 1992–1998 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Alex Gough | Canada (CAN) | 2018 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| × | NOC did not exist | # | Number of medals won by the NOC | – | NOC did not win any medals |
| NOC | 1924–60 | 64 | 68 | 72 | 76 | 80 | 84 | 88 | 92 | 94 | 98 | 02 | 06 | 10 | 14 | 18 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austria (AUT) | 3 | 2 | – | 1 | 1 | – | – | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 22 | |
| Canada (CAN) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | 2 | |
| United Team of Germany (EUA) | 5 | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | 5 | |
| East Germany (GDR) | × | 3 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 6 | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | 29 | |
| West Germany (FRG) | × | 3 | – | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | 10 | |
| Germany (GER) | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | 4 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 37 | |
| Italy (ITA) | 1 | 1 | 1 | – | 2 | 1 | – | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | – | 17 | |
| Latvia (LAT) | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | – | – | – | – | 1 | 1 | 2 | – | 4 | |
| Russia (RUS) | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | – | – | – | 1 | – | 2 | × | 3 | |
| Soviet Union (URS) | – | – | – | – | 2 | 3 | 1 | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | × | 6 | |
| United States (USA) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | 2 | – | – | 1 | 1 | 5 |
These are events in which athletes from one NOC won all three medals.
| Games | Event | NOC | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 Innsbruck | Men's Singles | United Team of Germany (EUA) | Thomas Köhler | Klaus-Michael Bonsack | Hans Plenk |
| 1972 Sapporo | Men's Singles * | East Germany (GDR) | Wolfgang Scheidel | Harald Ehrig | Wolfram Fiedler |
| Women's Singles | Anna-Maria Müller | Ute Rührold | Margit Schumann | ||
| 1984 Sarajevo | Women's Singles | Steffi Walter-Martin | Bettina Schmidt | Ute Oberhoffner-Weiß | |
| 1988 Calgary | Women's Singles | Steffi Walter-Martin | Ute Oberhoffner-Weiß | Cerstin Schmidt | |
| 2002 Salt Lake City | Women's Singles | Germany (GER) | Sylke Otto | Barbara Niedernhuber | Silke Kraushaar |
| 2006 Turin | Women's Singles | Sylke Otto | Silke Kraushaar | Tatjana Hüfner |
The 1976 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event held in Innsbruck, Austria, from 4 to 15 February 1976. A total of 1,123 athletes representing 37 National Olympic Committees (NOC) participated in 37 events from 10 different sports and disciplines. Two events were contested for the first time: the figure skating discipline of ice dancing, and the men's 1,000 metres in speed skating.
The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XI Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event held in Sapporo, Japan, from 3 to 13 February 1972. A total of 1,006 athletes representing 35 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participated in 35 events from 10 different sports and disciplines.
The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event held in Grenoble, France, from 6 to 18 February 1968. A total of 1,158 athletes representing 37 National Olympic Committees (NOCs)—including Morocco's first delegation—participated in 35 events from 10 different sports and disciplines. The team relay (4 × 7.5 km) event in biathlon was contested for the first time.
The 1952 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VI Olympic Winter Games, took place in Oslo, Norway, from 14 to 25 February 1952. A total of 694 athletes representing 30 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participated in the Games, taking part in 22 events from 6 sports.
Andreas Linger is an Austrian former luger who competed internationally since 2000. He and his younger brother Wolfgang began luging at a very young age, and did their first doubles run when they were 14. Linger has won five medals at the FIL World Luge Championships with three golds and two bronzes. He also earned seven medals at the FIL European Luge Championships with a gold, three silvers, and three bronzes. The Lingers were overall Luge World Cup men's doubles champions in 2011-12 and scored 15 World Cup race victories. They were two time Olympic champions in the men's doubles event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy and the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They won in 2006 despite Wolfgang having broken his leg in a luge crash the previous year. In 2010, they successfully defended their gold medal against another team of brothers, Andris and Juris Šics of Latvia.
Wolfgang Linger is an Austrian former luger who competed internationally since 2000. As young children, he and his older brother Andreas learned to luge on a former Olympic luge track, and at age 14 began competing as a doubles team for the first time. Linger has won five medals at the FIL World Luge Championships with three golds and two bronzes. He also earned seven medals at the FIL European Luge Championships with a gold, three silvers, and three bronzes. The Lingers were overall Luge World Cup men's doubles champions in 2011-12 and scored 15 World Cup race victories. In 2005, he broke his leg in a crash, but the next year at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy won the gold medal in doubles luge. He repeated this feat at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, defeating another team of brothers, Andris and Juris Šics of Latvia.
Albert Mikhailovich Demchenko is a Russian luger who competed from 1992 to 2014. He is currently coaching the Russian luge team. His daughter Victoria Demchenko is also a luger.
Alex Gough is a retired Canadian luger who competed between 2002 and 2018. Gough is a two-time Olympic luge medalist winning bronze in women's and silver in the team relay at the 2018 Winter Olympics. She was the first Canadian to win a luge medal at the Olympics. Gough won a bronze medal in the women's singles event at the FIL World Luge Championships 2011 in Cesana, the first ever for a Canadian woman and only the second overall. Gough has won a total of six World Championship medals, two bronze in women's singles and a silver and three bronze in the mixed team relay events.
Josef Feistmantl was an Austrian luger who competed from the mid-1950s to the early 1970s. He competed at three Olympic Games.
Tobias Wendl is a German luger who has competed since 1993, acting as a front. He won a silver medal in the men's doubles event at the 2008 FIL World Luge Championships in Oberhof, Germany, a silver and a bronze at the FIL European Luge Championships 2010 in Sigulda, a gold at the FIL World Luge Championships 2013, and two gold medals at his debut Winter Olympics at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. He is also a Master Sergeant in the German Army.
The doubles luge event at the 2010 Winter Olympics was held on 17 February at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia. Twenty teams participated. Austrian brothers Andreas and Wolfgang Linger, the defending Olympic and European champions, won the gold medal. The silver medal was also won by a pair of brothers, Andris and Juris Šics of Latvia. Germans Patric Leitner and Alexander Resch clinched the bronze medal after edging out Italians Christian Oberstolz and Patrick Gruber, who were in third place after the first run.
Tonga sent a delegation to compete at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia from 7–23 February 2014. This was the Pacific island nation's debut at the Winter Olympic Games. The Tongan delegation consisted of one luge athlete, Bruno Banani, who had changed his name in a marketing gimmick to match that of German brand Bruno Banani. In his event, the men's singles, he came in 32nd place out of 39 competitors.
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