LAKE PLACID, N.Y. – A group of race veterans top the USA Luge National Team roster for the 2019-2020 World Cup and World Championship season.
The group is led by Pyeongchang Olympic silver medalist Chris Mazdzer, 2019 World Championship bronze medalist Emily Sweeney, third-ranked World Cup competitor Summer Britcher, three-time World Cup winner Tucker West and World Cup and World Championship medalist Jayson Terdiman.
Also named to the squad were youngsters Jonny Gustafson, Brittney Arndt and Ashley Farquharson, who seek improvement and will strive to push their more seasoned teammates.
The team released the names (Wednesday, May 1) of athletes on its National, Junior National, C and D Teams.
Mazdzer and Terdiman completed their first World Cup doubles campaign last year in eighth place, highlighted by a silver medal in Lake Placid. The twosome raced in a truncated season that saw Mazdzer leave the tour in early February to undergo shoulder surgery. As he rehabilitates, their current doubles sled is being overhauled in preparation for next winter.
Gustafson and Arndt registered their first-ever top 10 World Cup results last winter, while Farquharson, fourth at the 2019 Junior World Championships, is a newcomer to the national team.
With a maximum number of starts, athletes from this group would compete in nine World Cup events and the 2020 World Championships on the Sochi Olympic track.
NATIONAL TEAM:
--Chris Mazdzer (Saranac Lake, N.Y.), 2018 Olympic silver medalist, three-time Olympian
--Tucker West (Ridgefield, Conn.), three-time World Cup winner, two-time Olympian
--Jonny Gustafson (Massena, N.Y.), will be his second full season racing World Cup, seventh place last season in Igls, Austria World Cup sprint for his career best result to date, silver medalist in 2019 Norton National Championships
--Jayson Terdiman (Berwick, Pa.), multiple winner of World Cup and World Championship medals, third place in 2016-2017 World Cup season, two-time Olympian now racing with his third doubles partner
--Summer Britcher (Glen Rock, Pa.), USA Luge all-time singles leader with five World Cup victories, third-ranked last year in the World Cup, two-time Olympian
--Emily Sweeney (Suffield, Conn.), 2019 World Championship bronze medalist, 2018 World Cup bronze medalist (both achievements in an abbreviated season), 2018 Olympian
--Brittney Arndt (Park City, Utah), fifth place in 2018 Lake Placid World Cup sprint, sixth place in 2018 Lake Placid World Cup singles, 2019 Norton National Championship silver medalist
--Ashley Farquharson (Park City, Utah), fourth place in 2019 Junior World Championships, Norton Junior National Champion in 2017-2019
USA Luge also named 14 athletes to its Junior National Team, with an eye on the 2020 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in Lausanne/St. Moritz.
The women’s doubles team of Maya Chan, of Chicago, and Reannyn Weiler, of Whitesboro, N.Y., won three medals in women’s doubles last season, including a bronze medal in the pre-YOG test race. The discipline will be included for the first time in an Olympic-branded event.
The men’s doubles team of Dana Kellogg, of Chesterfield, Mass. and Duncan Segger, of Lake Placid anchored three bronze medals in Junior World Cup team competitions. Kellogg is USA Luge’s latest athlete to enter the U.S. Army’s World Class Athlete Program and is fulfilling his basic training until August.
Ian Smith, of Carlisle, Mass. had a Youth A bronze medal last season and finished fourth overall; Sam Eckert, of Wilmington, N.Y. was sixth in the rankings behind Smith.
Junior National Team (with birth year)
Sam Day (02), Wantagh, N.Y. |
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Dana Kellogg/Duncan Segger |
Zachary DiGregorio (01), Medway, Mass. |
Chevonne Forgan (00), Chelmsford, Mass. |
(00/01), Chesterfield, Mass./Lake Placid |
Sam Eckert (02), Wilmington, N.Y. |
Joan Kemper (01), Park Ridge, Ill. |
/Michael O’Gara (01), La Crescenta, Calif. |
Sean Hollander (00), Lake Placid |
Sophia Kirkby (01), Ray Brook, N.Y. |
Maya Chan/Reannyn Weiler, (03/02), Chicago/Whitesboro, N.Y. |
Keaton Jens (00), St. Charles, Ill. |
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Ian Smith (01), Carlisle, Mass. |
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Junior C Team (with birth year)
Men |
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Women |
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Matthew Greiner (03), Park City, Utah |
Aidan Mueller (04), W. Islip, N.Y. |
Ashlyn Baker (05), Victoria, Minn. |
Elana Morrison (02), Twin Lakes, Mich. |
Ansel Haugsjaa (04), Framingham, Mass. |
Sean Rogers (02), Fanwood, N.J. |
Delaney Duncan (03), Park City, Utah |
Jessa Muller (04), New London, Wis. |
Frank Ike (04), Lititz, Pa. |
Jeffrey Sichler (04), Patterson, N.Y. |
Emma Erickson (03), Oneida, Wis. |
Caitlyn Petteys (05), York, Pa. |
Hunter Harris (02), E. Fairfield, Vt. |
Roy (Chet) Smith (04), Park City, Utah |
Sophia Gordon (04), Sussex, Wis. |
Mary Grace Richardson (04), Mount Vernon, Ohio |
Marcus Mueller (05), Brookfield, Wis. |
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McKenna Mazlo (02), Souderton, Pa. |
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Junior D Team (with birth year)
Park City |
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Lake Placid |
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Men |
Women |
Men |
Women |
Orson Colby (06), Riverton, Utah |
Leile Arbabi (04), Park City, Utah |
Logan Barnes (05), Milwaukee, Wis. |
Adeline Albert (07), Worthington, Ohio |
Joey Heuser (06), Park City, Utah |
Emma Ford (07), Saratoga Springs, Utah |
Nathan Bivins (08), Castleton, N.Y. |
Ava Bruhn (05), Minneapolis, Minn. |
Andrew Robinson (08), Park City, Utah |
Zoe Otto (06), Park City, Utah |
David D’Amico (06), Downers Grove, Ill. |
Brianna Gosnell (06), Evansburg, Pa. |
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Macey Schomaker (05), Park City, Utah |
Gavin Davis (06), Berwick, Pa. |
Grace Kobelia (05), Bennington, Vt. |
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Russell Foster (05), Mamaroneck, N.Y. |
Caroline Kogut (06), Glenville, N.Y. |
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Nevan Kalbfeisch (07), Fairfax, Vt. |
Sadie Martin (07), Vermontville, N.Y. |
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Eli Iacovoni (04), Plymouth, Mich. |
Goldie Miller (06), Englewood, Ohio |
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Wolfgang Lux (07), Swanton, Vt. |
Theresa Prehn (05), Saratoga Springs, N.Y. |
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Chase Somers ((08), Saginaw, Mich. |
Maggie Richardson (06), Mt. Vernon, Ohio |
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Tomas Ziemiecki (05), Mason, N.H. |
Emma Taney (06), Berwick, Pa. |