Nodar Kumaritashvili, a 21-year-old luger from the former Soviet republic of Georgia, has died from head injuries as a result of a horrific crash near the finish line, according to the Toronto Sun.
Kumaritashvili was traveling close to 90 mph when he hit a wall, catapulted into the air, and hit an unpadded steel pole.
Medics rushed to his aid, performed chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, and, within eight minutes, he was emergency air-lifted to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries. He died around noon, PST.
This crash will obviously hang a dark cloud over the Olympics' Opening Ceremonies, but the bigger picture of this just-barely-turned-21-year-old's death should now be addressed—was his death preventable?
Prior to Kumaritashvili's crash, Romanian luger Violeta Stramaturaru had crashed into several walls and was unconscious for a short time—she appears to have no serious side effects. But the criticisms of this track—the world's fastest—had already begun.
Australia's Hannah Campbell-Pegg addressed her concerns to the media on Thursday, and she didn't sugar-coat her feelings.
"I think they a...
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