Ukrainian Lugers Hit 125 km/h in Olympic Training Runs

Training Runs at the Winter Olympic Games

According to Главком: Ukrainian athletes participated in training sessions for the luge and alpine skiing speed events at the Winter Olympics on February 6, 2026. In luge, Anton Dukach and Andrii Mandzii posted varying results across their practice runs. Mandzii achieved the 11th fastest time in the fifth run and reached a top speed of 125.3 km/h (approximately 78 mph) in the sixth. Dukach placed 14th in the fifth run and improved to 12th in the sixth session.

Alpine Skiing and Ukrainian Athletes' Preparations

In alpine skiing, Dmytro Shep'iuk started his training, finishing 22nd out of 23 competitors. In the women's training, Anastasiia Shepilenko placed 42nd. Notably, Ester Ledecka did not start, while Lindsey Vonn, competing at age 41 and despite a serious pre-Olympic injury, secured 11th place, finishing less than one and a half seconds behind the leader. The luge events are particularly dangerous and require immense skill to navigate at such high velocities.

The first official competition day of the Games is scheduled for February 7, 2026. The previous day, on February 5, Ukrainian ski jumpers Yevhen Marusiak and Vitalii Kalinichenko completed their first trial jumps on the Predazzo hill. The promising training results from the Ukrainian lugers indicate they are well-prepared for the upcoming contests.

These training runs are crucial for athletes to acclimate to competitive conditions and refine their performance before the main events. Despite facing strong international competition, the Ukrainian team's progress suggests they could be contenders in the official races. The competitions starting on February 7 are expected to draw significant attention from a global audience, given the high caliber of athletes and their level of preparation.