Here's a look at the differences between bobsled, luge and skeleton heading into the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics.
Chris Mazdzer and Emily Sweeney explain explain everything you might want to know about luge, including how you steer and what a crash feels like.Each discipline involves athletes hurtling down a slippery track with hopes of crossing the finish line with the fastest time.
However, there are significant differences between each sport. Olympic bobsled champion Kaillie Humphries was ready to be a mother, but a stage four endometriosis diagnosis meant she would have to push her body to the brink in order to get pregnant.Athletes ride down the course in a seated position in a sled after running and pushing their sled for around 50 meters to start. Athletes steer using ropes inside the sled, and the athlete in the back is capable of using brakes.Athletes ride down the course feet first and flat on their back. They start by propelling themselves forward from a seated position using their hands and navigate the course by shifting their weight and angling turns.Athletes begin with a running start, sprinting around 40 meters before dropping into a head-first position down the course. Like luge, skeleton athletes traverse the course by shifting their body weight.Bobsleighs, luge sleds and skeleton sleds all have runners, which are extended curved parts at the ends of the two metal slides. However, there are key differences between the riding equipment:In bobsled, competitors are higher off the track in their sleigh, which is equipped with ropes. There are also breaks, though they are rarely used.Four-man sled: Minimum weight of 463 pounds; maximum weight of 1,389 poundsTwo-woman sled: Minimum weight of 364 pounds; maximum weight of 716 poundsSingles luge sleds weigh between 45 and 55 pounds, while doubles sleds weight between 55 and 66 pounds. Maximum width for a singles sled is around 21.6 inches and the maximum height is 4.7 inches.Skeleton sleds can weigh a maximum of 95 pounds, making them heavier than luge sleds. They must be between 31.5 and 47 inches in length and between 3 and 7.8 inches in height.All three sliding sports are among the fastest and most dangerous at the Winter Olympics, but there are slight speed differences between them:Luge is considered the fastest sport at the Winter Olympics, with athletes' speeds reaching the mid-90s in miles per hour. Luge and short track are the only Winter Olympic sports to be timed to the thousandth of a second.Skeleton is the slowest of the three sliding sports, though athletes can still reach over 80 miles per hour.
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