LAKE PLACID, N.Y. - The Empire State Games luge competitions were held in Lake Placid on Saturday, February 2, at the Mt. Van Hovenberg Olympic Sports Complex under clear conditions and cold temperatures.
Youth A
The Youth A competition featured athletes who up to age 17.
Emryn McCarty (Swampscott, Mass.) took the gold in women’s singles. She shared the podium with silver medalist Abigail Lorz (Ottawa, Canada), and bronze medalist Zola Ananopoulos (Westmont, Ill.)
The men’s race was won by Riley Dombard (Downers Grove, Ill.) with Michael Montegari (Remsen, N.Y.) and Sinatra Robles (Castleton, Vt.) in second and third, respectively.
Youth B
For the Youth B competition, competing athletes are up to age 15.
Delilah Salgado (Ashland, Mass.) was gold medalist. The silver medal went to Emmelina Campos (Clarendon Hills, Ill.), while Madison Sorell (Piqua, Ohio) was the bronze medal winner.
Landon Kozik triumphed in the men’s race, with Max Zayonc (Lake Placid N.Y.) taking second. Zayonc is the son of Olympian Marketa (Jeriova) Zayonc and 1983 World Champion Miro Zayonc, both of Lake Placid. Warren Briggs (Madrid, N.Y.) was third.
Masters
The master’s competition is for athletes aged 30 and up. It does not have specific gender races, and all athletes compete from the same start.
The master’s race was won by Matt Gannon (Lake Placid, N.Y.), with Anthony Shimkonis (Wilmington, N.C.) in second. USA Luge Fantasy Camp graduate Kara Potter (South Lake Tahoe, Calif) was third.
According to its website, The Empire State Winter Games is a community-driven event, courtesy of a partnership between the Adirondack Sports Council (ADKSC); the towns of North Elba, Wilmington, Tupper Lake, Harrietstown, and Brighton; the villages of Lake Placid, Tupper Lake, Paul Smiths, Wilmington, and Saranac Lake; the counties of Essex and Franklin; Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST) and the New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA).
Aside from luge, the Empire State Winter Games feature adaptive bobsled, skeleton, and sled hockey. Other sports include alpine skiing, biathlon, bobsled, cross country skiing, figure skating, skeleton, ski and snowboard cross, moguls, ski orienteering, hockey, winter biking, snowshoeing and speedskating.
Full results can be seen here: https://empirestatewintergames.com/results/
The next major domestic event for USA Luge is the Norton Junior National Championships scheduled for March 2-3, at Mt. Van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid.
