Kumaritashvili lost control of his sled, went over the track wall and struck an unpadded steel pole near the finish line at Whistler Sliding Center.
Rescue workers were at his side within seconds, chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation started less than one minute after the crash, and he was quickly airlifted to a trauma center in Whistler.
Terrible news for a very fast sport. It's certainly a great risk you take traveling so fast with so little separating yourself from the outside world. Tragic to hear of this just a few hours before the opening ceremonies when Olympians are all equal and are just there to represent their countries and be rewarded for years of hard work.
