Bell Atlantic Junior Luge Series Rolls Into Providence, Sept. 11-12

Bell Atlantic Junior Luge Series Rolls Into Providence, Sept. 11-12

Call 1-800-USA Luge to Participate

August 26, 1999

PROVIDENCE, R.I. --The Bell Atlantic Junior Luge Series rolls into
Providence, Sept. 11-12, affording youngsters with Olympic aspirations an
opportunity to experience the thrill of the sport and to train with coaches
and members of the United States Luge Team.

During a series of three-hour clinics each day along Pine Street (behind
the Providence Performing Arts Center), boys and girls, ages 10-14, will
learn the fundamentals of luge racing at slow speeds as they roll down a
paved roadway atop sleds on wheels. Sessions will be held from 9 a.m.
to noon and 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. The $15 entry fee includes a souvenir tee
shirt.

USA Luge officials view the Bell Atlantic Junior Luge Series as the
primary means of recruitment for a national program whose athletes
captured silver and bronze medals during last year's Olympic Winter
Games in Nagano, Japan.

The United States Luge Association's traveling luge ramp will be used
during the clinics. Youngsters will learn about properly positioning
themselves on the sled, accurate steering, slowing the sled and bringing it
to a stop. The sessions also include a fun race and moderate physical
testing to gauge the youngsters' athletic ability.

The best athletes discovered at these and other clinics held this summer
throughout Bell Atlantic's Northeast and mid-Atlantic region will be
invited to train on ice next winter. They also will be considered for the
2000-2001 United States Luge Association's Junior Development Team.

Olympic Bronze Medalist Brian Martin is a graduate of the 1987 Junior
Luge Series. Nearly all members of the current Junior National Team
were discovered through this program and have progressed to the level of
international luge racing.

Anyone interested in attending a clinic in Providence is invited to call 1-800-USA LUGE.

For more information, visit www.usaluge.org or www.bellatlantic.com/usaluge on
the Internet.

In the spirit of the Olympic movement, the United States Luge Association seeks
to provide for the achievement of excellence in the sport of luge, with the highest
degree of sportsmanship and victory as the standards. The United States Luge
Association endeavors to recruit, develop, train and support dedicated athletes so
they may represent themselves and the United States of America, with honor, in
all luge competitions.

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