The Winter Olympics feature many sports that Americans aren't necessarily familiar with. Some viewers wonder if certain competitions should be called sports or if they should even take place at all. Sledding is one of those sports that leaves viewers wondering why anyone should play it in the first place. Participants in the game lie on a fiberglass sled without a braking system and roll feet first down the icy track at speeds of up to 140 kilometers per hour. Participants risk death if they crash onto the icy track at such high speeds. Some athletes lost their lives after getting off the sled, while others were seriously injured. This is a dangerous game that can only be compared to a suicide attempt. Luge is a narrow sledding game that slides down mountains at faster speeds than skeleton and bobsleigh. Brown and Frantz note that luge is one of the fastest Olympic sports where participants exceed speeds of 140 kilometers per hour. Today, the official luge track speed record is 153.98 kilometers per hour (Brown and Frantz). Despite its ability to entertain audiences, attract large, enthusiastic crowds, and keep viewers in suspense as they wonder if competitors will succeed, luge has been cited as the strangest sport due to its extreme danger . It is the only Olympic sport where a prayer is a necessity because the participant does not know whether he will succeed or die at the end of the game. Competitors must therefore pray to their gods to prevent them from ending up a mess of bones and flesh at the end of the game. Simply put, sledding can be likened to a suicide mission. Additionally, the sliders must stay on the sled and maintain a strictly aerodynamic shape as they carefully keep track of where the middle of the paper is......the game being rough on the neck and back muscles. back, only ten injuries were recorded as serious injuries constituting fractures (Epstein). While these statistics are appealing to people looking to participate in sledding, it should be noted that sledding is a dangerous game. Sledding is a dangerous game because unlike many games where the audience cheers enthusiastically for their teams, luge enthusiasts cheer on their players while holding their breath in suspense wondering if they will survive or die. Sledding is the only game where players are advised to maintain close contact with their gods to help them stay alive along the way. It's the only game where family members may start crying when a loved one reveals their desire to participate in the game rather than encouraging them to join the team. This probably explains the slow growth of luge despite its rich history...