Ukrainian luger Andriy Mandziy is an internet star for two reasons.
Even though Mandziy ended up in last place among the 40 lugers in competition during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games, he finished his run in style.
Ukraine’s Andriy Mandziy lost control, but got back on his sled to stay in the competition #PyeongChang2018 pic.twitter.com/2ZCBcFuE87
— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) February 10, 2018
Mandziy, a native of Ternopil Oblast, was 15 seconds into his first run on Feb. 10 when he bumped into the track wall and his sled spun out from under him. What he did next surprised everyone: he managed to grab the sled, hop back on, and reach the end of the course with a result of 1:02.395.
Andriy Mandziy of #UKR fell off his sled during his first luge run, but hopped back on in the middle of the course to finish. pic.twitter.com/o0so5QA9Yi
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 10, 2018
The video is available for American viewers.
Mandziy’s first World Cup season was in 2008–2009. He finished in his first World Cup race 46th in Igls, Austria. Before 2014 Winter Olympics he participated at three World Championships always finishing in the range of from 27 to 31. In the men’s singles event at the last Olympics, he was 31st.
But Mandziy is famous for another reason – he had to make his own sled because the Ukrainian Luge Federation failed to provide him with one.
According to Mandziy, he got hold of runners worth 1,200 euros, brackets for 290 euros, and two pairs of special rubber parts for 30 euros each. He had to assemble the sled himself in his garage and later posted the pictures of his work on his Facebook page. “Last year I assembled the sled at my own expense,” Mandziy was quoted as saying in one of the interviews.
The Ministry of Sports has already reacted to Mandziy’s comments.
Pavlo Bulgak, an adviser to the sports minister, said that the parts that were ordered by the coaching staff and the Federation during the Olympic preparation were not delivered in full to the athletes who were to represent Ukraine at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.
According to Bulgak, the Ukrainian Luge Federation bought three German-made sleds worth Hr 80,000 or 2,400 euros. They also purchased six pairs of runners for Hr 30,000 or almost 900 euros, and an electric sander for Hr 7,200 or 215 euros.
“We will find out why the federation and coaching staff initially ordered seven sleds, which would be enough for all participants of the games, and then ended up only ordering three,” Bulgak said in a statement published on Feb. 15. He also noted that Mandziy will get a new sled, as will the other five members of Ukraine’s Olympic Luge team.
Ukraine has allocated Hr 120 million (3,589,480 euros) to training athletes for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.
