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Olympic Luger Tucker West Making Hometown Appearance In Ridgefield

RIDGEFIELD, Conn. — Tucker West, Ridgefield's own Olympic luger, will be sliding into this hometown on Wednesday, Sept. 7, for a fun personal appearance. 

Tucker West of Ridgefield, who competed in Sochi in luge, is aiming for his second Olympics in South Korea.

Tucker West of Ridgefield, who competed in Sochi in luge, is aiming for his second Olympics in South Korea.

Photo Credit: Facebook/Team Tucker
Tucker West will make an appearance Wednesday at a free Family Movie Night on Wednesday in his hometown of Ridgefield.

Tucker West will make an appearance Wednesday at a free Family Movie Night on Wednesday in his hometown of Ridgefield.

Photo Credit: Contributed

West, who was the youngest member of the U.S. Luge Team at the Olympics in Sochi, will be in town for a Meet and Greet at The Prospector Theatre before a free showing of — what else — "Cool Runnings," the story of the Jamaican Bobsled team. 

Residents are invited to come out, enjoy the movie and wish West good luck on his upcoming World Cup season. 

West learned the sport in a luge run built by his father in the backyard of their home in Ridgefield, inspired by the Olympics in Salt Lake City in 2002. 

He is now in full training mode for the next Winter Olympic games, which are only 17 months away in Pyeongchang, South Korea. 

The special event Wednesday is sponsored by Dr. Blaine Langberg, a Ridgefield orthodontist. 

Last December, West made luge history with his U.S. teammate Chris Mazdzer in a Luge World Cup race in Lake Placid, N.Y. In that race, Mazdzer earned his first-ever win in a luge world cup two-heat race, with West right behind him in second place.

It marked the first time that two U.S. men have gone one-two on the podium in a luge world cup race.

In January 2015, West was named the co-winner of the Athlete of the Month award from the U.S. Olympic Committee. West had opened the 2014-15 World Cup season by earning two podium finishes in December 2014, highlighted by his first world cup victory in Lake Placid.

With the win, he became the youngest American man – and the first in 17 years – to win a FIL World Cup singles race. The following weekend, he added a silver medal in the men’s sprint event at the FIBT World Cup in Calgary, Alberta.

In the 2014 Winter Olympics, West finished 22nd overall in the men's luge, becoming an Internet and television sensation in the process.

He has been a member of the U.S. National team since 2010. 

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