Latvians grab Goodwill gold

Feb 24, 2000

Prusis and Ozols notched a time of three minutes, 49.13 seconds to win by .22 seconds in the two-man event over a German team that finished second in the world championships earlier this month.

Controversy clouded the bobsled and luge events because of the difficulty of Lake Placid's new $24 million track that sent two competitors to the hospital and prompted five top luge stars to drop out.

But Prusis and others saw it as a challenge.

"It was a difficult track for everybody," Prusis told the Agence France-Presse. "But I adapted very quickly. I have raced for 17 years and I've seen a few things in my life."

Latvia scored another medal on the track as Iluta Gaile won the bronze in the women's luge with a time of one minute, 38.942 seconds, 0.919 seconds behind the leader.

Held biannually, the Goodwill Games are the brainchild of American billionaire Ted Turner and have desperately fought for recognition in international sports circles. The games typically draw the world's best athletes but are still overshadowed by the world championships and the Olympic Games.

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