Sigulda Police Chief Juris Stucis said a criminal case had been opened over death by negligence, but he did not rule out that the crime qualification could change during the course of the investigation.
Girts Ostenieks died for reasons as yet unclear. It is the first fatality on the track since it was built in 1986.
Toward the end of a skeleton run, Ostenieks crashed into a stray bobsled and died immediately from the impact. It is not clear how the unpiloted bobsled happened to be on the track at the same time as Ostenieks.
When the accident happened, skeleton riders were practicing on the track, and a Russian team of women bobsled riders were getting ready for their turn.
The investigation should find out who was guilty of such a gross violation of the safety rules, which strictly permit only one bobsled car on the track at a time. Under the rules, the Russian team was prohibited even from setting up their bobsled on the start platform while somebody else was still practicing on the track.
Moreover, the gate to the track should have been closed at the time.
The bobsled car slid out on the track a few seconds before Ostenieks started his run. There was not enough time for the track's staff to interfere, and in the braking zone Ostenieks crashed into the bobsled. Its runners penetrated his helmet.
Skeleton is a new sport in Latvia, practiced only for the last few years, and Ostenieks was one of its pioneers in Latvia.
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