Death Of Georgian Luger Dampens Initial Winter Olympics Press

The death of Nodar Kumaritashvili, a luger from the Republic of Georgia, during an Olympic trial yesterday has added a somber note to the start of the games 2010 Vancouver games, exemplified in the moving entrance of the country’s seven remaining athletes at last night’s opening ceremony. This morning, as newspapers across the country reported on Friday’s welcoming event, excitement was juxtaposed with tragedy.

Now, a New York Times report from the Winter Olympics-specific Rings blog quotes Olympic officials saying that the death was the fault of the athlete, not the course. True or not, it’s not exactly the best press for the start of the games.

The crash that resulted in the death of the luge athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili was caused by his errors on the course and not a deficiency in the Whistler Sliding Centre course, the Olympic organizing committee and the sport’s international governing body said in a joint statement issued late Friday.

In all likelihood, more ink will be spilled in the coming days on the accident — doubtlessly including some unpleasant finger-pointing — but even this morning’s national newspaper front pages took note of the deadly crash.

The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune and San Francisco Chronicle all ran either a photo of the crash or a headline mourning the accident. A gallery of the commemorative front pages — a mix of joy and sadness — can be seen below with the scans via Front Pages.