Iginia Boccalandro

Iginia Boccalandro Valentina (born February 14, 1961 in Caracas, Distrito Capital) is a Venezuelan Olympic athlete [ [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/longterm/olympics1998/sport/luge/articles/olyluge13.htm All for One, and Luge for All] - "Washington Post" - Amy Shipley - February 13, 1998] . She was born in Caracas, Venezuela, lived in the US, in Salt Lake City. She was a volleyball player and downhill skier in Venezuela before dropping her career due to chronic knee problems. In 1994, still desiring to participate in the Olympics, she joined a developmental luge program sponsored by the U.S. luge association. She therefore took part in the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics and she ended at the 28th in luge in Nagano [ [http://www.todor66.com/olim/1998w/Luge_Women_Singles.html Luge results in Nagano] ] . Boccalandro in Nagano was the first woman from Venezuela who participated in the Winter Olympic Games.

In 2002, during the Winter Games in Salt Lake City, she carried the Venezuelan flag in opening ceremonies. At the end of her first descent she lost control of her sled, having a serious accident caused. In one of the last curves she lost her balance due to the centrifugal forces and was separate from her sled. The Venezuelan hit a number of times on both sides of the lane against the track and remained motionless for some time on the ice. [ [http://deseretnews.com/oly/view/0,3949,70000648,00.html Luge diversity plan is questioned after horrific track crash] - "Deseret News" - Brady Snyder - ]

Boccalandro remained wonderfully enough unharmed, but was disqualified because her ride was not properly concluded.

Reference

* [http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/bo/iginia-boccalandro-1.html sports-reference]