Editing Sledding (section)

==Competitive sledding==
[[Image:Bobfahrer Davos.jpg|thumb|left|The Swiss bobsleigh team from [[Davos]], ca. 1910]]
[[Image:Engineering skeleton sled.jpg|thumb|Building a high tech modern [[Skeleton (sport)|Skeleton]] sled for Olympic grade racing.]]
[[Sweden]] and [[Norway]] recorded some early Kicksled Races during the 15th century.<ref name="usaluge1">{{cite web|url=http://usaluge.org/aboutluge/history.php/ |title=United States Luge Association |publisher=Usaluge.org |access-date=November 25, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Norwegian kicksled history|date=20 February 2011 |url=http://blogs.transparent.com/norwegian/norwegian-kicksled-history/|publisher=Norwegian Language Blog|access-date=November 14, 2013}}</ref> The modern sport of sledding ([[Luge]] – [[Skeleton (sport)|Skeleton]] and [[Bobsleigh|Bobsledding]]) originated in [[St. Moritz]], [[Switzerland]] in the mid-to-late 19th century when vacationing guests adapted delivery sleds for recreational purposes and from there, it quickly spread to [[Davos]] and other Swiss towns and villages.<ref>{{cite web|title=A Brief History of Snow Sledding in Europe|url=http://www.alpinesleds.com/sledding-history.html|publisher=www.alpinesleds.com|access-date=12 November 2013}}</ref>

Modern competitive sledding started in 1883 in Davos, Switzerland. An Australian student named George Robertson won what is reputed to be the world’s first international sled race. He outraced 19 other competitors from England, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States on a four kilometre stretch of road from St. Wolfgang to the town of Klosters.<ref name="The first luge competition">[[International Luge Federation#History]]</ref> Soon the Bobsleigh, Luge, and Skeleton were developed in succession. By mid-decade, [[Kulm Hotel St. Moritz|Kulm Hotel]] owner [[Caspar Badrutt]] had the first run or course purpose built for the fledgling sport. The opening of formal competition for Luge was in 1883 and for Bobsleds in 1884 at St. Moritz. in 1926, the [[International Olympic Committee]] declared bobsleigh and skeleton as Olympic sports and adopted the rules of the St. Moritz run as the officially recognized Olympic rules.<ref name="FIBT">{{cite web |url=http://www.fibt.com/ |title=Federation Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing |access-date=2007-07-18 }}</ref> It was not until 2002, however, that skeleton itself was added permanently to the Olympic program with the [[2002 Winter Olympics]] in [[Salt Lake City, Utah]].

There are three Olympic sledding competitions. Bobsled:  Men's two and four-crew, Women's 2 crew. Luge: Men's singles, Men's doubles, Women's singles (Team Relay – Olympic discipline starting in 2014). Skeleton: Men's singles, Women's singles

Time line for key Competitive Sledding events

*1883 – First international luge competition in [[Davos]], [[Switzerland]]<ref name="The first luge competition"/>
*1883 – [[Luge|First organized meeting for Luge and Skeleton at St. Moritz, Switzerland]]
*1884 – [[Cresta Run|St Moritz Tobogganing Club (SMTC) and Cresta Run founded in St. Moritz, Switzerland]]
*1884 – [[Bobsleigh|First organized meeting for Bobsleds at St. Moritz, Switzerland]]
*1897 – First bobsleigh club founded in St. Moritz, Switzerland<ref>{{cite web|title=St Moritz Bobsleigh Club 1897|url=http://www.bobclub-stmoritz.ch/?rub=6&id=25|publisher=www.bobclubstmoritz.ch|access-date=November 14, 2013|language=de}}</ref>
*1904 – [[International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation|The Olympia Bobrun at St. Moritz, the first purpose built Bobsled track (Bobrun)]] built by Emil Thoma and the last remaining natural Bobrun of the world<ref>{{cite web|title=Olympia Bobrun St. Moritz 1904|url=http://www.bobclub-stmoritz.ch/?rub=6&id=25|publisher=www.bobclubstmoritz.ch|access-date=November 14, 2013|language=de}}</ref>
*1906 – First Skeleton competition outside of Switzerland (in [[Mürzzuschlag]], [[Austria]])
*-- (Skeleton a Swiss competition only until 1906)
*1913 – [[International Luge Federation|First International Sled Sports Federation founded in Dresden, Germany]]
*-- (governed Bobsled, Luge and Skeleton until 1923 and Luge only until 1935)
*1914 – [[International Luge Federation|First European Luge Championships at Liberec, Czech Republic]]
*1923 – [[International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation|FITB (Fédération Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing) created]] for Bobsleigh and Skeleton in Paris, France
*1924 – [[International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation|First appearance of bobsleigh competition at the I. Winter Olympics in Chamonix]]
*1926 – Bobsleigh and Skeleton final approval for Olympic competition
*1928 – [[International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation|First Bobsleigh and Skeleton appearance at the II. Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland]]
*1930 – [[FIBT World Championships|First FIBT World Championships (4-man Bobsled)]]
*1932 – [[International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation|First two-man Bobsled competition at the III. Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, USA]]
*1935 – Luge incorporated into the FIBT (Fédération Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing)
*1948 – [[International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation|Bobsleigh and Skeleton 2nd appearance at the V. Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland]]
*1954 – [[International Luge Federation|IOC determined that Luge would replace skeleton as a Winter Olympic discipline]]
*1955 – [[International Luge Federation|First Luge World Championships in Oslo, Norway]]
*1957 – [[International Luge Federation|International Luge Federation (FIL) founded]]
*1964 – [[International Luge Federation|First Luge appearance at the IX. winter Olympics at Innsbruck, Austria]]
*1969 – [[Skeleton (sport)|First artificially refrigerated track in at Königssee/Berchtesgaden, Germany]]
*1984 – [[List of Bobsleigh World Cup champions|First Bobsleigh World Cup]]
*1987 – [[International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation|First Skeleton European Championships]]
*1989 – [[List of Skeleton World Cup champions|First Skeleton World Championships]]
*2002 – [[Skeleton (sport)|Skeleton competition reintroduced for the XIX. Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, USA]]