Thailand's Sunita Chaiyapantho and Thiraphat Sata: How luge has changed our life
Sunita Chaiyapantho and Thiraphat Sata, who are hoping to become their nation's first Olympic luge athletes at the next Winter Youth Olympics Gangwon 2024, tell Olympics.com why they got into luge, and why they love the PyeongChang 2018 track.
Luge
Thailand sent five athletes to the Winter Youth Olympic games Lausanne 2020 in alpine skiing, cross country skiing, and short track speed skating.
Using that momentum, the southeast Asian nation is branching out further into winter sports at Gangwon 2024 through teenage duo Sunita Chaiyapantho and Thiraphat Sata, who are set to become the first luge athletes from their country to take part in an Olympic event.
“Luge is an exciting sport. It's a sport that uses speed and concentration. It makes me happy and it gives me excitement every time I am on the track,” Thiraphat Sata, 17, told Olympics.com.
The pair honed their skills at the Olympic Solidarity-supported FIL-luge school, which took place on the World Cup track in Sigulda, Latvia, and at Continental Cup Youth events in Winterberg, Germany, and PyeongChang, Republic of Korea.
Taking part in such a sport not only gives Chaiyapantho and Sata the chance to make history, but also expanded their horizons away from the ice.
“It was the first sport that brought me to different countries. I’ve now been to many places that I had never been before and gained new experiences,” Surin Province native Sata continued.
“These opportunities are not easy to get, so I feel very lucky to be here. I will do the best I can to make history as the first male luge athlete of Thailand.”
Thailand's Thiraphat Sata finishes a luge run on the Continental Cup Youth series in PyeongChang. He hopes to become Thailand's first male luge athlete in an Olympic event.
From roller skis in Thailand to luge in South Korea
Sunita Chaiyapantho began her sports career as a roller skier, basketball player and provincial petanque player in Ubon Ratchathani.
The now 16-year-old transitioned to luge (on wheels) at a Ski and Snowboard Association of Thailand (SSAT) athlete selection camp in Bangkok, April 2022.
A strong performance saw Chaiyapantho get selected for the programme, and she was invited to take part in luge training on ice in South Korea, as part of the New Horizon Programme run by the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Legacy Foundation.
“It was a very exciting experience, and I knew straight away that I liked this sport very much,” the Ubon Ratchathani native, who's favourite athlete in the sport is Italy’s Dominik Fischnaller, said.
Sunita Chaiyapantho training on the beach in Thailand, in preparation for luge events on ice overseas.
“Since then, I have sacrificed a lot of things in my life, like leaving full-time education, in order to commit to my training.
“I'm very proud to have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, to change my personality and become an athlete.
“The sport has made me more brave and given me a stronger mindset because it's fast, and one small mistake could ruin the whole run.” - Sunita Chaiyapantho to Olympics.com
Sunita Chaiyapantho takes part in a roller skiing session in Thailand. It was the sport she tried before transitioning to luge.
A Gangwon 2024 advantage: the PyeongChang 2018 luge track
The luge event at Gangwon 2024 will take place on the Winter Olympics PyeongChang 2018 track, which is great news for the Thai pair, as one of the two tracks they have experience sliding on.
After representing Thailand at their first Youth Continental Cup in February (2023) in PyeongChang, Sata, who cites Austria's Wolfgang Kindl as one of his heroes in the sport, is counting every day until Gangwon 2024 kicks off.
“I love the PyeongChang track, it’s like home to me,” Sata said.
“My favourite curve is the 12th because it was the first curve that I could remember executing properly, and I have a special trick to do well on this curve.”
The Ski and Snowboard Association of Thailand team have fun at the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic track, which will host the Youth Winter Olympic Games Gangwon 2024.
Since the start of their season in mid-October 2023, both Sata and Chaiyapantho have been focusing on the YOG qualifying events in Sigulda, Winterberg, Oberhof, and PyeongChang.
"It is important to maintain the momentum until Gangwon 2024,“ explained Sata.
"The fact that even a tiny mistake can ruin the entire run helps me stay very focused.
"It is an amazing feeling to be part of the Thai dream, to compete at Gangwon 2024 in luge and it is even more amazing to see this dream become reality so quickly," said Chaiyapantho.
"We’ll see you at Gangwon 2024."