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VIDEO: A thrilling POV ride down the Olympic sliding track

Posted at 2:36 PM, Feb 05, 2022
and last updated 2022-02-05 18:12:48-05

These faces? Take a look at the video below and they'll make total sense.

If there's one phrase promising to dominate the luge, bobsled, and skeleton coverage at the 2022 Winter Olympics, it's going to be "zero G" and it's going to be delivered because of the Yanqing National Sliding Centre.

Located in the Xiaohaituo mountain area of Beijing, the track's challenges are many but none so daunting and intriguing as the spiral drop that sees the racer come out about 65 feet lower than they entered the turn.

Speeds can hit approximately 80mph in the event and that speed plus that drop equals huge drama. Hit up this "Beginner's Guide To Luge" if you'd like to learn more, as well as a quick luge history.

The track is being called the Snow Dragon or Flying Snow Dragon due to its overhead shape but also surely serves as a reminder of the sports' inherent menace.

The International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation released a thrilling point-of-view (POV) video on what it's like to attempt to tame the dragon, and it only amplifies excitement for the racing heading our way over the next two week.

View social media post: https://mobile.twitter.com/IBSFsliding/status/1490045414694957060

The faces of competitors testing the Sleeping Dragon
Men's single, 1st heat at Yanqing National Sliding Centre. Seiya Kobayashi from Japan, Tucker West from USA, Alexander Ferlazzo from Australia, and Svante Kohala from Sweden in the ice track.
(Photo by Michael Kappeler/picture alliance via Getty Images)