Why Georgian luger Saba Kumaritashvili sums up the true Olympic spirit

There are some moments at the Olympics that are unforgettable. They are moments you would rather not have experienced.

On the day of the opening ceremony at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics I sat enthralled watching the speed of the lugers as they flew by. The scraping sound of their sleds on ice could only be described as cold and cutting, but it was addictive. It was thrilling.

And then something terrible happened.

Twenty-one-year old Nodar Kumaritashvili from Georgia lost control on the final bend, and at about 143 kilometres an hour he was thrown off his sled and over the side wall of the track. He collided with an unprotected metal pole. Medics arrived at the scene quickly. The event was televised.

There was a heaviness and a silence at the track as he was airlifted to hospital and later pronounced dead.

It was a lesson in the seriousness of what these winter sport athletes do. A split second can change a life forever, and sadly, in rare instances, end it.

The impact of that moment reverberated around the Olympic village and throughout Georgia. The team marched in the opening ceremony with black armbands, a black ribbon tied to the national flag and a space left between athletes where Nodar would have marched. They got a standing ovation. Tears were shed.

The then International Olympic Committee president, Jacques Rogge, paid tribute to the young Georgian athlete who had come to the games seeking the same dream they all seek, with it so tragically denied. There was a moment of silence with both the Olympic and Canadian flags lowered to half-mast.

During competition not a single athlete went down the course without thinking of the Georgian who was missing. Germany's Felix Loch, then 20 years old, won the gold medal, which