Loch Not A Lock To Win Luge Gold
Going into the final run of the Men’s Singles in the Luge event, Felix Loch – the favorite at every sportsbook in the world (-110 at Bovada, -111 at Bet365) – was 0.192 seconds ahead of the field. While it doesn’t sound like much, this is a huge lead in Luge, where placement is often measured in hundredths of a second. So, for PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics bettors, Loch winning his third straight Gold in the event seemed like a foregone conclusion. As it turns out, however, Loch was not a lock for Luge Gold after all.
In fact, Loch didn’t even podium. Instead, he hit a wall. Literally. Halfway down the course in his last run, the German came in too high on a curve and crashed into the lip, sending him careening sideways on the ice. While he deftly recovered and finished the race, the time of Loch’s final slide was 48.109 seconds, more than 0.5 seconds longer than his previous run. Because these runs are scored on aggregate, that lone mistake sent Loch into fifth place and sent many bettors to the cleaners.
With Loch out, the olympic betting odds ultimate Men’s Luge winners were all longshots to medal. Austria’s David Gleirscher became his country’s first Olympic Luge Gold medalist in 50 years, paying out a whopping +3300 to savvy bettors who took the underdog. Silver went to America’s Chris Mazdzer, who has never podiumed in the sport at any level of international competition prior to PyeongChang 2018. Germany’s Johannes Ludwig won Bronze. It is worth pointing out that not one of the top five favorites on Bovada’s boards even medaled in the Luge this year, a rare occurrence in its own right, as sportsbooks are typically deft at handicapping this particular event.