USA Luge Names its 2007-08 Athletes and Team of the Year

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. --- USA luge recognized five athletes as the association named its 2007-08 Athletes and Team of the Year, Thursday, May 15.

Male Athlete of the Year: In just his first season as a member of the U.S. luge team, Bengt Walden (Westborough, Mass.) claimed the 2008 Male Athlete of the Year award. Formally of Sweden, Walden enjoyed a career-best season in 2007-08. The 35-year-old finished a career-high 13th in the final 2008 overall World Cup rankings and was 12th at the 40th World Luge Championships, held in Oberhof, Germany, also a career-best. Walden closed out the 2007-08 season claiming his first Verizon U.S. national championship crown.

Female Athlete of the Year: Erin Hamlin (Remsen, N.Y.) grabbed her first-career Female Athlete of the Year trophy. Last season, Hamlin slid to six top-10 World Cup results en route to a career-high seventh place overall World Cup finish. The 22-year-old was also eighth at Worlds before winning the 2008 Verizon U.S. national championship women's singles crown.

Team of the Year: Chris Mazdzer (Saranac Lake, N.Y.) and Jayson Terdiman (Berwick, Pa.) were honored as USA Luge's Team of the Year. In their final season on the junior (to age 20) World Cup circuit, the pair raced to silver medals in all six races and finished as the series' overall silver medalists. Mazdzer, 20, and Terdiman, 19, also raced to silver at the junior world championships, held in Lake Placid, N.Y., before claiming the junior doubles national championship crown and a bronze medal at the Verizon U.S. national championships.

Junior Female Athlete of the Year: Only 15-years-old in February, Kate Hansen (La Cañada, Calif.) became the United States' youngest-ever junior world luge champion. That victory, combined with helping USA Luge to the 23rd Junior World Luge Championship team event gold medal, allowed Hansen to win the 2008 Junior Female Athlete of the Year award. Hansen also won the 2008 junior women's U.S. singles title.

Junior Male Athlete of the Year: In addition to winning the Team of the Year award, Mazdzer secured his fifth-career Junior Male Athlete of the Year honor. As a singles slider on the junior World Cup tour, Mazdzer won three gold and two silver medals, while finishing second overall. Mazdzer was also a two-time junior Challenge Cup medalist and a two-time junior World Cup team event medalist. He also helped guide the U.S. team to the 23rd Junior World Luge Championship team event gold medal. The 20-year-old wrapped up 2007-08 as the Verizon U.S. junior national champion. Mazdzer's success this season was all the more noteworthy in light of a ruptured spleen he experienced during the summer of 2007.