Norton | Saint-Gobain and partner USA Luge Team primed to race in Beijing

As Norton | Saint-Gobain celebrates the 40th anniversary of its partnership with the USA Luge Team and prepares for the team’s competition at the Olympic Games in Beijing in February, the company has announced plans for a number of events. These include 20 “company watch parties” that will take place during the games, an Adopt-a-Luge athlete program, and a Luge Challenge event at a New England ski area.

“Our 40-year partnership with the USA Luge Team is a tremendous, continually evolving collaboration that enables employee engagement opportunities and innovative results in research and development,” said Norton | Saint-Gobain’s Abby Marschke, executive director of marketing, DIY, system components and customer service, abrasives, North America. “It’s also a unique experience to see our products in action while supporting the fastest sport on ice, and we are excited to host and sponsor the first ever USA Luge Watch Parties. These parties will give the families of the athletes and our employees an opportunity to come together in Lake Placid, N.Y., to watch and celebrate not only the sport of luge, but the athletes behind the sleds and their families.”

At the Norton Luge Challenge, taking place in March at Wachusett Mountain Ski area in Princeton, Mass., the USA Luge Team will allow the public to try the sport using recreational luge sleds while simultaneously searching for promising young sliders to join the team.

In addition, the abrasives manufacturer is continuing its Adopt an Athlete Program, supporting 15 USA Luge athletes through donations from employees at 11 different Norton locations. The goal of the support is to help alleviate some of the cost burdens that the athletes face and give them a chance to focus on their training and competitions. Throughout the year there are opportunities for the athletes to visit Norton sites and meet the employees that are providing their support.

The relationship between Norton, a brand of Saint-Gobain, and USA Luge dates back to 1980 when the company began donating Norton sandpaper products for USA Luge athletes to shape and polish runners on the sleds. Today the athletes use Norton abrasive products extensively to prepare their sleds for racing and sliding on steels made up of a special composition that was identified through the expertise of Norton engineers.