Pierre Lueders

0:23Here, thank you so much for doing this no problem. So you inaugurated the run that everyone's going down I hear it said there's a looters turn and everything yeah, I had a few a few mishaps in corner 7 and they Thought that they would name it after me That's it's actually quite prestigious because you either get you know another tracks around the world You'll be named after a corner if you you're either very wealthy which I'm not or you're you're dead and obviously That's not one of the things either. So It's a bit damp being in a you know on a track with you still slide on with its name after you one of the corners But it is later. Have you been on it since? Have you had a chance? Yeah, we we've had lots of runs in Whistler and it's always exciting and it's always different and very difficult as well So you pretty much have a rookie team this time. Yeah, yeah, it's a very

1:12new team somewhat an experience, but you never know I mean sometimes a little experience or not enough experience if the Olympics better than bad experience so You know I'm very happy with the guys that I have sitting behind me and they'll they'll be more than You know competitive at the start and they give 110% every every time they push the sled So I think we're well set up in that regard for sure What gave the shake up to the team will make made you do it? well, you know it comes down to performance and coaching decisions and at the end of the day you have to you have to do have a team that's Really no different little hockey team you want the best chemistry the best athletes and You know the guys that can get the job done really all the all the things that we hear so much about in every team sport So it's no different in our is that quest for the first metal the hardest for you or is it now become kind of an addiction?

2:01Almost to keep winning well I mean it's it's not an addiction At any at any point to win I mean obviously everybody trains and and does their sport to try to win and that's that's what I do every race I go into whether whether it's a World Cup or World Championships or an Olympics the goal is always to try to win and By winning that could be a silver could be a bronze but anytime you're in the top three as I learned it in nearly age is you know anytime you're on the podium, it's a great result and You know everybody's fighting for the same thing everybody wants to be Olympic champion or the silver medalist for the bronze medalist and You know it's that challenge. It's that work. It's that fight to try to be better than you've been in the past is Is what keeps me motivated? It's gonna be pretty hard to be better than you've been in the past. You've been the best

2:47Yeah, I mean, you know, it's there's a lot of young guys coming up now and it's it's it's no different in our sport than in any other sport where There's some young guys coming in there, you know, you know, making things a little bit more difficult for you and You know the one thing that's that's that's so exciting about sport is that no two days are the same and You just never know on a particular day who's going to be the best That's very true with the new team and especially with Jesse just being new to the sport There must have been a lot that you had to teach with all your experience somewhat, but I mean in in the case of the the brakeman they it's it's it's a job that they can either do it it can't do and in this case Jesse's adapted to the sport very quickly and You know it's a testament to his athletic ability Not only as a football player, but that he can come into a new sport and pick it up so quickly

3:36It says a lot about his athletic ability and how how good he is what he does Did you start as a brakeman or you always apply? I started as a brakeman my first year was 1989 when I started sliding I was a brakeman for one year and then I started driving in 1999 what was the biggest difference for you? The one thing that said that I didn't like is being a brakeman was that I didn't really see where I was going Your head's down. Yeah, you're heads down I didn't see where I was going and I just I just didn't really want to be at the mercy of somebody else's hands I wanted to you know my entire desire anyway was to be a driver and and be in that that driver seat I guess and one of the reason you know one of the things that was so compelling was that I when I was a brakeman was Was wondering how these guys drive down the hill?

4:21How do they you know it's a completely different sensation sitting behind and not seeing where you're going and you wonder What's going on in the front and that was one of the reasons why I wanted to start driving was to see exactly what they experienced in the front You become kind of like a mentor for the team I know Kaylee was talking about how you showed her the ropes kind of thing is that is that your role now for Canada? Well, I mean I still like to be competitive and you know It's not something that I force upon the athletes that I'm always there for for the younger athletes if they want some advice Or they're looking you know to have a problem solved and maybe there's something that I've been through that They're going through And it's up to them to come to me if they want if they want my my experience or my you know My ideas on something, but I certainly don't go and and This is how it needs to be done. Yeah, I'm not the godfather

5:10To type that that that tries to you know force things upon Are you gonna be using the slide you designed or you go with the candle on no right now? We're just gonna stick with what we've what we've used in the past and no no trickery right now What tell me about this like it was at the first slide you've ever designed no no no it was it was a Not really much to say I mean the project didn't really go as we planned and the sled didn't work as well as we thought and you know, it's Sometimes you you can hit it right the first time and other times in Bob's thing like we've seen with other nations They build slants for years and can never get it right so you know at this point We'll just stick with what we know works and we'll worry about the other stuff later Fair enough out of all the olympics you've been to is it fifth one now?

5:55Is it gonna point out what's the best experience for you? Well, obviously the one of the best experiences besides winning the gold medal in Nagano in 1998 was obviously those olympics. They were so well organized everything was run, you know with precision and flawless and It just just the culture in itself the Japanese culture of course being so so very different than our own was so invigorating and different and exciting and For me up until I think Vancouver wishley the games will The Nagano Olympics will be a very special one because it was so exotic and so different and the winning obviously You know that always helps do of course. What are you excited? Are you excited to see anything this time around you're gonna go to any other events?

6:40No, you know in five Olympics I've been to I've been to one other event and that was in 1994 actually somehow ended up being coerced into seeing the short program for the ladies figure skating and No, no, no, no, no just we had a day off or something in my Thought I'd go see an event and that's what it was and I knew a few of the few of the girls the rogue Lenora that were from Edmonton that were competing time, so That's my experience with watching other events live rather than that. It's really no different You know watch the events like you even route the games. I haven't had the chance to see much how long you mean doing this for you think Well, how much longer? Well, I read somewhere that this might be your last games and I hope that's not true But I'm wondering what your thoughts are well, you never know I mean

7:29There's you know, I was already involved in the program in 1992 and I didn't make the team but so this could potentially be six already But you know, I don't know what I'm going to do in the future and I hope that Bob say will always be a part of my life I'm sure it will be but at this point in time we are going to make a few this Olympics first and see where See where the road takes us. Well, it's gonna take you golden. That's what that's what's going to be Cheerleaders appreciate it. Thank you