Last summer, former U.S. Olympian Julia Clukey was only willing to take the continuation of her professional luge career one year at a time.
Now the Augusta native and Cony High School graduate hopes to continue in the sport through the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
The 30-year-old Clukey announced her goal of competing in the 2018 Winter Games during a press conference Monday morning in Augusta in conjunction with her continuing relationships as spokeswoman for the Maine Beer & Wine Distributors Association and as host of Julia Clukey’s Camp for Girls in Readfield each summer in cooperation with the Kennebec Valley YMCA.
“This is a really exciting time in my career both on and off the track,” she said. “My decision is based on my health and the tremendous support I have received from my family and friends that have supported my dreams and career. I know what it will take to get back to the Olympics and as I have told students across Maine, it is important to focus on taking things one day at a time while keeping the long-term goal in mind.
“I am excited to share my goal and I look forward to the opportunity to represent Maine at the Winter Games in 2018.”
Clukey has been a competitive luger for the last 17 years and in 2010 finished 17th in the women’s singles final at the Vancouver Olympics. Four years later, she missed qualifying for the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, by 0.013 seconds in the final qualifying race for the U.S. luge team at Park City, Utah.
She also captured the U.S. national championship in 2012 and has two silver medals in World Cup competition.
Clukey finished 17th at the 2015 International Luge Federation world championships in Sigulda, Latvia, in February and is off to a fast start this season after winning her record eighth U.S. National Start Championship in September and topping the field at the Lillehammer Cup preseason race in Norway last month.
Most recently Clukey placed fourth at Lake Placid, New York, in the first of two USA Luge Norton seeding races. The fall World Cup team trials continue Saturday in Park City, Utah, leading up to the Norton National Championships on Sunday at the same 2002 Olympic course.
The World Cup schedule kicks off on Nov. 28-29 in Innsbruck, Austria, before coming to the United States for back-to-back stops on Dec. 4-5 at Lake Placid and on Dec. 11-12 at Park City.
As part of Monday’s press conference, Clukey also unveiled plans and visual elements for her “Julia Inspires” campaign. The new community outreach campaign will feature presentations from the 2010 Olympian at Maine middle schools and high schools this spring. Clukey said the presentations will focus on encouraging students to find their passion, create a plan and go after their dreams.
During the past five years, she has presented to more than 12,000 students at more than 35 high schools across the state about the importance of setting goals, overcoming adversity and making good decisions.
