Nodar Kumaritashvili (1988–2010) was a Georgian luge athlete who suffered a fatal crash during a training run for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, on the day of the opening ceremony. He became the fourth athlete to die from practice at any of the Winter Olympics, and the seventh athlete to die from practice or competition at any of the Olympic Games. Kumaritashvili, who first participated in luge when he was 13, came from a family of seasoned lugers: his grandfather had introduced the sport to the Soviet republic of Georgia, and both his father and uncle had competed when they were younger, with his uncle later serving as the head of the Georgian Luge Federation. Kumaritashvili himself began competing in the 2008–09 Luge World Cup. He had also been a student at Georgian Technical University, where he earned an economics degree in 2009 while adhering to a strict training regimen and participating in competitions.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nodar_Kumaritashvili

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1820:

Chilean War of Independence: Chilean forces captured the city of Valdivia and its harbour, depriving the Spanish Empire of an important naval base. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_Valdivia

1899:

The Philippine–American War began when an American soldier, under orders to keep insurgents away from his unit's encampment, fired on a Filipino soldier in Manila. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Manila_%281899%29

1975:

Haicheng, China, was struck by a 7.3 ML earthquake, but the death toll was relatively low thanks to evacuations ordered by the government. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1975_Haicheng_earthquake

2015:

Shortly after takeoff from Taipei Songshan Airport, the crew of TransAsia Airways Flight 235 shut down the wrong engine in response to a flameout, leading to a crash that resulted in 43 deaths. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TransAsia_Airways_Flight_235

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

carcinoma: 1. (countable) An invasive malignant tumour derived from epithelial tissue that tends to metastasize to other areas of the body. 2. (obsolete, countable) A form of cancer; (uncountable) cancer in general as a disease. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/carcinoma

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

We remain vigilant. We remain prepared. Last night's operation took a major terrorist leader off the battlefield. And it sent a strong message to terrorists around the world: We will come after you and find you. Once again, today, we continue our unceasing effort to keep the American people safe and to strengthen the security of our Allies and partners around the world. I want to thank you all. And may God bless you. And may God protect our troops.   --Joe Biden https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Joe_Biden