Pavel Repilov will take part in luge competitions at the Olympics on February 7.

Luge skier Pavel Repilov will become one of the first athletes from Russia to compete at the start of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. He will compete in a neutral status in the men's singles competition. The first race is scheduled for Saturday, February 7, immediately after the opening ceremony of the Games, and the second will be held on Sunday, February 8.

According to the schedule, on Saturday, February 7, the luge singles competition will start at 19:00 Moscow time and continue at 20:32 Moscow time. On Sunday, February 8, they will begin at 19:00 and 20:31 Moscow time.

Pavel Repilov qualified for the 2026 Olympics at the end of 2025. Before that, the athlete had to earn the necessary ranking points at the World Cup stages in a short time. As a result, he scored 40 points, overtaking his closest pursuer Matvey Perestoronin and securing his Olympic license.

Assessing Pavel's chances of winning, experts note that it is difficult to call him a favorite at the moment. Although he won the national championship in 2022, in subsequent seasons he failed to reach the podium of the tournament. Right now, Repilov's main task is to show stable results in all four races and enter the top 15 of the strongest luge runners.

Passed the stage: three Russian luge athletes fulfilled the Olympic criteria

At the World Cup in Lake Placid, our team competed in a squad that was cut in half, but qualified for the Games.

Pavel Repilov was born in Dmitrov, Moscow region, on July 16, 2002. The 23-year—old's older brother, Roman Repilov, is a famous luge skier, multiple European Championships medalist, three-time world champion and two-time World Cup winner. In 2022, Roman represented the Russian national team at the Beijing Olympics.

Pavel followed in his brother's footsteps and started training at the age of seven. His first mentor was Olga Ryabova, and later he worked with Alexandra Parfentieva. At the junior level, Repilov successfully competed at the World Cup, and in 2020 won silver in the individual competition and gold in the team relay at the Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne (Switzerland).

Since 2021, the luge rider has started his career in adult sports. The following season, he won the Russian Championships in Sochi in singles and sprints. This success allowed him to join the Olympic team's training sessions. In 2022, he was awarded the title of Master of Sports.

Luge competitions at the 2026 Winter Olympics will be held from February 7 to 12 at the track of the bobsleigh center in Cortina d'Ampezzo. In addition to Pavel Repilov, Daria Olesik will perform at them on February 9 and 10. A total of 106 athletes from 19 countries participate in luge competitions. As a result, five sets of awards will be awarded — in singles and doubles for men and women, as well as in the mixed relay.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.