Lily Cooke

Lily Cooke is a 16-year-old luge athlete from Dublin, Ireland, who made history as the first Irish athlete to compete in luge at the Winter Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in 2024, held in Gangwon, South Korea. Inspired by Elsa Desmond, Ireland’s first Olympic luge competitor at the 2022 Beijing Games, Cooke decided to pursue the sport and contacted the Irish Luge Federation to get started. She eventually formed a close bond with Desmond, who became her coach and mentor.

At the YOG, Cooke competed in the women’s luge event, finishing 27th with a combined time of 1:42.982. Despite this being her first international competition, she showed promise, reaching speeds of over 100 km/h. Her goal is to continue her journey in luge, aiming to qualify for the senior Winter Olympics.