The games were affected by the deaths of Australian alpine skier Ross Milne and a British luge slider , during training , and by the deaths , 3 years earlier , of the entire US figure skating team and family members . The games were affected by the deaths of Australian alpine skier Ross Milne and British luge slider Kazimierz Kay-Skrzypeski , during training , and by the deaths , three years earlier , of the entire US figure skating team and family members ( see Prior tragedies below ) .