It’s almost time for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games! This year, they are being held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada from February 12-25. We wanted to find out which American athletes we should be watching as they go for the gold in 2010!
Rachel is 17 and Mirai is 16 – both are still in high school and both are headed to the 2010 Winter Olympic Team in January’s US Figure Skating Championships, held in Washington state.
No. 9: Angela Ruggiero :: Women’s Hockey 55m5b
The three-time Olympic hockey player is hoping to end her career on ice better than she did on TV. Angela survived 10 weeks on The Apprentice before Donald Trump told her she was fired. Now she’s made up her mind to go for gold one more time in Vancouver.
No. 8: Shauna Rohbock :: Bobsleigh 5lz20
In 2002, Shauna had been pushing someone else’s sled for two years before a last-minute replacement bumped that woman off the Olympic Games as a driver and earned a silver medal in the women's event.
No. 7: Shani Davis :: Long Track Speed Skating 5m2y3y
Shani, 26, is one of only two men to win sprint and allround world titles. At Turin he won gold in the 1,000 - the first African American to win an individual medal in the Winter Games - and silver in the 1,500. He's favored again at both distances.
No. 6: Katie Uhlaender :: Skeleton 656i36
Though several of the skeleton team have won World Cup championships, none has climbed the Olympic podium. Katie will be fighting for that honor as she speeds down the icy track.
While Florida isn’t exactly the first place that comes to mind when you think of ice skating, Caydee and Jeremy are positioned to win gold at the 2010 Games, especially after winning first place at the recent 2010 US Figure Skating Championships.
No. 4: Lindsey Jacobellis :: Snowboard Cross 3c6tu
Lindsey’s learned her lesson after blowing a huge lead in Torino in 2006, when she decided to plat crowd-pleaser with some hot-dogging that cost her gold. If she tones down the sizzle, we think she’ll walk away from Vancouver with some pretty nice hardware around her neck in 2010.
No. 3: Apolo Ohno :: Short Track Speed Skating 393d6p
Apolo, always easy to spot with his red bandana and soul patch, won Dancing With The Stars and has had tons of success in short track speed skating, with five Olympic medals (two gold, one silver, two bronze) that tie him with for second place for the most won by any U.S. winter athlete in history.
No. 2: Lindsey Vonn :: Alpine Skiing 2c1s6t
In 2008-09, she became the first American woman - and second American ever - to win two alpine skiing overall World Cup titles in a row, but Lindsey’s probably best known for her fearless recovery from a crash at the 2006 Torino Games. Two days after being hospitalized Lindsey decided to race in the Olympic downhill, finishing an impressive eighth.
No. 1: Shaun White :: Snowboarding 2l5r4h
With a 2006 Olympic halfpipe crown.
Related Stories:
