Category Archives: Olympic Previews

Bobsleigh, Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014

Bobsleigh Preview

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The US seems to have gotten on track in the four-man and two-woman events having won three medals in each event over the last three Olympics. The story is not so great in the two-man event where the US hasn’t won a medal in 62 years. With some experienced teams returning, including a team that nearly won the bronze at the last world championship, is 2014 the year to end that streak?

Bobsleigh’s Olympic History

Bobsleigh was one of the first Winter Olympic events debuting in 1924 but it has not been held consecutively since then. The one year it was not held was in 1960 when the organizers of the games in Squaw Valley, California didn’t want to spend the money to build a track. The original event was the four-man event while a two-man version was added in 1932. Women’s bobsleigh didn’t debut until 2002 when a two-woman version was added.

Switzerland has won 30 of the 124 bobsleigh medals contested but Germany has the most gold medals with ten of the 42. The US ranks third in both categories with 21 medals, seven of them gold.

A bobsleigh track
A bobsleigh track

www.guigo.eu via Compfight cc

How the Bobsleigh Competitions Work

Bobsleigh’s competitions use sleds that are rode in by teams of two or four. One of the athletes is the driver while another works the breaks. In the four-man competition the other two are there to help push start the sled before jumping in and just riding along. All of the bobsleigh competitions involve four runs over two days with the total time determining the winners.

US Team

The team is made up of eight men and six women. Six of the athletes are returning from Vancouver and two of them were part of the team in Turin. Oh and two of the athletes were part of the Summer Olympic team in Beijing and London, one of them also part of the team in Athens.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Bobsleigh

Men:
Cory Butner
Nick Cunningham*
Christopher Fogt*
Steve Holcomb**
Steven Langton*
Johnny Quinn
Dallas Robinson
Curtis Tomasevicz**

Women:
Aja Evans
Jazmine Fenlator
Jamie Greubel
Lolo Jones&
Elana Meyers*
Lauryn Williams^

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin
& – Was in Summer Olympics in London and Beijing
^ – Was in Summer Olympics in London, Beijing, and Athens

A Sochi 2014 Bobsleigh list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

Nick Cunningham made his Olympic debut in 2010 competing in both the two-man and four-man events. Cunningham rode with Mike Kohn in both events and had Jamie Moriarty and Bill Schuffenhauer in the four-man. In the two-man event the team finished 12th while their four-man team finished 13th.

Another first time Olympian in Vancouver was Christopher Fogt who was part of a four-man team with John Napier, Charles Berkeley, and first time Olympian Steven Langton. Their team had a crash in the second run and did not compete in the third or fourth runs.

Steve Holcomb was a drive in Vancouver who piloted a two-man team with Curtis Tomasevicz and a four-man team with Tomasevicz, Justin Olsen, and Steve Mesler. The two-man team came in sixth while the four-man team set the track record on each of their first two runs en route to a gold medal.

Both Holcomb and Tomasevicz were part of a same four-man team in Turin where they teamed with Lorenzo Smith III and Bill Schuffenhauer. That team came in sixth. Holcomb also drove a two-man team with Schuffenhauer that came in 14th.

Making her debut in Vancouver, Elana Meyers ran the brakes in a two-woman sled with Erin Pac in Vancouver. The duo won a bronze medal despite having the eighth fastest final run.

The US two man team of John Napier and Steven Langton in Vancouver.
The US two man team of John Napier and Steven Langton in Vancouver.

The U.S. Army via Compfight cc

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Sunday, February 16th
11:15 AM – Two-man Heat 1
12:50 PM – Two-man Heat 2

Monday, February 17th
9:30 AM – Two-man Heat 3
*11:05 AM – Two-man Heat 4

Tuesday, February 18th
10:15 AM – Women’s Heat 1
11:23 AM – Women’s Heat 2

Wednesday, February 19th
11:15 AM – Women’s Heat 3
*12:23 PM – Women’s Heat 4

Saturday, February 22nd
11:30 AM – Four-man Heat 1
1 PM – Four-man Heat 2

Sunday, February 23rd
4:30 AM – Four-man Heat 3
*6 AM – Four-man Heat 4

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

Bobsleigh’s world championships are held as part of the FIBT World Championships. The most recent one took place in 2013 in St. Moritz, Switzerland.

In the men’s two-man event the Olympic team of Steven Holcomb/Steven Langton competed and came in fourth, just 0.08 seconds behind the bronze. Cory Butner drove a two-man sled (though with Christopher Fogt, not his Olympic partner) that finished ninth. Another driver from Sochi, Nick Cunningham, had a two-man sled (with Dallas Robinson, not his Olympic partner) that came in 13th.

In the four-man event the team of Steven Holcomb/Steven Langton/Curtis Tomasevicz/Justin Olsen got the bronze medal. This team will largely stay intact for Sochi with Olsen switching with Christopher Fogt. Another four-man team involving Nick Cunningham and Christopher Fogt (none of Cunningham’s team mates for Sochi were on this sled) came in 19th. There was a third four-man team in the event for the US, the only Olympian on it was Johnny Quinn. The team came in 30th and didn’t make the 20-team cut for the final run.

On the women’s side the top US team was that of Elana Meyers who was with Katie Eberling (not part of team in Sochi). That team came in second to win the silver. Meyers’ partner in Sochi, Aja Evans, teamed with Jazmine Fenlator for an eighth place finish.

The US team of John Napier and Steven Langton heads down the track in Vancouver.
The US team of John Napier and Steven Langton heads down the track in Vancouver.

The U.S. Army via Compfight cc

US Olympic History

The US was one of the dominant countries in the early years of the four-man bobsled competition winning eight medals in the first seven games. After 1956 thought it was a long 46 year wait until their next medals in 2002. In the last three Olympics the US has won a gold, silver, and bronze with the gold coming in 2010.

The US was also one of the top countries in the early two-man bobsled event as they won six medals in the first four events. Again a drought happened though as the US has not won a medal since 1952, 62 years and counting. In 2010 the best US competitors were sixth (Steve Holcomb/Curtis Tomasevicz) less than a half a second from a medal.

The two-woman event has only been contested three times but the US has won a gold, silver, and bronze already. Their most recent medal was the bronze in 2010 won by Erin Pac and Elana Meyers.

Olympic Previews, Olympics, Skeleton, Sochi 2014

Skeleton Preview

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The US was one of the top countries in skeleton up through 2002. The US medaled six times and won medals in each of the events up until 2002, but they haven’t medaled since. With three of the five athletes returning from Vancouver can the US use their experience to medal once again?

Skeleton’s Olympic History

Skeleton has a long Olympic history, but it’s very very sporadic. Skeleton was held in 1928 and 1948, but never again until 2002 when it was added to the program and remains to this day. The first two times it was only a men’s event but since 2002 it has involved a men’s and women’s event.

One of the skeleton athletes racing in Vancouver.
One of the skeleton athletes racing in Vancouver.

jonwick04 via Compfight cc

The US has won six of the 24 medals and three of the eight gold medals. Nine countries have medaled in skeleton with five of them winning gold medals.

How the Skeleton Competitions Work

Remember that skeleton is most similar to the luge in that both are small sleds that are ridden instead of a large sled that is ridden in (bobsleigh). The difference between skeleton and luge is that the skeleton is done face first instead of lying on the back. Their are only single rider competitions in skeleton, no two-person events.

The skeleton events are held over two days each and involve four runs for each athlete. The winner is the athletes whose total time is the lowest.

Part of the skeleton track in Vancouver
Part of the skeleton track in Vancouver

jonwick04 via Compfight cc

US Team

The team is made up of three men and two women. Three of the athletes are back from Vancouver while one was also part of the team in Turin.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Skeleton

Men:
Matt Antoine
John Daly*
Kyle Tress

Women:
Noelle Pikus-Pace*
Katie Uhlaender**

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin

A Sochi 2014 Skeleton list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

John Daly is the only returning US man from Vancouver. Daly finished in 17th place in Vancouver with none of his runs finishing any higher than 12th.

Both Noelle Pikus-Pace and Katie Uhlaender were part of the US team in Vancouver. Uhlaender had three runs that were in the top ten but finished 11th overall. Pikus-Pace had four runs that were all in the top seven and finished fourth overall just a tenth of a second out of a medal.

Katie Uhlaender made her Olympic debut in Turin where she was the only US competitor. The race was only over two runs and she was sixth in both runs and sixth overall.

An athlete at the start of a skeleton run in Vancouver
An athlete at the start of a skeleton run in Vancouver

jonwick04 via Compfight cc

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Thursday, February 13th
2:30 AM – Women’s Heat 1
3:40 AM – Women’s Heat 2

Friday, February 14th
7:30 AM – Men’s Heat 1
9:00 AM – Men’s Heat 2
10:40 AM – Women’s Heat 3
*11:50 AM – Women’s Heat 4

Saturday, February 15th
9:45 AM – Men’s Heat 3
*11:15 AM – Men’s Heat 4

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

Skeleton’s world championships are held as part of the FIBT World Championships. The most recent one took place in 2013 in St. Moritz, Switzerland.

In the men’s skeleton event two of the American Olympians were part of the field. John Daly was the top American and finished in fifth place with less than six-tenths of a second separating him from the bronze medal. Matthew Antoine finished in 12th.

The women’s even featured both Noelle Pikus-Pace and Katie Uhlaender. Pikus-Pace was the better of the two with a second place finish while Uhlaender came in seventh.

US Olympic History

On the men’s side the US won golds in two of the first three Olympics (yes they were separated by 74 years but still…) and silvers in the first two Olympics. The US has not medaled in the last two Olympics with their best finish in 2010 was a fifth place finish by Zach Lund.

In women’s skeleton the US grabbed gold and silver in the first event in Salt Lake City but have not medaled since. Noelle Pikus-Pace’s fourth place finish in 2010 nearly grabbed them a bronze.

Nordic Combined, Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014

Nordic Combined Preview

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20 Olympic competitions without a single medal, that was the story for the US going into Vancouver when it came to nordic combined. That changed in a big way when the US won four medals, three silvers and a gold. The US now can boast a medal in each of the three nordic combined events. It will be very hard to top that in Sochi.

Nordic Combined’s Olympic History

Nordic combined is one of the original Winter Olympic events having debuted in 1924 with a single event. That event was the only one until 1988 when a team event was added. A second individual event was started in 2002 and that is how the program remains to this day. There are no women’s events in nordic combined.

16 nations have medaled in nordic combined with Norway leading the way with 26 of the 93 medals. Norway also has 11 of the 31 gold medals while the US has won just four medals, three silvers and a gold, in nordic combined.

How the Nordic Combined Competitions Work

Nordic combined is a combination event of ski jumping and cross-country skiing. The ski jumping event will come first with the cross-country skiing following it. The scores from the ski jumping event set the field for the cross-country skiing race with the athletes delayed depending on how far behind the leader they are. The first man across the line is the winner.

The two individual events both feature a 10km cross-country race, they differ in which ski jumping hill is used. One event uses the normal hill while the other uses the large hill.

The team event is conducted using the large hill and four athletes per team. Their combined team score is used to set the field for the relay portion with teams delayed based on how far they are behind the leading team. The teams will race along four 5km legs with the first team across the finish line the winner.

Ski jumping is one part of the nordic combined event.
Ski jumping is one part of the nordic combined event.

Marcin Chady via Compfight cc

US Team

There are four men on the team and three of them are returning from Vancouver. Two have been on the team ever since Nagano and one was even part of the team in Lillehammer twenty years ago.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Nordic Combined

Men:
Bill Demong****
Bryan Fletcher
Taylor Fletcher*
Todd Lodwick*****

* – Was on team in Vancouver
**** – Was on team in Vancouver, Turin, Salt Lake City, & Nagano
***** – Was on team in Vancouver, Turin, Salt Lake City, Nagano, & Lillehammer

A Sochi 2014 Nordic Combined list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

In 2010 the US team featured three of the four current Olympians. In the normal event Bill Demong finished sixth while Todd Lodwick finished fourth for the US. The large hill event saw Demong do even better with a gold medal, the first ever in nordic combined for the US. Lodwick finished 13th while Taylor Fletcher finished 45th. Lodwick and Demong joined with Brett Camerota and Johnny Spillane in the team event to win another silver medal for the US.

In 2006 both Lodwick and Demong were taking part in the events. The program was not exactly the same as it is now with a sprint event that featured one jump and a 7.5km cross-country portion and an individual gunderson event that had two jumps and a 15km cross-country part. In the sprint event Lodwick finished ninth while Demong was 25th. The individual gunderson event was more of the same with Lodwick in eighth and Demong in 15th. They teamed up in the team event with Spillane and Carl van Loan to finish seventh.

In 2002 Lodwick was again threatening for medals with a fifth place finish in the sprint event and a seventh place finish in the individual gunderson event. Demong was again near the top with 14th and 19th place finishes respectively. Again they were in the team event with Spillane and Matt Dayton this time. The team came in fourth place missing a medal by six seconds.

All the way back in Nagano there was only one individual event, the individual gunderson event. Lodwick came in 20th place while Demong finished 34th. They were again part of the team event with Tim Tetreault and Dave Jarrett their teammates this time. The team came in tenth.

Twenty years ago in Lillehammer Lodwick was the top performing American with a 13th place finish in the individual event. Lodwick was also part of the team that finished seventh along with Ryan Heckman and Jarrett.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Wednesday, February 12th
4:30 AM – Individual Gundersen NH/10 km Competition Round
*7:30 AM – Individual Gundersen NH/10 km Cross-Country

Tuesday, February 18th
4:30 AM – Individual Gundersen LH/10 km Competition Round
*7 AM – Individual Gundersen LH/10 km Cross-Country

Thursday, February 20th
3 AM – Team Gundersen LH/4×5 km Competition Round
*6 AM – Team Gundersen LH/4×5 km Cross-Country

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

The nordic combined world championships are part of the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. Most recently they were held in Val di Fiemme, Italy in February-March 2013.

In those championships the US had all four of their Olympians in the individual normal hill competition. Bryan Fletcher was the top American finishing in 14th overall. Behind him came Bill Demong in 23rd, Taylor Fletcher in 25th, and Todd Lodwick in 35th.

Three of those Americans took part in the large hill competition. This time Demong was the top Americans with a 15th place finish. Taylor Fletcher was hot on his trail in 17th while Bryan Fletcher was 23rd.

The event featuring the 4x5km relay at the world championships was held using the normal hill. Demong, Lodwick, and both Fletchers teamed up in this event. They were in fifth after the ski jumping but came on strong in the cross-country race to move into third and win a bronze less than five seconds behind the winners.

Cross-country skiing is one part of the nordic combined event at the Olympics.
Cross-country skiing is one part of the nordic combined event at the Olympics.

ibm4381 via Compfight cc

US Olympic History

The US had never medaled before the Vancouver Olympics but can now say that they have medaled in every Olympic nordic combined event. In the individual normal hill event that was when Johnny Spillane grabbed a silver, in the large hill it was Bill Demong grabbing gold and Spillane getting silver. Meanwhile the team of Spillane, Demong, and Todd Lodwick and Brett Camerota won a silver in the team event.

Curling, Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014

Curling Preview

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The US has only won one medal in curling, a men’s bronze in 2006. The sport has been growing though in popularity in the US. Will that lead to anymore success in Sochi though? One reason to hope, the women’s team did nearly medal at the latest world championships.

Curling’s Olympic History

Curling’s Olympic history is long but also full of holes. The sport was contested in the original Winter Olympics, 1924, but then only as a demonstration sport in the following 74 years. And even then it was only held in 1932, 1998, and 1992. In 1998 Curling was finally added to the Olympic program and has been part of it since then.

Curling stones
Curling stones

Benson Kua via Compfight

Canada has the most curling medals with eight including the most golds, three. Ten countries have medaled with five winning golds. The US has just one medal, a bronze on the men’s side in 2006.

How the Curling Competitions Work

If you’re not familiar with curling it’s not too hard to get the basics down. A curling game features ten ends. Think of these like innings in baseball or frames in bowling. In an end each team will have eight stones they send down towards the target. Four different players will each send two of the stones, with the two teams alternating turns. In the end the team with the stone closest to the center of the “house” scores one point for each of their stones closer to the center than the closest stone of their opponent. The stone does have to be on the house target to score. Sum up the total score from the ten ends and you’ll have the final score of the game. The teams take turn alternating who goes first. If it’s still tied the teams would go to an extra end until the tie is broken.

 

Curling at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics
Curling at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics

Chase N. via Compfight cc

Ten teams will contest both the men’s and women’s events in Sochi. The events begin with a round-robin portion where every country will face every other country. After that the standings will be used to determine the semifinal matchups.

US Team

The US teams are five men and five women. Four athletes were on the teams in Vancouver, two were on the teams in Turin, one was on the team in Salt Lake City, and one was on the team in Nagano.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Curling

Men:
Craig Brown – Alternate
Jeff Isaacson* – Third
John Landsteiner – Lead
John Shuster** – Skip
Jared Zezel – Second

Women:
Erika Brown% – Skip
Debbie McCormick^ – Third
Allison Pottinger* – Alternate
Jessica Schultz& – Second
Ann Swisshelm – Lead

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin
& – Was on team in Turin
^ – Was on team in Vancouver & Salt Lake City
% – Was on team in Nagano

A Sochi 2014 Curling list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

In 2010 the men’s team featured Jeff Isaacson as the second and John Shuster as the skip. The team went 2-7 in the round robin finishing tied for last. Their wins came over France and Sweden (who ended up winning the gold).

The women’s team in 2010 Debbie McCormick as their skip and Allison Pottinger as their third. That team went 2-7 in the round robin and finished last. Their wins came over Russia and Great Britain, neither of whom finished in the top four.

In 2006 the men’s team featured John Shuster. That team went 6-3 in the round robin to advance to the semifinals. In the semifinals the US lost to Canada before defeating Great Britain in the final 8-6 to win the bronze medal.

The women’s team in Turin featured Jessica Schultz. The team went 2-8 and finished in ninth place.

The 2002 women’s team featured Debbie McCormick as their third. The team went 6-3 and reached the semifinal round of the tournament. The US lost 9-4 to Switzerland in the semifinals and 9-5 to Canada in the bronze medal final.

The 1998 women’s team featured Erika Brown in third position. That team went 2-5 and finished seventh.

Curling Sheets at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics
Curling Sheets at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics

Chase N. via Compfight cc

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Monday, February 10th
5 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 1 – USA vs. Switzerland
10 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 2 – USA vs. Norway

Tuesday, February 11th
12 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 2 – USA vs. Russia
5 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 3 – USA vs. China
10 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 3 – USA vs. Great Britain

Wednesday, February 12th
12 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 4 – USA vs. Denmark
5 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 4 – USA vs. China

Thursday, February 13th
5 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 6 – USA vs. Great Britain
10 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 6 – USA vs. Japan

Friday, February 14th
12 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 7 – USA vs. Germany
5 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 7 – USA vs. Denmark
10 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 8 – USA vs. Russia

Saturday, February 15th
10 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 9 – USA vs. Sweden

Sunday, February 16th
12 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 7 – USA vs. Canada
5 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 10 – USA vs. Canada
10 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 11 – USA vs. Sweden

Monday, February 17th
12 AM – Women’s Round Robin Session 11 – USA vs. Korea
5 AM – Men’s Round Robin Session 12 – USA vs. Switzerland

Wednesday, February 19th
10 AM – Women’s Semifinals
10 AM – Men’s Semifinals

Thursday, February 20th
3:30 AM – Women’s Bronze Medal Match
8:30 AM – Women’s Gold Medal Match

Friday, February 21st
3:30 AM – Men’s Bronze Medal Match
8:30 AM – Men’s Gold Medal Match

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

The 2013 Ford World Men’s Curling Championship was held in Victoria, British Columbia in March-April 2013. The team representing the US didn’t feature any of the Olympians for the US. That team went 5-6 in the round robin portion but missed out on the semifinals.

The 2013 World Women’s Curling Championship was held in Riga, Latvia in March 2013. The team featured Erika Brown as their skip, Debbie McCormick as their third, Jessica Schultz as their second, and Ann Swisshelm as their lead. The team went 6-5 in the round robin beating four Olympic teams (Denmark, Canada, Japan, Russia), but losing to three others (Sweden, Switzerland, China). That put the US into a three-way tie for fourth with Russia and Switzerland. Those two faced off with the winner taking on the US. It ended up being a rematch with Switzerland and the US advanced with a 7-4 win.

In the semifinals the US took on Canada and was down 4-1 after three ends. The US fought back and cut it to 4-3 before Canada pulled back out to a 7-4 lead. The US got it to 7-6 but couldn’t tie it up and fell into the bronze medal match. In the bronze medal match the US took on Canada again (this is a weird playoff format…). The US had an early 2-1 lead but Canada went back in front 4-2 and never gave up the lead going on to win 8-6.

Members of Team USA at the 2010 Olympics.
Members of Team USA at the 2010 Olympics.

Chase N. via Compfight cc

US Olympic History

The US has only medaled once in the Olympics, a bronze on the men’s side in 2006. They also finished fourth in 1998 but were ninth in 2002 and tenth in 2010. On the women’s side the best finish by the US was a fourth place finish in 2002. Outside of that they have finished eighth twice (1998 and 2006) and tenth (2010).

Olympic Previews, Olympics, Short Track Speed Skating, Sochi 2014

Short Track Speed Skating Preview

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The US won their most ever medals in short track speed skating with six at the Vancouver Olympics but they bring back only three members from that team. Those three combined for only one of the four individual medals won by the US in Vancouver. With a less experienced team in Sochi can the US come close to matching their results?

Short Track Speed Skating’s Olympic History

Short track speed skating was first a part of the Winter Olympics as a demonstration sport in 1988. It returned in 1992 as a full part of the Olympics with four events, a relay and an individual event on both the men’s and women’s sides. The Olympics added a second individual event in 1994 and a third in 2002. The program has remained unchanged since then.

South Korea has been the top country in short track winning 37 of the 120 medals including 19 of the 40 gold medals. The US comes in fourth in both categories with 18 medals and four gold medals. Only seven countries have won a gold medal in short track and only 11 have won a medal at all.

How the Short Track Speed Skating Competitions Work

All the individual events in short track speed skating are contested using the same format. Each event has a field of 32 athletes who will be divided into eight groups of four. The groups will race around the small track and the first two across the line advance. This is done through a three rounds to get down to a final four where the race for medals happens. And of course always watch out for DQs, usually for impeding a competitor. Sometimes you may think you know who is moving on at the finish until one of them is disqualified. Or someone who comes in far back may get advanced due to being illegal impeded.

Short Track Speed Skaters
Short Track Speed Skaters

johnthescone via Compfight cc

The 1500m event is done with six heats of six where the top three move on and three semifinals of six where the top two move on to the final.

In the team relay event there are teams of four skaters. The teams will switch skaters as things are going with a push-off and the first team across the finish line moves on. The top two teams from each

US Team

The team is made up of five men and three women. Only three of the athletes are returning from Vancouver.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Short Track Speed Skating

Men:
Eduardo Alvarez
Kyle Carr
J.R. Celski*
Christopher Creveling
Jordan Malone*

Women:
Alyson Dudek*
Emily Scott
Jessica Smith

* – Was on team in Vancouver

A Sochi 2014 Short Track Speed Skating list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

J.R. Celski made his Olympic debut in Vancouver for the US. Celski competed in the 1000m where he finished second in his heat and quarterfinal to advance to the semifinals. In his semifinal Celski was disqualified to end his run. Celski also competed in the 1500m event. Celski finished third in his heat to move into the semifinals where he finished second in his semifinal to qualify for the final. In the final Celski had a great race and came in third to grab a bronze medal. Celski also competed in the team relay event with Simon Cho, Travis Jayner, and Apolo Ohno. They finished second in their semifinal to reach the final. In the final Cho was replaced by Jordan Malone. The US finished third in the final by less than half a second.

Short Track Speed Skaters Ready for the Start in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics
Short Track Speed Skaters Ready for the Start in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics

beltzner via Compfight cc

Jordan Malone competed in two individual events in Vancouver that did not go well. Malone was disqualified in the 1500m event and finished fourth in his heat in the 500m event. Malone did pick up a medal as he was part of the US relay team in the final that won the bronze.

On the women’s side Alyson Dudek was part of the US relay team in Vancouver. Dudek skated with Kimberly Derrick, Lana Gehring, Katherine Reutter in the semifinals as they placed second in their semifinal. Derrick was replaced in the final by Allison Baver and the new group ended up with the bronze medal. Individually Dudek placed second in her heat in the 500m before being eliminated after a fourth place finish in her quarterfinal.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Monday, February 10th
4:45 AM – Men’s 1500m Heats
5:30 AM – Ladies’ 500m Heats
6:09 AM – Men’s 1500m Semifinals
*7:08 AM – Men’s 1500m Final

Thursday, February 13th
5 AM – Ladies’ 500m Quarterfinals
5:27 AM – Men’s 1000m Heats
6:14 AM – Ladies’ 500m Semifinals
6:35 AM – Men’s 5000m Relay Semifinals
*7:07 AM – Ladies’ 500m Finals

Saturday, February 15th
5 AM – Ladies’ 1500m Heats
5:45 AM – Men’s 1000m Quarterfinals
6:16 AM – Ladies’ 1500m Semifinals
6:46 AM – Men’s 1000m Semifinals
*7:09 AM – Ladies’ 1500m Finals
*7:23 AM – Men’s 1000m Finals

Tuesday, February 18th
4:30 AM – Ladies’ 1000m Heats
5:17 AM – Men’s 500m Heats

Friday, February 21st
11:30 AM – Men’s 500m Quarterfinals
11:44 AM – Ladies’ 1000m Quarterfinals
12:15 PM – Men’s 500m Semifinals
12:23 PM – Ladies’ 1000m Semifinals
12:46 PM – Men’s 500m Finals
12:56 PM – Ladies’ 1000m Finals
1:21 PM – Men’s 5000m Relay Finals

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

The 2013 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships were held in Debrecen, Hungary in March.

In the men’s 500m event J.R. Celski was the top American and finished fifth overall while Christopher Creveling finished 20th being eliminated in the heats.

Creveling was the top American in the 1000m event with his 13th place finish while J.R. Celski was disqualified in the preliminaries.

In the 1500m event Celski did manage to get into the heats but finished 23rd while Creveling was eliminated in the semifinals in 11th place.

The US team in the team relay was made up Celski, Creveling, Eduardo Alvarez, and Jeff Simon (not part of the Olympic team). They came in fourth in their semifinal and didn’t reach the final.

On the women’s side in the 500m event Alyson Dudek was the top competitor with a ninth place finish being eliminated in the quarterfinals. Jessica Smith also reached the quarterfinals but finished in 13th.

In the 1000m event again Smith was eliminated in the quarterfinals, this time with an 11th place finish, while Dudek was eliminated in the heats with a 24th place finish.

In the 1500m event both Smith and Dudek reached the semifinals before being eliminated. Dudek finished 11th while Smith was 18th.

US Olympic History

The US has medaled twice in the men’s 500m event, the most recent a gold by Apollo Anton Ohno in Turin. Ohno reached the final again in 2010 but was disqualified.

Ohno has won all three of the medals for the US in the 1000m event, a silver in 2002 and bronzes in 2006 and 2010.

The US has won three medals in the 1500m event in the three Olympics it has been held. The only gold was by Ohno in 2002 while Ohno won a silver in 2010 with Celski taking a bronze as well.

The US has never won the relay event but has medaled three times in the six Olympics. The US has won the bronze in each of the last two Olympics.

In the women’s 500m event the US won gold in the first two Olympics with the event and a bronze in 1994 as well. Since then the US has been shutout in four straight Olympics and their best finisher in 2010 was Katherine Reutter in seventh.

Reutter won the first medal for the US in the 1000m event, a silver, in Vancouver. The US has never medaled in the 1500m event (held three times) with their best finish in 2010 a fourth place finish by Reutter.

Alpine Skiing, Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014

Alpine Skiing Preview

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The US won their most ever medals in alpine skiing in Vancouver with eight. That was compared to just 11 medals over the previous six Olympics. Will the US be able to continue their great performances in alpine skiing or will they revert to their form over much of the last two decades? Some of their recent results and their experience would seem to indicate good results could be on the way.

Alpine Skiing’s Olympic History

Alpine Skiing is not one of the original Winter Olympic sports having made its debut in 1936 with both a men’s and women’s combined event. It expanded to three events for each gender in the next winter Olympics in 1948 and finally in 1988 to the five events for each gender that are still contested today.

25 nations have medaled in alpine skiing but no one has more medals than Austria with 105 of the 397 awarded. The US ranks fourth with 39 medals and their 14 golds are also the 4th most all time.

An Olympic skiier from Lichtenstein competes in the 2010 Olympics.
An Olympic skiier from Lichtenstein competes in the 2010 Olympics.

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How the Alpine Skiing Competitions Work

The differences between the different skiing events largely is in the area of how far the gates are spread out, how long the courses are, and how many runs the athletes get.

In the downhill event the course is at its longest and the gates are at their farthest apart. The athletes go the fastest in this event and the gates are the most spaced out. In fact you might not even realize the athletes are going through the gates on this one as they’ll follow a path of blue lines on the slope that help direct them down the correct path. This event is just one race, best time wins.

The slalom event looks completely different and for good reason. This is an event with much shorter distances between gates causing the athletes to cut back and forth a lot more. It’s a much slower speed event and features “gates” that are more like poles sticking up which the athletes can easily bump over and will bounce back up. This event is done over two runs with the times added to get the final standings.

Now that I’ve told you of two wildly different events you are of course thinking it’d be a good idea to combine them into one event. That is the combined event where one run is done on the downhill course while the other is a slalom run.  It’s a difficult test of athletes involving two very different types of skiing.

The giant slalom event is similar to the slalom event but on a course with gates spaced further apart. The speeds are higher on this course and the athletes get two runs which will be combined to get a total time.

The super g on  the other hand is an event that is actually closer to the downhill in many ways. The speeds are much higher again though turning is a bigger part of super g than it is in downhill. Each athlete only gets one run at the super g course.

An Olympic skiier from 2010.
An Olympic skiier from 2010.

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US Team

The team is made up of 11 men and nine women. Ten of the athletes are returning from Vancouver, six were part of the team in Turin, three were part of the team in Salt Lake City and one is going to his fifth Olympics having been part of the team all the way back in Nagano as well.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Alpine Skiing

Men:
David Chodounsky
Erik Fisher
Travis Ganong
Jared Goldberg
Tim Jitloff
Nolan Kasper*
Ted Ligety**
Bode Miller****
Steven Nyman**
Marco Sullivan^
Andrew Weibrecht*

Women:
Stacey Cook**
Julia Ford
Julia Mancuso***
Megan McJames*
Laurenne Ross
Mikaela Shiffrin
Leanne Smith*
Resi Stiegler&
Jacqueline Wiles

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin
& – Was on team in Turin
*** – Was on team in Vancouver, Turin, and Salt Lake City
^ – Was on team in Vancouver and Salt Lake City
**** – Was on team in Vancouver, Turin, Salt Lake City, and Nagano

A Sochi 2014 Alpine Skiing list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

Nolan Kasper made his Olympic debut for the US in Vancouver competing in the slalom event. Kasper finished his first run in 29th but improved in his second run with a 23rd place finish to end up 24th overall.

Ted Ligety came to the Vancouver Olympics as a veteran and competed in four events. He did not finish the slalom event and finished 19th in the super-g event. He came close though in other events as he finished ninth in the giant slalom and fifth in the combined event. In his first Olympics in Turin Ligety won a gold medal in the combined event while not finishing the giant slalom and being disqualified in the slalom event.

Bode Miller was one of the US stars in Vancouver. Miller medaled three times as he won the combined event, finished second in the super-g, and won the bronze in the downhill. Miller was unable to finish in the giant slalom or the slalom events. In Turin, Milller was one of the US favorites but disappointed finishing in fifth in the downhill and sixth in the giant slalom. He was also disqualified in the combined and did not finish in the slalom and super-g events. Miller’s reputation coming into Turin was due to the fact that he won two silvers in Salt Lake City, in giant slalom and combined. Miller also came in 24th in the slalom event. Bode Miller’s debut came in Nagano but he didn’t finish either of his two events. He was disqualified in the giant slalom and did not finish the slalom event.

Bode Miller competes for the US at the Vancouver Olympics.
Bode Miller competes for the US at the Vancouver Olympics.

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Vancouver was the second Olympics for Steven Nyman. Nyman competed in the downhill event and he finished 20th. Nyman was a competitor in three events for the US in Turin. Nyman’s best result came in the downhill where he finished 19th. He also came in 29th in the combined event and 43rd in the super-g.

Marco Sullivan returned to the Olympics in Vancouver after missing out on the team in Turin. Sullivan competed in two events, finishing 60th in the downhill and 23rd in the super-g. Sullivan was part of the team in Salt Lake City competing in two events. Sullivan did not finish the super-g but came in ninth in the downhill.

Vancouver was the Olympic debut of Andrew Weibrecht where he competed in three events. The best result for Weibrecht was in the super-g where he finished just behind teammate Bode Miller and won the bronze medal. Weibrecht also finished 11th in the combined and 21st in the downhill.

Stacey Cook competed in her second Olympics for the US in Vancouver. Cook took part in one event, the downhill, where she finished 11th. Cook’s debut in Turin saw her compete in the downhill where she finished 19th and the giant slalom where she finished 23rd.

Julia Mancuso was a double medalist for the US in Vancouver winning silvers in both the downhill and combined events. Mancuso had two other top-ten finishes, eighth in the giant slalom and ninth in the super-g. Mancuso competed in four events in Turin and won a gold medal in giant slalom. Mancuso’s other events were the downhill (seventh), combined (ninth), and super-g (11th). Mancuso’s debut came in Salt Lake City when she competed in the combined event finishing 13th.

Megan McJames made her Olympic debut in Vancouver when she competed in the giant slalom and slalom events. McJames wasn’t able to finish the slalom event but did come in 32nd in the giant slalom event.

Another first time Olympian in Vancouver was  Leanne Smith. Smith competed in the super-g where she finished 18th and in the combined where she finished 21st.

Resi Stiegler didn’t make the team for Vancouver but she was part of the team back in Turin. In Turin Stiegler was 11th in the combined event and finished 12th in the slalom.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Sunday, February 9th
*2 AM – Men’s Downhill

Monday, February 10th
2 AM – Women’s Super Combined Downhill
*6 AM – Women’s Super Combined Slalom

Wednesday, February 12th
*2 AM – Women’s Downhill

Friday, February 14th
2 AM – Men’s Super Combined Downhill
*6:30 AM – Men’s Super Combined Slalom

Saturday, February 15th
*2 AM – Women’s Super-G

Sunday, February 16th
*2 AM – Men’s Super-G

Tuesday, February 18th
2 AM – Women’s Giant Slalom Run 1
*5:30 AM – Women’s Giant Slalom Run 2

Wednesday, February 19th
2 AM – Men’s Giant Slalom Run 1
*5:30 AM – Men’s Giant Slalom Run 2

Friday, February 21st
7:45 AM – Women’s Slalom Run 1
*11:15 AM – Women’s Slalom Run 2

Saturday, February 22nd
7:45 AM – Men’s Slalom Run 1
*11:15 AM – Men’s Slalom Run 2

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

Alpine Skiing’s world championship is the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, most recently held in February 2013 in Schladming, Austria.

The men’s downhill event featured four US Olympians. Two of them, Marco Sullivan and Travis Ganong, did not finish the event while Steven Nyman finished 25th and Andrew Weibrecht finished 22nd.

The men’s super combined only involved one of the US Olympians from this year, Ted Ligety, but Ligety stole the show for the US by wining the race by over a second.

Two Americans were in the men’s giant slalom event with Ted Jitloff finishing in 16th. Once again though Ligety was the start with another world championship, again by almost a second.

Two Olympians were part of the US team in the slalom event, but both Ted Ligety and David Chodounsky did not finish the race.

Ted Ligety won his 3rd event at the world championships in the super-g, though this time by just a fifth of a second. The only other Olympian in the field for the US was Andrew Weibrecht who did not finish.

On the women’s side in the super combined four Olympians competed (Julia Mancuso, Stacey Cook, Laurenne Ross, and Leanne Smith) and all had great downhill runs placing in the top 20. Smith was the best of all in 12th after the downhill but she didn’t complete the slalom portion. Cook came in 18th, Ross came in 11th while Mancuso was 8th.

The downhill event also featured American threatening to medal, but once again none did. Julia Mancuso came closest in fifth place with Stacey Cook right behind her in sixth. Both were within a second of the winner. Leanne Smith came in 12th for the US.

Three Americans also competed in the giant slalom event. This time the top American was Mikaela Shiffrin who came in sixth. Julia Mancuso came in 22nd while Laurenne Ross finished the first run 35th but didn’t finish the second run.

Mikaela Shiffrin was again the top American in the slalom event, this time taking the event for the US. The only other American in the field was Resi Stiegler who finished 22nd but had the eighth best second run.

Finally in the super-g Julia Mancuso medaled for the US with a third place finish while Leannne Smith came in 16th and Laurenne Ross was 26th.

US Olympic History

The men’s downhill event has been home to very few medals for the US. They won golds in 1984 and 1994 while Bode Miller grabbed Bronze in 2010. Outside of that the US has not medaled in the event.

The slalom event has seen five more medals for the US all-time, but none have been won since 1984. While four Americans competed in Vancouver only one finished (Nolan Kasper) and he finished 24th.

The giant slalom event has been held 16 times with the US only grabbing one medal, a silver by Bode Miller in Salt Lake City. The US did have a top-ten finish in Vancouver with Ted Ligety finishing 9th.

The super-g has only been held seven times but the US has three medals. They have not won a gold yet but are coming off of a silver (Bode Miller) and a bronze (Andrew Weibrecht) in Vancouver.

The US didn’t win a medal in the first six combined events, however they have now medaled in three straight games. That includes golds in the last two Olympics by Ted Ligety (Turin) and Bode Miller (Vancouver).

In the women’s downhill the US has won seven medals and won their first ever gold in Vancouver thanks to Lindsey Vonn. Julia Mancuso’s silver made it the first Olympics they had won multiple medals in the downhill in.

The US won the slalom event three times and has five total medals, but they haven’t won a medal since 1972. 2010 saw two Americans fail to finish while the best American came in 16th (Sarah Schleper).

The US has seven all-time medals in the giant slalom with the most recent a gold by Julia Mancuso in 2006. Mancuso was the top American again in Vancouver, finishin in eighth.

The US has three medals in the seven all-time super-g events. They won back-to-back golds in 1994 and 1998 but haven’t won the gold since then. Lindsey Vonn’s bronze in Vancouver was the only medal since.

Julia Mancuso’s silver in Vancouver was the first medal for the US in the combined event since a silver in 1948. The US has never won the event.

Julia Mancuso on the medal stand after her second place finish in the super combined at the Olympics in 2010.
Julia Mancuso on the medal stand after her second place finish in the super combined at the Olympics in 2010.

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Olympic Previews, Olympics, Ski Jumping, Sochi 2014

Ski Jumping Preview

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The US has won just one medal in ski jumping, a bronze 90 years ago in the first ever ski jumping event. The men’s team hasn’t been close to winning medals lately but 2014 will see the debut of a new ski jumping event. A women’s ski jumping event. And the reigning world champion in that event is an American. 2014 might once again see the US win a ski jumping medal, and it might be when the event is being held for the first time, just like it was 90 years ago.

Ski Jumping’s Olympic History

Ski jumping is one of the original Winter Olympic sports having made its debut in 1924. There was only a single event back then, the current men’s individual large hill. The program wasn’t expanded until 52 years later in 1976 when they added a men’s individual normal hill. The two hills remain a staple of the Olympic program to this day. The program changed again in 1998 with the addition of a men’s team event using the large hill. Women have not been included in the Olympic ski jumping program until this year when an individual normal hill event will be held.

While Finland has the most gold medals in ski jumping with ten their 22 total medals is third to Austria’s 23 and Norway’s 29. No other country than these three have more than nine medals. The US has won only a single bronze medal in ski jumping.

A ski jumper at the 2010 Olympics
A ski jumper at the 2010 Olympics

Photo Credit: Marcin Chady via Compfight cc

How the Ski Jumping Competitions Work

If you read the previous section you’ll have noticed the distinction between the two sizes of hills in the ski jumping competition. The normal hill is listed as a hill size of 105 while the large hill has a hill size of 140. There really isn’t any need to know any more about these hills than that one is larger than the other, but if you care more you can explore the wikipedia page on hill size. Ski jumping scores are a combination of the distance jumped and a judges score based on the performance of the jump/

In the men’s individual events there will be a qualifying round of jumping to help narrow the field down to the top 50 competitors. These events then move to where the women’s event begins, a first round of jumping in the final. The top 30 competitors after the first round will have a second jump. The scores from the two jumps are combined to get the final scores for the athletes.

In the team event all teams are made up of four athletes. All the teams compete on the first set of jumps but only the top eight move onto the second jump. The winning team is the one with the most total points from both jumps of all four athletes.

A ski jumper soars through the air
A ski jumper soars through the air

Photo Credit: A.Nilssen Photography via Compfight cc

US Team

The team is made up of four men and three women. All four of the men will compete in all three of the men’s events. Three of the athletes competed in Vancouver while one of them is in his 3rd Olympics after being part of the team in Turin.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Ski Jumping

Men:
Nick Alexander*
Nick Fairall
Peter Frenette*
Anders Johnson**

Women:
Sarah Hendrickson
Jessica Jerome
Lindsey Van

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin

A Sochi 2014 Ski Jumping list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

Nick Alexander, Peter Frenette and Anders Johnson all competed for the US in Vancouver. On the normal hill all three moved on from the qualifying round but failed to reach the top 30 on the first jump of the final so none made a second jump. Alexander and Frenette tied for 41st while Johnson finished 49th.

In the large hill event Johnson failed to qualify for the final when he came in 42nd in the qualifying round and only the top 40 moved on. Alexander and Frenette did advance to the final but missed out on the top 30 on the first jump. Frenette finished 32nd and Alexander finished 40th.

They came together in the team event with Taylor Fletcher and were in 11th after the first jump so they didn’t get to take a second jump. Anders Johnson was part of the team event in Turin as well. That team finished 14th after the first jump. Johnson didn’t take part in any of the individual events in Turin.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Saturday, February 8th
11:30 AM – Men’s Normal Hill Individual Qualification Round

Sunday, February 9th
12:30 PM – Men’s Normal Hill Individual 1st Round
*1:30 PM – Men’s Normal Hill Individual Final Round

Tuesday, February 11th
12:30 PM – Ladies’ Normal Hill Individual 1st Round
*1:20 PM – Ladies’ Normal Hill Individual Final Round

Friday, February 14th
12:30 PM – Men’s Large Hill Individual Qualification Round

Saturday, February 15th
12:30 PM – Men’s Large Hill Individual 1st Round
*1:30 PM – Men’s Large Hill Individual Final Round

Monday, February 17th
12:15 PM – Men’s Team 1st Round
*1:15 PM – Men’s Team Final Round

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

Ski jumping is part of the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2013 were held in Val di Fiemme, Italy in late February and early March 2013.

The men’s normal hill event saw Anders Johnson advance from the qualifying round while Peter Frenette missed out by one spot. In the final Johnson finished 37th after the first jump to end his competition.

In the men’s large hill event Johnson advanced from qualifying in 39th place while Frenette advanced in 40th place, both just sneaking into the field. In the final Johnson was 39th after the first jump while Frenette was 50th of the 50 jumpers, eliminating both.

The great news for the US came on the women’s side. All three US Olympians competed and all three did well. Lindsey Van came up third of the Olympians and still finished in 16th place and had the eighth best jump on the second jump. Jessica Jerome came in sixth on the first jump and fourth on the second jump and finished sixth overall. The star though was Sarah Hendrickson who had the best first jump and second best on the next jump. Hendrickson finished first overall to take home the world championship.

Norweigan ski jumper Christian Meyer
Norweigan ski jumper Christian Meyer

Photo Credit: A.Nilssen Photography via Compfight cc

US Olympic History

The men’s individual large hill, the original Olympic ski jumping event, is where the US has won its only medal. That medal was a bronze won by Anders Haugen in 1924. It’s been a long 90 years since then. The US did not have an athlete advance to the second jump of the final in either 2010 or 2006. In 2010 the best finish was by Peter Frenette in 32nd while in 2006 the best finish was by Alan Alborn in 43rd.

The men’s normal hill has also been a struggle for the US lately. No athletes advanced to the second jump of the final in the last two Olympics. The top Americans in 2010 were Frenette and Nick Alexander who tied for 41st. In 2010 the top American was Alborn who finished 40th.

The men’s team event has seen US finishes of 11th and 14th in the last two Olympics with the US not reaching the second jump in either event.

Of course there is no history on the women’s side so far, but hopefully the US will be making a mark in the first event.

Luge, Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014

Luge Preview

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The US has struggled to medal in the luge competitions at the Olympics. Their only medals came in 1998 and 2002 in the doubles event. Thy nearly won their first singles medals though in 2006 when they had fourth place finishers in both the men’s and women’s events. Things regressed some in Vancouver though when the top singles finishers were in eighth and 16th. The US has some definite hope coming to Sochi though. At the World Championships last year members of the US team finished in sixth in both men’s and women’s singles. Perhaps this will be the year the US breaks through.

Luge’s Olympic History

Luge first became an Olympic sport in 1964, starting with a men’s singles, women’s singles, and doubles event. These three events have remained the Olympic program until this year when a fourth event will be held for the first time. This event will be a team relay involving a single member from the first three events.

Germany has absolutely totally dominated the luge event. Combining Germany, East Germany, West Germany, and the Unified Team of Germany they have won 70 of the 117 and 27 of the 40 gold medals awarded. Only five other countries (Italy, Austria, the US, Latvia, and the Soviet Union/Russia) have won medals. The US has won four medals (two gold and two silver) in the luge.

An example of a luge sled from the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Photo Credit: couloir via Compfight cc

How the Luge Competitions Work

First of all, what differentiates luge from bobsleigh and skeleton? Luge is on a sled (unlike bobsleigh) and luge is done lying on the back (unlike skeleton). Luge basically looks like the most dangerous sport in the Olympics and it probably is. This is the sport where an athlete died in Vancouver (a Georgian luger named Nodar Kumaritashivili). It goes faster than the skeleton and the view of where you are going is not quite as good since you aren’t facing forward. Lugers start their races sitting on the sled and push-off before lying down for the race.

In the Olympics the men’s singles and women’s singles events are conducted over two days with two runs in each day. The four runs are then totaled with the fastest total time winning. The doubles competition is conducted on one day with only two runs combined for the total time.

The mixed relay making the debut this year is pretty cool. This isn’t just three separate times being combined to get a total time for the team, this is a race where when the first athlete gets to the bottom they will hit a pad that triggers the start of the 2nd athlete. The order of the lugers will be women-men-doubles.

Anke Wischnewski of Germany competes in the luge at the Vancouver Olympics

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US Team

The team is made up of seven men and three women. Three of the athletes are returning from the team in Vancouver, two of whom were also on the team in Turin. Another athlete wasn’t part of the team in Vancouver but was part of the team in Turin.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Luge

Men:
Preston Griffall& – Doubles
Aidan Kelly – Singles
Chris Mazdzer* – Singles
Matt Mortensen – Doubles
Christian Niccum** – Doubles
Jayson Terdiman – Doubles
Tucker West – Singles

Women:
Summer Britcher – Singles
Erin Hamlin** – Singles
Kate Hansen – Singles

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin
& – Was on team in Turin

A Sochi 2014 Luge list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

While Preston Griffall didn’t make the Olympic team in Vancouver he was part of the team in Turin. Griffall teamed up with Dan Joye. The team finished eighth in the doubles competition.

Chris Mazdzer made his Olympic debut in Vancouver and competed in the men’s singles event. Mazdzer finished run one in 12th, run two in 16th, run three in 13th, and run four in 17th. His total time ended up placing him 13th.

Christian Niccum teamed up with Dan Joye for the doubles event in Vancouver. Niccum’s team was sixth in both the first run and the second and finished sixth overall. In Turin, Niccum competed in the singles event where he finished 23rd.

Erin Hamlin started off her Vancouver Olympics in great fashion with an eight place finish in women’s singles. She wasn’t able to keep it up though as she finished run two in 20th, run three in 24th, and run four in 16th. She wound up 16th overall. Turin was even more successful in Turin where she finished 12th in the women’s singles event.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Saturday, February 8th
9:30 AM – Men’s Singles Run 1
11:40 AM – Men’s Singles Run 2

Sunday, February 9th
9:30 AM – Men’s Singles Run 3
*11:40 AM – Men’s Singles Run 4

Monday, February 10th
9:45 AM – Women’s Singles Run 1
11:35 AM – Women’s Singles Run 2

Tuesday, February 11th
9:30 AM – Women’s Singles Run 3
*11:20 AM – Women’s Singles Run 4

Wednesday, February 12th
9:15 AM – Doubles Run 1
*10:45 AM – Doubles Run 2

Thursday, February 13th
*11:15 AM – Team Relay Competition

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

The 2013 FIL World Luge Championships were held in Whistler, British Columbia.

In the men’s singles competition Chris Mazdzer was the only Olympian to compete for the US. The event was only held over two runs and Mazdzer was in the top eight in both runs and finished in sixth within 0.35 seconds of a bronze medal. Things didn’t go as well in the men’s doubles competition where Matt Mortensen and Preston Griffall teamed up and finished 14th.

Two of the three female Olympians for the US competed in the women’s singles event. Kate Hansen finished in 14th while Erin Hamlin was the top American with a sixth place finish just 0.31 seconds behind the bronze.

The team relay event was a combination effort between Mazdzer, Mortensen/Griffall and Hamlin. The team was third fastest in the women’s portion, fourth in men’s singles, but only seventh in the doubles portion. Still they wound up fifth and just 0.012 seconds out of the bronze.

A luge track can feature some SERIOUS embankment!
A luge track can feature some SERIOUS embankment!

Photo Credit: parker yo! via Compfight cc

US Olympic History

Men’s singles is an event the US has never medaled in. In 2010 their top athlete was Tony Benshoof who came in eighth while in 2006 they nearly medaled when Benshoof came in fourth and missed out on the bronze by 0.153 seconds.

The US has also never medaled in women’s singles. In 2010 the US didn’t come close with their best finish by Erin Hamlin in 16th. 2006 was a different story when Courtney Zablocki came in fourth and missed out on the bronze by 0.392 seconds.

All of the US medals have come in the doubles event. The US grabbed both the silver and bronze medals in 1998 and 2002. Since then the US has achieved an eighth place finish in 2006 and a sixth place finish in 2010.

Biathlon, Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014

Biathlon Preview

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This will be the 15th time that the biathlon is held at the Olympics. The US has never won a medal. They didn’t even have anyone closer than ninth in Vancouver. But there’s hope this year. The US has a reigning world silver medalist and they have one of their best shots at a medal ever. Maybe 2014 will be the year the US finally breaks through in the biathlon.

Biathlon’s Olympic History

Biathlon’s Olympic history really begins with another event held at four Olympics from 1924 to 1948. This event was called military patrol and was very similar to the current biathlon as it involved both skiing and shooting. It never caught on and only once were medals awarded, the other three times it was a demonstration event. In 1960 the modern biathlon made its Olympic debut and it’s been around ever since. It started with just one men’s event and expanded to three by 1980. Women were first involved in 1992 when they were given a program to mirror the men’s. Since then the program has grown to five competitions each for the men and women and for the first time in Sochi there will be a mixed event as well.

Germany has been the best country in biathlon with 59 of the 190 medals if you combine Germany and the former teams of West Germany and East Germany. 21 countries have medaled in biathlon including Kazakhstan. One country you won’t find on that list though? The US.

How the Biathlon Competitions Work

If speed skating is a sport where there is almost no difference other than distance between events, biathlon is a sport where there are a ton of differences between events. One thing to keep in mind through all the events is that there are two styles of shooting: prone and standing. Standing is self-obvious but if you haven’t heard of the prone position it’s basically like lying down.

The first events held are the sprint races. In the sprint races the competitors will be spaced out in 30 seconds intervals at the start and do three loops to complete the race. After the completion of each loop the athlete will have a shooting phase where they must hit a target. Accuracy on the target doesn’t matter, just hitting the target. The first shooting is prone, the second standing. If you miss a target you have to ski a 150-meter penalty loop after you are done shooting. If you miss two targets, two loops. Men will race a 10km race (so 3.3km per loop) while women only go 7.5km (2.5km per loop).

If you thought now that we’ve done the sprint race and awarded the medals we can forget about it, think again. The results of that race establish the starting grid for the pursuit events. Only the top 60 from the sprint race move into the pursuit event. They will start from the same point but each athlete will be delayed at the start as long as they finished sprint race behind the leader. To win this race you have to pass the leader, overcoming as much time as you were behind in the sprint event! How long do you have to do it? Five loops (2.5 km loops for men, 2km loops for women) and four shooting times. The shooting is done in the prone position the first two times and standing the second two times. If you miss a target you face the same 150m penalty as the sprint race.

Next up is the individual events. These will be started the same way as the sprint races but the big difference is the penalty for missing a target. Instead of skiing an extra 150m you are automatically given a one minute penalty to be added to your final time. The men will do five loops of 4km while the women do five loops of 3km. The four rounds of shooting are done from the prone, standing, prone, and standing positions.

The final events that don’t involve teams are the mass-start events. I think you can guess how the field begins the race (don’t worry there are only 30 athletes so it’s not too much chaos). The punishment for missing targets in this event is once again a 150m penalty loop. If you put together a penalty loop and a mass-start what do you get? You get a race where the first person across the finish line is the winner (unlike the individual and sprint races). The variance between the four solo events of whether it’s a race to the finish line or a race against the clock does provide for some interesting finishes and some nice variety. The men will race five 3km loops in this race while the women do five 2.5km loops. In both events the shooting position order is prone, prone, standing, and standing.

Finally we’ve come to the relay events! The first relay event is the mixed relay event, which is making its debut in the Olympics! Teams consist of four skiers, two men and two women, with the women skiing the first two legs. All teams start at the same time and the 150m penalty loop is in effect for this event. Each member of the team skates three loops (2km for the women, 2.5km for the men) with shooting in between loops. The first shooting is done from the prone position, the second from the standing position. The non mixed relays also involve four members and follow the same format as the mixed relay event.

US Team

The team is made up of five men and five women. Four of the athletes are veterans from the Vancouver team while three of them were also on the team in Turin.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Biathlon

Men:
Lowell Bailey**
Tim Burke**
Russell Currier
Sean Doherty
Leif Nordgren

Women:
Lanny Barnes**
Annelies Cook
Susan Dunklee
Hannah Dreissigacker
Sara Studebaker*

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin

A Sochi 2014 Biathlon list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

In Vancouver Lowell Bailey competed for the US in three solo events but couldn’t finish any higher than 36th (10km sprint and 12.5km pursuit). Bailey also took part in the 20km individual where he finished 57th. Bailey was part of a 4×7.5km relay team which finished 13th. Bailey was a little more competitive in the individual event in Turin when he finished 27th. Bailey was also in the sprint event (47th) and the pursuit event (48th). He did take part in a top-ten finish by the relay team when they came in ninth.

Tim Burke was also part of the US team in Vancouver. Like Bailey he was part of the 13th place finishing 4×7.5km relay team. In the solo events he had a good finish in the 15km mass start, 18th, while he ended up 45th in the 20km individual, 46th in the 12.5km pursuit and 47th in the 10km sprint. Eight years ago in Turin, Burke was a part of the ninth place finish by the relay team. Burke also came in 36th in the sprint and pursuit events and 58th in the individual event.

Lanny Barnes competed in two solo events for the US in Vancouver. Barnes was 78th in the 7.5km sprint event which meant she didn’t reach the 10km pursuit event. She was much better in the 15km individual event where she finished 23rd. She was also part of the 4x5km relay team that finished 17th. Barnes competed in just two events in Turin. Barnes came in 64th in the individual event and also took part in the relay team which finished 15th.

Vancouver saw the Olympic debut of Sara Studebaker. Studebaker was a member of the 4x5km relay team that finished 17th and also competed individually in three events. Studebaker’s best event was the 15km individual race where she finished 34th. She wound up 45th in the 7.5km sprint event and 46th in the 10km pursuit event.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Saturday, February 8th
*9:30 AM – Men’s Sprint 10km

Sunday, February 9th
*9:30 AM – Women’s 7.5km Sprint

Monday, February 10th
*10 AM – Men’s 12.5km Pursuit

Tuesday, February 11th
*10 AM – Women’s 10km Pursuit

Thursday, February 13th
*9 AM – Men’s Individual 20km

Friday, February 14th
*9 AM – Women’s 15km Individual

Sunday, February 16th
*10 AM – Men’s 15km Mass Start

Monday, February 17th
*10 AM – Women’s 12.5km Mass Start

Wednesday, February 19th
*9:30 AM – 2x6km Women + 2×7.5km Men Mixed Relay

Friday, February 21st
*9:30 AM – Women’s 4x6km Relay

Saturday, February 22nd
*9:30 AM – Men’s 4×7.5km Relay

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

The 2013 Biathlon World Championships were held in Nové Město na Moravě, Czech Republic in February 2013.

The US found some success in the men’s 20km individual event. Four of the Olympic team members were in that event and all finished in the top 60 with Russell Currier in 60th place. Lowell Bailey finished 29th with Leif Nordgren coming in 20th. The top American though was Tim Burke who came in second to win a silver.

Tim Burke was again the top American in the 10km sprint event where he finished in a tie for 28th. Lowell Bailey was second best with a 32nd place finish while Russell Currier was 44th and Leif Nordgren was 53rd.

Using those results to set the field for the 12.5km pursuit event the US had all four of their athletes in the field. Lowell Bailey put together a great performance and didn’t miss a single target to move up from 32nd at the start to finish in 13th. Tim Burke fell from 28th to 32nd while Leif Nordgren moved up from 53rd to 43rd and Russell Currier fell from 44th to 52nd.

The final solo event, the mass start 15km event featured two Americans in the 30 athlete field. Lowell Bailey took another turn as the top American finishing in 13th while Tim Burke ended up 30th.

Bailey, Currier, Nordgren, and Burke teamed up for the relay event but finished 12th.

On the women’s side Susan Dunklee, Sara Studebaker, Annelies Cook, and Hannah Dreissigacker all competed for the US in the 15km individual event. Dunklee was the top American in 15th while Studebaker joined her in the top 30 with a 27th place finish. Cook ended up 38th while Dreissigacker was 56th.

The 7.5km sprint event didn’t go as well for the US as the top American was Annelies Cook and she finished 45th. Susan Dunklee wasn’t far behind her in 49th as they both qualified for the pursuit event. Sara Studebaker came in 65th while Hannah Dreissigacker ended up 71st.

In the pursuit event Susan Dunklee only was able to edge up from 49th to 47th while Annelies Cook fell from 46th to 51st.

Dunklee, Cook, Dreissigacker, and Studebaker combined for the team relay where they ended up 11th.

The US combined Annelies Cook, Susan Dunklee, Lowell Bailey, and Leif Nordgren for the mixed relay team. The mixed team did better than both the men’s and women’s team as they finished 8th and within a minute of the bronze.

US Olympic History

As mentioned at the top, the US has never won a biathlon medal at the Olympics.

In 2010 the closest the US came was in the men’s 10km sprint where Jeremy Teela finished 9th. Teela was also the top American in the 12.5km pursuit in 24th. Tim Burke was the top US competitor in the 20km individual (45th) and the 15km mass start (18th). The US relay team came in 13th.

On the women’s side the closest US athlete to a medal was Lanny Barnes who finished 23rd in the 15 km individual. Sara Studebaker was top for the US in the 7.5km sprint finishing 45th and in the 10km pursuit ending up 46th. The women’s relay team finished 17th.

Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014, Speed Skating

Speed Skating Preview

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The US has the most gold medals in speed skating at the Olympics but the US has struggled some in recent years, especially on the women’s side. Can an experienced team for the US top the four medals from Vancouver or will the medal count continue to fall off?

Speed Skating’s Olympic History

Speed skating made its Olympic debut at the very first Winter Olympics in 1924, but it nearly began earlier than that. In 1916 speed skating was on the program for the Summer Olympics in Berlin. Unfortunately those Olympics were cancelled because of World War I and speed skating had to wait eight more years for its Olympic debut. Speed skating began with five men’s events, just one less than there is today, and four of the original events are still contested today. Women’s speed skating was a demonstration sport in Lake Placid in 1932 but didn’t become an Olympic sport until 1960 when it had just as many events as men’s speed skating. For a few Olympics there was one more men’s event than women’s, but the number has been balanced since 1988 and today there are six events for men and for women.

Two countries, the Netherlands (82) and Norway (80) have more medals than the 67 won by the US. No country though has more golds than the US with 29. The Netherlands are close behind with 27 while Norway has 25. There have been medals won by 23 different countries with 17 countries winning a gold medal.

How the Speed Skating Competitions Work

While there are a lot of events in speed skating there isn’t a lot of difference between the events other than distance. The individual races involve the athletes doing 400m laps around the rink enough times to cover the distance. Two athletes will go at a time with an inner and outer lane. Since the inside lane is shorter than the outside lane the athletes have to swap lanes after each lap so that they each cover the same distance. The only exception is the 500m races. 500m is not much longer than the track’s 400m length so it’s not possible for each athlete to do a lap on each lane. To overcome this each athlete will skate two races with their second race in the opposite lane as what they used in the first. The combined time from the two races determines the final standings.

The only event not done with this format is the team pursuit events. In the team pursuit events teams of three skaters will take to the ice in head-to-head competition. Whichever team finishes first moves on. The skaters will alternate leading their team as the leader will face the most air resistance. The team’s time is based on when their final skater crosses the finish line. The two teams both start at the same time on opposite ends of the track so there’s no need for an inside and outside lane.

US Team

The team is made up of nine men and eight women. Nine of the 17 athletes were on the team in Vancouver while three of them were also on the team in Turin.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Speed Skating

Men:
Shani Davis** – 500m, 1000m, 1500m
Tucker Fredricks** – 500m
Jonathan Garcia – 1000m
Brian Hansen* – 500m, 1000m, 1500m, team pursuit
Jonathan Kuck* – 1500m, 5000m, team pursuit
Emery Lehman – 5000m, 10000m
Joey Mantia – 1000m, 1500m
Patrick Meek – 5000m
Mitchell Whitmore* – 500m

Women:
Brittany Bowe – 500m, 1000m, 1500m, team pursuit
Lauren Cholewinski* – 500m
Kelly Gunther – 1000m
Maria Lamb** – 5000m
Heather Richardson* – 500m, 1000m, 1500m, team pursuit
Anna Ringsred – 3000m
Jilleanne Rookard* – 1500m, 3000m, team pursuit
Sugar Todd – 500m, 1000m

* – Was on team in Vancouver
** – Was on team in Vancouver & Turin

A Sochi 2014 Speed Skating list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

Shani Davis was one of the US stars in Vancouver. Davis competed in four events and had some success and some disappointment. In the first 500m race Davis came in 18th and was too far behind to be in medal contention. There were some issues with the ice so the event had some delays and he choose to pull out of the event since he was out of contention. In the 1000m race Davis took home the gold medal while he grabbed a silver in the 1500m race. Davis also competed in the 5000m race where he ended up 12th. Davis took home the same combination of medals in Turin, and from the same races! A gold in the 1000m and a silver in the 1500m. Davis also competed in the 5000m race and came in seventh.

Tucker Fredricks competed in just one event for the US in Vancouver, the 500m. In the first race he ended up 15th but posted a strong ninth best time in race two to end up 12th overall. Fredricks competed in the same event for the US in Turin. Fredricks was 25th after the first run and ended up 25th in the end.

Vancouver saw the Olympic debut of Brian Hansen, but he competed in just one individual event, the 1500m, where he finished 18th. Hansen’s best moments came though as part of the team pursuit team that beat Japan and the Netherlands before falling to Canada in the final and taking home a silver. Hansen took part in the races against the Netherlands and Canada.

Jonathan Kuck’s Olympic debut in Vancouver was much like that of Hansen. Kuck was also part of the silver medal winning team pursuit team and was part of the three-man team for all three races. Kuck also competed in the 10000m race where he finished eighth.

Another first-time Olympian in Vancouver was Mitchell Whitmore. Whitmore competed in only the 500m event for the US finishing in 39th in race one and 34th in race two for a 37th overall finish.

Lauren Cholewinski also debuted at the Olympics in 2010. Much like Whitmore she competed only in the 500m event and finished 29th in race one and 32nd in race two for a 30th overall finish.

Maria Lamb came to Vancouver with some experience and competed for the US in the 5000m event. She finished in 15th. In Turin she had skated the 1500m event where she finished 27th and took part in the team pursuit event. Lamb competed for each race for a US team that lost their quarterfinal to Canada and lost the fifth place final to the Netherlands to end up sixth.

Heather Richardson took part in three events for the US in Vancouver. She made a good run at a medal in her first Olympics as she finished sixth in the 500m event, ninth in the 1000m event, and 16th in the 1500m event.

The final skater who debuted in Vancouver was Jileanne Rookard. Rookard competed in three individual events for the US and had her best finish (eight) in the 5000m event. She finished 12th in the 3000m event and 24th in the 1500m event. Rookard was also part of the team pursuit event and was part of the US team in all three races they had. The US shocked Canada in the quarterfinals but lost to Germany in the semifinals and missed out on a bronze when they lost to Poland in the 3rd place final.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded
Saturday, February 8th
*6:30 AM – Men’s 5000m

Sunday, February 9th
*6:30 AM – Ladies’ 3000m

Monday, February 10th
8 AM – Men’s 500m Race 1 of 2
*9:55 AM – Men’s 500m Race 2 of 2

Tuesday, February 11th
7:45 AM – Ladies’ 500m Race 1 of 2
*9:34 AM – Ladies’ 500m Race 2 of 2

Wednesday, February 12th
*9 AM – Men’s 1000m

Thursday, February 13th
*9 AM – Ladies’ 1000m

Saturday, February 15th
*8:30 AM – Men’s 1500m

Sunday, February 16th
*9 AM – Ladies’ 1500m

Tuesday, February 18th
*8 AM – Men’s 10000m

Wednesday, February 19th
*8:30 AM – Ladies’ 5000m

Friday, February 21st
8:30 AM – Men’s Team Pursuit Quarterfinals
9:23 AM – Ladies’ Team Pursuit Quarterfinals
10:12 AM – Men’s Team Pursuit Semifinals

Saturday, February 22nd
8:30 AM – Ladies’ Team Pursuit Semifinals
*8:51 AM – Men’s Team Pursuit Finals
*9:14 AM – Ladies’ Team Pursuit Finals

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

The latest Speed Skating world championship, the 2013 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championship, was held in Sochi in March 2013.

Mitchell Whitmore and Tucker Fredricks both competed for the US in the men’s 500m event. They finished the first race in 24th and 22nd and then went 23rd and 24th in the second race to finish 23rd and 24th in the 24 athlete field.

In the 1000m event Shani Davis, Mitchell Whitmore, and Brian Hansen all competed. Whitmore, who isn’t going to be competing in the 1000m in the Olympics, wound up 22nd while Brian Hansen was ninth and within 0.77 seconds of the winner. Shani Davis nearly took home the gold but came up 0.16 seconds short and won the bronze.

In the 1500m event three Americans who will be competing in the Olympics, Shani Davis, Brian Hansen, and Jonathan Kuck, all took part. Kuck was the furthest away from the top in 22nd while Brian Hansen came very close to a bronze. Hansen finished in fourth 0.43 seconds away from a medal. Shani Davis again came up just short, this time 0.51 seconds, and took home a silver.

Jonathan Kuck and Emery Lehman both took part in the 5000m for the US. Kuck was the top American in the field with a 12th place finish while Lehman ended up 20th.

Kuck also took part in the 10000m event, though he won’t be racing that event in the Olympics. Kuck ended up 12th out of 14 competitors.

On the women’s side Heather Richardson, Brittany Bowe, and Lauren Cholewinski were all part of the 500m event. Cholewinski (20th) and Bowe (14th) were out of medal contention after race one while Richardson’s sixth place finish left her in the mix. Cholewinski finished race two in 22nd and split the difference to finish 21st overall while Bowe was 14th again and ended up 14th. Richardson had a slower time in race two on the inside track and was tenth in race two. That left her in 8th place overall.

Heather Richardson improved on that finish in the 1000m event where she ended up eight while Anna Ringsred, who won’t compete in the 1000m at the Olympics, ended up in 21st. The big story though was Brittany Bowe who was impressive for the US taking home the bronze and finishing 0.43 seconds away from the winner.

Anna Ringsred, who will be competing for the US in only the 3000m event in the Olympics, was the only US athlete in the 1500m event where she finished last in the 18 athlete field.

Maria Lamb competed for the US in the 5000m event and ended up 11th but just eight seconds behind fourth place.

US Olympic History

In Salt Lake City US took home eight speed skating medals. It was their largest haul since 1980. They nearly matched that in Turin when they took home seven medals, their third most all-time. Vancouver didn’t go quite as well as the US took home just four medals but when you consider the US never won more than three from 1984 through 1998 it’s not so bad!

In the men’s 500m event the US has taken home 16 medals and won golds in 2002 in 2006, but they didn’t finish in the top ten in Vancouver with Tucker Fredricks the top American in 12th.

The 1000m event has been an US specialty with half of the ten gold medals going to the US. Shani Davis is the two-time defending champion in this event, the US has won multiple medals in back-to-back Olympics and the US has now medaled in three straight Olympics.

After only winning three medals in the first 18 1500m Olympic events the US has now won four medals in the last three Olympics and has won silver or better in all three. Shani Davis is the two-time defending silver medalist.

The 5000m event has been another tough one for the US before a silver in Salt Lake City and a gold in Turin. In Vancouver three Americans were in the top 15, but none finished higher than 11th (Chad Hedrick).

A similar story can be told of the 10000m event where the US has only medaled once since 1980, a silver by Chad Hedrick in Turin. Vancouver’s best was Jonathan Kuck who finished eighth.

Team pursuit has only been held twice and the US got their first medal, a silver, in Vancouver. Two of the members of that team, Brian Hansen and Jonathan Kuck, are back in Sochi.

On the women’s side the US medaled ten times in the first ten 500m events including half of the gold medals. Since Bonnie Blair won her 3rd gold in a row in 1994 the US has been held off the medal stand altogether. Heather Richardson came close in 2010 with a sixth place finish and will look to get a medal this time.

The US medaled in the 1000m event in nine of the ten Olympics from 1968 to 2002. Since then, nothing. In Vancouver Jennifer Rodriguez was the closest to getting there with a seventh place finish.

After a medal drought from 1976 to 1998 in the 1500m event the US had bronze medalists in Nagano and Salt Lake City. Since then though, again no medals for the US. No US athletes were in the top 15 in Vancouver with Heather Richardson the closest in 16th.

The 3000m event has only seen US medalists twice and the most recent was Beth Heiden in 1980. Nancy Swider-Peltz, Jr. came closest in Vancouver with a ninth place finish but the US is still staring at a 34 year medal drought in this event.

The 5000m event has been held seven times but the US has never medaled. Jilleanne Rookard was the top US athlete in Vancouver finishing in 8th.

The team pursuit event has been held twice with no medals so far for the US. In 2010 the US reached the semifinals before two straight losses left them in 4th. Jilleanne Rookard is the only member of this team back for 2014.