The wait is finally over. After four long years, the 2014 Winter Olympics, a time devoted to international co-operation and friendly competition, is just days away from its opening ceremony that will kick off two weeks of stunning athleticism and competition. Hosted in Sochi, Russia, the 22nd Winter Olympic Games welcomes 2,800 athletes from a record 88 nations who are all ready to stand on top of that podium and make themselves, their family and friends, and countries proud.
While secretly we all wish to be in those athletes’ shoes, or to at least be their to watch, we settle for tuning in to the Olympic Games from home. But with so many sports and athletes happening at once over these next couple weeks, it’s hard to know which stars to follow without taking time out of our busy lives to do the research. Luckily, Her Campus Miami has done that research for you, providing a number of athletes from our United States Olympic Team to watch out for as they compete in Sochi 2014.
Some countries are making their very first appearance in this year’s Winter Olympics, such as East Timor, Paraguay, Togo, Tonga, and Zimbabwe. A number of brand new events are also making their first Olympic debut, including biathlon mixed relay, women’s ski jumping, mixed-team figure skating, mixed-team luge, half-pipe skiing, ski and snowboard slope style, and snowboard parallel slalom (a full list of events can be found here).
Of all the already existing events, the United States has never medaled in the biathlon, but that all may change now that the 2013 biathlon world champion, Tim Burke, is competing. The United States has also never won gold in ski jumping, luge, cross country skiing or curling, with many U.S. Olympic athletes looking to break those boundaries, as well in this year’s Olympic games.
In the realm of ice dancing, a fierce rivalry is brewing between two skating pairs. The U.S. pair Meryl Davis and Charlie White won the world championships in 2011 and 2013, and will take on Canada’s Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, who won gold at the 2010 Olympic games and silver at the 2012 world championships.
Returning on the speed skating track is U.S. competitor Shani Davis, who many remember for being the first black athlete to ever medal in the Winter Olympic Games back in 2006. He is also the first speed skater to ever win back to back gold medals in the 1,000 meter events. Davis is now looking to add an historic third gold medal in a row to his already impressive resume at this year’s Olympics.
Speaking of Olympic landmarks, Lolo Jones, along with her track teammate Lauryn Williams, will become the ninth and 10th American Olympic athletes to ever compete in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. Jones and Williams, famous for their endeavors running track for the U.S., will test their Olympic prowess in bobsled.
Finally, the returning X-Games star and two-time Olympic champ Shaun White will once again represent the U.S. in mens Snowboard half-pipe, as well as slope style. White is once again the favorite to win half-pipe this year, and with his history of innovation, many fans are eager to see what the pioneer will bring to the table this year.
Be sure to watch the Opening Ceremony of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games Friday at 7:30 p.m. on NBC. While only six of the 250 athletes on the U.S. Olympic Team are highlighted above, check out the rest of Team USA here, as well as the full schedule for these next two action-packed weeks!