U.S. Ski Team eyes extra Olympic spot

Associated Press

The U.S. Ski Team pushed back the announcement of its Vancouver Olympics roster until today to see if any extra spots become available.

The team’s international results dictate how many skiers it can bring to the Olympics in each event. Some nations may not use their full quota, making additional spots available. The Americans currently have 18 spots to divide among the men’s and women’s squads.

The delay doesn’t affect skiers such as Lindsey Vonn and Bode Miller. For those two, it’s simply a matter of how many events they are likely to compete in while at Whistler. Vonn could easily earn a spot in all five of the women’s disciplines.

Reigning Olympic champions Ted Ligety and Julia Mancuso also appear set to defend their crowns. Mancuso captured the giant slalom title at the Turin Games in 2006 and Ligety won gold in the combined.

But there are those U.S. skiers on the bubble who will be anxiously awaiting the announcement.

One of the tightest races may be in the women’s super-G. Just who will make that roster remains up in the air.

With Vonn a lock and Mancuso turning in a tenth-place finish nearly two weeks ago in Haus im Ennstal, Austria, there’s at most two spots left. That leaves Leanne Smith, Keely Kelleher, Chelsea Marshall, Alice McKennis and Stacey Cook in a numbers crunch.

And that’s just one event.

On the men’s side, hard decisions loom in the downhill. Miller has all but clinched a spot, while Andrew Weibrecht has been solid all season, possibly sewing up another of the at most four spots. Steven Nyman, Marco Sullivan, Erik Fisher and Scott Macartney are waiting to see who earns the other invitations.

For Sullivan, this is another anxious moment. He was the odd-man-out in Turin after losing a last-minute ski-off to determine the fourth member of the U.S. downhill team.

The men’s giant slalom could make for a difficult choice as well. There are four Americans who have scored points on the World Cup circuit, yet Miller has not.

Might the 32-year-old Miller be left off the roster in that event?

One of Miller’s two silver medals at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games came in the giant slalom.

And this team is all about who can bring home the hardware.

The mercurial Miller rejoined the U.S. team this season following a two-year hiatus to train and race on his own. He has been gradually rounding into shape after missing most of the offseason training.

Miller sprained his right ankle playing volleyball in December, forcing him to miss some races.

But Miller showed he’s still a factor in any race he enters, capturing a World Cup super combined event earlier this month in Wengen, Switzerland. It was first victory in nearly two years.