Skiing is the glamour sport of the Olympics, which makes gold-medal winners Bode Miller and Lindsey Vonn the American stars of Vancouver. But who else ranks on the short list of U.S. stars?
1. Ryan Miller » With a brilliant performance, the Buffalo Sabres goalie carried the U.S. hockey team on his back in a memorable run to the gold-medal game, in which the Americans took Canada to overtime before losing 3-2. Miller still won the tournament’s MVP award.
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2. Evan Lysacek » In becoming the first American to win men’s figure skating gold since Brian Boitano (1988), the superbly conditioned, 6-foot-2 Lysacek performed with an athletic elegance rarely seen in a sport populated by sprites on skates.
3. Shaun White » We swore we wouldn’t include any X-Games junk, and we’ll stop short of calling him an athlete. But how can you ignore someone who is — even to the uninitiated — so clearly light years ahead of his competition and such a perfect ambassador for his, uh, sport?
4. Shani Davis » In 2006, the speed skater became the first black to win an individual gold medal in the Winter Olympics. In Vancouver, the Chicago native became the first man of any race to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals in the 1,000 meters.
5. Apolo Ohno » The world’s most famous short-track speed skater failed to win gold for the first time in three Olympics but did become the most decorated American in Winter Olympics history. He claimed three medals to bring his career total to eight.
