Skiers ready for a bumpy ride

The moguls competition opens the Games today, and American Ann Battelle doesn't want to leave empty-handed.

Compiled from Times wires
© St. Petersburg Times
published February 9, 2002

SALT LAKE CITY -- Ann Battelle's words were as blunt as the thwack of skis on a mogul.

"To go to four Olympics and not win a medal, it could really s---," Battelle said. "I'm putting a lot of pressure on myself."

In order to medal in today's women's moguls event, the 32-year-old Battelle will have to contend with champions as well as "Champion."

The champions include American teammate Hannah Hardaway and Norway's Kari Traa, who won a bronze medal at Nagano four years ago.

But this sport really pits the contenders against the course, and that's where "Champion" comes in. It's the name given the freestyle run at Deer Valley by designer Timmy Meagher.

While a moguls course may look like a hill with random bumps, the reality is that each course is carefully laid out.

Champion is touted as the longest, steepest and fastest moguls course any of these skiers have faced.

And it was designed to accommodate more than 15,000 spectators. Tickets for the freestyle skiing events were among the first to sell out.

Moguls skiing is a tough sport, with more knee surgery scars per capita than a football locker room. Competitors are judged on a combination of speed, form and degree of difficulty of their midair tricks. Meagher said he wanted a course that would force skiers to come up with a game plan before leaving the top of the hill.

"It's definitely pretty intimidating," Battelle said of the course.

"It's been very stressful today," Traa said after training on Thursday. "I've tried all the lines, and sometimes it's easy to land at the top of one line, and at the bottom part it's hard. ... But I think I've found my line."

Traa is No. 1 in World Cup standings and is the favorite. She would like a gold medal to go with her bronze, which hangs inside the front door of a restaurant in her native Voss, Norway.

Hardaway, a 23-year-old from New Hampshire, is considered the strongest American. She said the Deer Valley course "will separate the field a little bit," allowing the top skiers to stand out.

"It's a bit longer than what we're used to, and there's a variation of distance between the moguls," she said. "The course just poses a challenge for all the athletes, so it's not like everyone is going to go out there and look awesome."

Jillian Vogtli and Shannon Bahrke round out the U.S. squad.

"We really have a strong team," Hardaway said. "I think that if anyone of us has the run of our lives, we can be on top of that podium."

The athletes have mixed feelings about the scheduling of their event. As the first event of the Games -- Friday's ski jumping was postponed because of high winds -- it will have them on the mountain just hours after the Opening Ceremony.

"We might have to leave a little early," Hardaway said before Friday's ceremony. "I'm planning to go. I want to experience it all. I don't want to have any regrets."

But Battelle was worried about getting enough rest before today's competition.

"I don't want to be standing around for six hours right before I compete," she said. "But I would love to walk into that stadium (Friday night).

She would really love a medal in her fourth Olympics.

"I don't think that will make it easier," Battelle said. "I think it's going to be more challenging because everyone I've ever met in my entire life is going to be here watching me. It's more important to do well in my country than anywhere else."

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