The 2006 Winter Olympics are here! Well... not here exactly, they're in Turin, Italy... but through the magic of television, it feels like they are here.
Today is just the third day of competition and already, American athletes have had their share of ups and downs. Arguably the biggest story this weekend was figure skater Michelle Kwan's decision to withdraw from the Olympic games. After straining a groin muscle during practice on Saturday, Kwan realized she was not at 100% and sadly gave up her dreams for Olympic gold.
"I respect the Olympics too much to compete and I don't feel I can be at my best." Kwan said. Emily Hughes will be Kwan's replacement on the American team.
In men's downhill skiing, bad boy Bode Miller came in 5th in Sunday's downhill race. Before the games, Miller was the subject of some controversy and made it onto the cover of Time and Newsweek magazines (just to name a few). Now, Miller is going to have to put his first event behind him and ski his heart out in upcoming days in order to get onto that podium and bring home a medal.
One athlete that did live up to the hype was snowboarder Shaun White a.k.a. "The Flying Tomato". White found himself in unfamiliar territory when he failed to qualify in the first trial round. Whether it was nerves or lack of attention, his board came down on the lip of the half-pipe after a jump. Going 
into the second and final qualifying round (only the top 6 snowboarders from each round would go on to the finals), White nailed his routine and went on to destroy the competition in the finals.
"I wasn't really that nervous, but just before I was about to drop in, my heart kind of fell," White said. "Then I remembered that this is what I do and I just did my thing."
The Olympics will continue through the next two weeks. Who are you rooting for?
Are you watching the Olympics? Do you have a favorite athlete? Write about him/her and send it to us. Click on "Submit Your Writing" in the right hand column. We'll post the best of the best here.
