The three-time Olympian is hoping for a more satisfying finish, finally. She couldn’t compete at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics after breaking her ankles just weeks before the competition, then finished just 19th and 11th at the 2006 and 2010 Olympics, respectively, both in part because of injuries. But the Massachusetts native who now lives in Park City enjoyed the best season of her career last year, and could medal with a little long-overdue luck against a Chinese juggernaut.Website
Twitter: @EmilyCook
Ashley Caldwell
Caldwell finished 10th at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics as a 16-year-old rookie just happy to be there. Now, she’s ready for more. The Virginia native who now lives in Park City has recovered from knee injuries that kept her out for two seasons - she tore ligaments in each knee, one after the other - and won a silver medal in the season-opening World Cup in China. Not unlike good friend and teammate Emily Cook, she’s capable of reaching the podium. Website
Twitter: @AshleySkis
Heather McPhie
McPhie appears poised to fare better than she did in finishing 18th at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. The native of Montana now lives in Park City, and finished last season ranked third in the moguls World Cup standings. She didn’t reach the podium in six competitions this season, but was in the top 7 three times. She and everybody will be chasing defending champion Hannah Kearney of the U.S., and sisters Justine, Chloe and Maxime Dufour-Lapointe of Canada. Website
Twitter:@HeatherMcPhie
Bradley Wilson
It might be somewhat bittersweet for Wilson to compete in Sochi, considering his brother Bryon - bronze medalist at the 2010 Olympics - didn’t make it. Still, the younger Wilson has a shot at a medal, having finished third in the last two World Cup competitions. The Montana native who lives in Park City is up against a Canadian juggernaut, namely world champion Mikael Kingsbury and defending Olympic champion Alexandre Bilodeau.
Twitter: @WilsFreestyle
Maddie Bowman
The two-time defending Winter X Games superpipe champion is definitely a medal threat in the new ski halfpipe event, as one of three Utah residents on the women's team for the event. She won three of the five Olympic qualifying events, and has been on fire since her breakout season in 2012. She grew up in Lake Tahoe — she was on skis on her second birthday — but now lives in Salt Lake City and attends Westminster College.
Twitter:@MaddieBowman
Brita Sigourney
A two-time superpipe medalist at the Winter X Games, Sigourney is part of a nearly all-Utah women's ski halfpipe team in Sochi. She clinched her spot on her 24th birthday, nearly three years after moving to Park City from her native California to train and attend Westminster College, when the first U.S. Freeskiing national team was created. Website
Twitter:@BritaSig
Angeli VanLaanen
One of the most inspiring athletes at the Olympics, the Salt Lake City resident battled back to reach Sochi in the new ski halfpipe event after taking three years off to treat Lyme disease — which had gone undiagnosed for 14 years and subtly sabotaged her career. She grew up in Washington, won the final qualifying event to make the women's ski halfpipe team with two other Utah residents, and could reach the podium. Website
Twitter:@Angeli_V
Joss Christensen
Christensen won the final qualifying event for Sochi in Park City, but had to wait three agonizing days to become a discretionary pick — he beat out good friend Alex Schlopy for the spot — because he hadn't automatically qualified. His victory proved he's a medal threat in the new Olympic sport of slopestyle, and his arsenal includes double-corks in both directions. He's a University of Utah student who was on skis at age 3 at Deer Valley.
Twitter:@JossChristensen
Devin Logan
Logan had been hoping to compete in both slopestyle and halfpipe competitions, but she didn't qualify in halfpipe. Still, the Vermont native who lives now in Park City is a medal contender in her new Olympic sport; she has won Dew Tour competitions and finished second and third in the slopestyle competition at the Winter X Games, sandwiched around a knee injury suffered in 2012. Website
Twitter:@DLogan
Julia Krass
You want a surprise Olympian? The New Hampshire native wasn't even on the radar heading into her first full season as a World Cup athlete. She finished 30th in her first qualifying event. But by the final qualifier, she'd mastered a cork 900 tail grab that helped deliver a stunning victory, and forced coaches to make her a discretionary pick. She's living in Park City now and sharing a room with teammate Maggie Voisin.
Twitter:@JuliaKrass15
Maggie Voisin
The youngest U.S. Olympian since 1972, the Montana native burst onto the scene last year with big victories at the U.S. Revolution Tour and the WSI/AFP World Championship event in Whistler. She moved to Park City last year — she rooms with fellow Olympian Julia Krass — and has a real shot at a medal in Sochi, especially after winning the Winter X Games slopestyle competition.
Twitter:@skimagg123
Photos: The Salt Lake Tribune, USSA, Associated Press