While some Olympic icons might be competing in their final Winter Games, the U.S. team features plenty of young talent. One in five American athletes at these Olympics are 21 and under. Here are 10 young standouts who will be competing in Sochi and could be medal contenders for years to come.
Maggie Voisin,freestyle skiing
Event: Slopestyle
Age: 15
} Voisin is the youngest U.S. Winter Olympian to compete in a medal sport since 1972. She won silver at the X Games last month.
Arielle Gold, snowboard
Event: Halfpipe
Age: 17
} Last year she won gold in the International Ski Federation’s world championships, becoming the second-youngest athlete to ever win.
Torin Yater-Wallace, freestyle skiing
Event: Halfpipe
Age: 18
} Yater-Wallace was the youngest medalist in Winter X Games history and now has six in all. He looked to be a medal favorite but has been hampered by broken ribs.
Mikaela Shiffrin, Alpine skiing
Event: Slalom, giant slalom
Age: 18
} As the defending world champ and World Cup gold medalist in the slalom, Shiffrin enters Sochi as the biggest star on the women’s Alpine team.
Jason Brown, figure skating
Event: Men’s figure skating
Age: 19
} Though he hasn’t yet landed a quadruple jump in competition, Brown turned pro less than a year ago and finished second at the U.S. championships last month, placing third in the short program and first in the free skate.
Sarah Hendrickson, ski jumping
Event: Women’s normal hill
Age: 19
} The reigning world champion tore her ACL and MCL five months ago but is hoping her right knee won’t bother her when women’s ski jumping makes its Olympic debut.
Nick Goepper,freestyle skiing
Event: Slopestyle
Age: 19
} The Indiana native has won gold at the last two X Games, after winning silver in 2012. Not surprisingly, he enters these Olympics ranked No. 1 in the world.
Taylor Gold, snowboard
Event: Halfpipe
Age: 20
} Arielle’s older brother won silver at the 2011 junior world championships and is currently enjoying a breakout season.
Amanda Kessel, hockey
Event: Women’s hockey
Age: 22
} The women’s team features a lot of young talent, including Kessel, a senior at the University of Minnesota who won the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award last year, given annually to the top Division I player. Her brother Phil plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs and will be playing on the U.S. men’s team in Sochi.
J.R. Celski, short-track speedskating
Event: 500m, 1,000m, 1,500m, 5,000m, team relay
Age: 23
} Won two bronze medals at the Vancouver Games and now will anchor a team that no longer features Apolo Anton Ohno.
