by Trenna Sue Hiler

Created on: January 12, 2010

Competition brings up rivalries.  Usually they are not overly serious and they push athletes to give a little more and try a little harder to one up that one that is neck and neck.  The Olympics has its share of rivalries going on and that is what keeps the games alive.  Lets take a look at some of the rivalries to keep an eye on in Vancouver in 2010.

Hockey is very competitive and physical sport.  And the rivalry between the Canadian Women's Hockey Team and the United States Women's Hockey team shows no signs of slowing down at all.

Woman's hockey became an Olympic event in the 1998 games in Nagano, Japan.  The United States brought home the first gold medal.  Four years later Canada beat them on their own ice and took home the gold from the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City.  In the 2006 games the Swedes took the gold home.

You can bet that the United States wants nothing more than to take the gold home from the home court just like the Canadians did in 2002.  The Canadians are just asfierce with the desire to keep it home. 

It is not like the teams go years without playing.  International competitions happen each and every year and the fight is on.

In women's  figure skating we need to look at Mao Asada and Yu-Na Kim.  Asada is consider to be the better skater of the two and was not old enough to compete in the last Olympics.  The 2010 Vancouver Olympics will be the first head to headcompetition on the Olympic arena. Yu -Na Kim has been getting her best scores ever and she is a veteran.  It will be interesting to see where the gold medal finds a home after the competition.

Shani Davis and Chad Hedrick seem to have taken the rivalry to a personal level.  These two speed skaters don't have many good things to say about each other.  Hendrick believed that because of Davis's choice of events, he was "robbed" of his chance to win the five gold medals in one Olympics.  He claims that Davis not participating in some events changed the overall competition.  While that may be true, no athlete is forced to participate in any event.  They have been team mates and perhaps some of the wounds have healed, but it will be something to watch.  The races should be spectacular.

Johnny Weir and Even Lysacek have been tossing the wins back and forth.  A newcomer came and taught them a lesson recently.  But Vancouver gives them a chance to rev up and go head to head. 

Amy Rosewater seems to believe that Erin Hamlin has the entire country of Germany mad at her and she may be right.  She broke the Germans record of 99 wins in the luge.  Erin shoulddefiantly hang with the whole USA team in Vancouver.

The hope is that all these rivalries get friendly and simply make each competitor try and do their best.  As spectators is gives an added incentive to watch.



sources:
www.sports.espn.go.com.
www.countdowntotheolympics.com
www.suite101.com

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