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Saturday, February 09, 2002

By Lori Shontz, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

SALT LAKE CITY -- The last question of the news conference was certainly the trickiest. The questioner faced America's female ice skaters, Michelle Kwan, Sasha Cohen and Sarah Hughes, and asked each of them to give the name of the skater they thought was the favorite for the gold medal.

After a pause, Kwan -- the veteran of the field at age 21 -- gave an answer as graceful as her skating style.

"I think it's fair to say everyone thinks they're the favorites," she said. "You have the mentality when you're skating, you say, 'I want to win.' You don't want anyone else to win, so darn it, you know, go for it. Go for the gold."

A few minutes later, Hughes concurred with Kwan. Kind of.

"As Michelle said, everybody thinks they're the favorite, but ..." Hughes paused, then burst into a wide grin, "in reality, I guess that's not true."

Specific favorites aside -- and Kwan, who has won the three of the past four world championships and a silver medal at the 1998 Olympics, is on everyone's short list -- the United States is fielding an exceptionally strong team.

"I have a sunny picture," said John Nicks, Cohen's coach. "The last three ladies, these three and three Russians, a classic competition. I think our team's going to come away with at least two medals."

"I'd love to see the girls finish one-two-three," said Robin Wright, Hughes' coach, who was as honest as her skater. "Obviously I think you can figure out which would be my favorite."

The ladies short program will be Feb. 19, with the long program two nights later. All three American women marched in last night's opening ceremonies -- even Kwan, who skipped them in 1998 because she didn't want to spend so long in Nagano before she competed.

Only Kwan is remaining in Salt Lake City, although she is not going to stay in the Olympic Village. She believes the potential distractions will multiply as more athletes finish their events and celebrate.

Cohen is going home to train at Lake Arrowhead to get away from the Olympic pressure and to practice at an altitude higher than Salt Lake City's. She will not, however, be practicing her much-discussed quadruple jump. She and Nicks decided to play the percentages and work on a perfect triple-triple combination. Cohen's is a triple lutz, triple toe loop.

Hughes, who lives in Great Neck, N.Y., is going to Colorado Springs for the same reasons Cohen is going home. Since nationals, she has changed the music for the last 90 seconds of her long program and added a second triple-triple combination to it. She plans to do a triple salchow, triple loop and a triple toe loop, triple loop.

Kwan's triple-triple combination is the easiest of the three, a triple toe loop, triple toe loop.