Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Samantha Hayes ReportingOne of the most grueling sports during these Olympic Games is one that hardly gets any attention, at least in the U.S., that is. Cross Country skiing is to the downhill what Alfred is to Batman: a lot of work, but not a lot of face time.
Cross country takes a backseat to the other alpine events because the U.S. hasn't had much success over the years in this sport, medaling just once. That was Bill Koch in 1976. But with recent competive results, the U.S. team is hoping for a breakthrough in these Winter Games.
Several locals are on the team competing today. Torin Koos, who is a graduate student at Westminster College; Andy Newell attended the University of Utah; and Chris Cook is from Idaho.
Cross Country events started Sunday with the men's and women's pursuits, but no remarkable finishes yet. Now it's the sprinters' turn.
Torin Koos/ US Men's Cross Country Team: "I'm just looking forward to having an awesome race. My first is with Andrew Newell on the fourteenth, and we've been racing well."
Andrew Newell/ US Men's Cross Country Team: "Here we are gunning for a podium. It's definitely within our grasps and it's very possible."
Chris Cook/ US Men's Cross Country Team: "It's going to be a great time for all. It's the best team that the U.S. has fielded for a while. Everyone is looking to have a great result."
You can catch the women's team sprints this afternoon at 4:00 on KSL. The men are on the late night coverage after our late local news.
