Sports

Winter Olympics 2018: 4 Virginia Athletes To Watch

Four athletes will represent Virginia in the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games in South Korea; opening ceremonies are Feb. 9.

Ice hockey, figure skating, skiing and snowboarding are always favorites at the Winter Olympics, and the 2018 games open Friday, Feb. 9, in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Several U.S. athletes have a good chance at bringing home gold medals, but you'll also want to keep an eye out for athletes from Virginia, too.

The Olympic Games run for 18 days and conclude with closing ceremonies on Feb. 25. It's bitterly cold in Pyeongchang, and the forecast calls for 14-degree Fahrenheit temperatures for the opening ceremony on Friday.

Virginia will send four athletes to represent the United States in the Winter Games. They are:

Find out what's happening in Lortonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

  • Hakeem Abdul-Saboor of Powhatan, men's bobsled
  • Maame Biney of Reston, women's short track speedskating
  • Ashley Caldwell of Ashburn, women's freestyle skiing
  • Garrett Roe of Vienna, men's ice hockey

What To Know About Maame Biney

The Team USA website says Biney, 18, of Reston, started speed skating at the age of 6. She was told she was going too fast to be a figure skater, so she switched to speed skating. In high school she was known for being way too happy all of the time. She plans to be a chemical engineer.

Find out what's happening in Lortonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Maame Biney of Reston, women's short track speedskater, courtesy of Team USA

The favorite place speed skating has taken Biney is Austria. Her favorite speed skating moment: Watching the 2014 Olympic Trials. Favorite quote: "Laugh until you can't laugh anymore."

Olympic Experience

  • Qualified for the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team - won the women's 500m at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials

World Championship Experience

  • 2016-17 Short Track Junior World Championships - 500m bronze
  • 2015-16 Short Track Junior World Championships Team

What To Know About Ashley Caldwell

The team website says three-time Olympian Caldwell, 24, of Ashburn, will compete in aerials. The daughter of Mark and Leslie Caldwell, she trained for 11 years in gymnastics. Caldwell was inspired to begin aerials skiing after watching the 20026 Olympic Winter Games in Turin, Italy. Her hobbies include sailing, surfing, scuba diving and playing guitar. She is a 2013 graduate of SUNY Empire State College with a degree in finance, she competes for Team/Club: Elite Aerial Development Program.

Three-time Olympian Caldwell, 24, of Ashburn, will compete in aerials skiing. Courtesy of Team USA

Olympic Experience

  • Three-time Olympian (2010, 2014, 2018)
  • Sochi 2014, 10th (aerials)
  • Vancouver 2010, 10th (aerials)

World Championship Experience

  • Most recent: 2017 – 1st (aerials)
  • Years of participation: 2011, 2015, 2017
  • Medals: 1 gold
  • Gold – 2017 (aerials)

What To Know About Hakeem Abdul-Saboor

The bobsledder, age 30, was born in New Jersey but calls Powhatan, VA, home. He competes in NPC events as a physique competitor and has had great success in the sport. He is a Rottweiler lover and currently owns one named Maverick. Abdul-Saboor attended the University of Virginia at Wise.

USA bobsledder Hakeem Abdul-Saboor from Virginia, courtesy of Team USA

Other Career Highlights

  • 2017-2018 Two-Man World Cup for pilot Nick Cunningham - 18th in Winterberg (12/17); 5th in Igls (12/17)
  • 2017-2018 Four-Man World Cup for pilot Nick Cunningham - 20th in Winterberg (12/17); 23rd in Igls (12/17);
  • 2017-2018 Four-Man North American Cup for pilot Nick Cunningham - GOLD in Lake Placid #1 (1/18); SILVER in Lake Placid #2 (1/18)
  • 2017-2018 Two-Man North American Cup for pilot Hunter Church - BRONZE in Whistler #1 (11/17); BRONZE in Whistler #2 (11/17); 9th in Calgary #1 (11/17); BRONZE in Calgary #2 (11/17);
  • 2017-2018 Four-Man North American Cup for pilot Hunter Church - GOLD in Whistler #1 (11/17); SILVER in Whistler #2 (11/17); SILVER in Calgary #1 (11/17); GOLD in Calgary #2 (11/17);
  • 2017-2018 Four-Man North American Cup for pilot Elana Meyers Taylor - 4th in Park City #1 (11/17)
  • 2017-2018 Four-Man North American Cup for pilot Nick Cunningham - GOLD in Park City #1 (11/17)

What To Know About Garrett Roe

The Vienna resident, 29, plays forward on the USA men's hockey team. He attended Shattuck-St. Mary’s School in Faribault, Minnesota, and went to college at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, where he finished as the all-time assist leader (113) and third all-time in points scored (178). His Team/Club: EV Zug (NLA).

Olympic Experience

  • Olympian (2018)

The son of Larry and Julie Roe, he was born in Fairfax, Virginia, and is married to Brittany. Roe was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 2008. Hobbies include playing golf and playing with his dog.

Here are five U.S. athletes or teams to watch:

Skier Lindsey Vonn: The three-time Olympian from Vail, Colorado, won gold and bronze in the 2010 Winter Games, but missed the Sochi Olympics in 2014 because of injuries. Despite that, Vonn, 33, is still the sport's most winning skier, and has earned world titles in all five alpine ski disciplines — something that doesn't often happen.
Figure Skater Nathan Chen: Sports Illustrated picks 18-year-old Chen to win gold in his Olympics debut. In January, the Salt Lake, Utah, native became the first male figure skater to land five quadruple jumps in a single performance, an exceptional feat he repeated it a month later.
Skier Mikaela Shiffrin: The 22-year-old alpine racer who hails from Eagle-Vail, Colorado, is "the best slalom skier in the world," The New Yorker said. It's not hyperbole. Shiffrin has been the No. 1-ranked woman in the world for two years running and will defend her gold medal at the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games.
Snowboarder Jamie Anderson: Anderson, 27, won a gold medal in the slopestyle snowboarding competition in her Olympic debut in Sochi, and is well positioned to repeat the the feat in Pyeongchang. This season, the South Lake Tahoe, California, athlete unveiled a new move, a cab double underflip, at the Winter Games in New Zealand.
Ice dancers Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani: The Ann Arbor, Michigan, brother-and-sister team known as the "Shib Sibs" have won gold medals at international competitions for three consecutive seasons, and also medaled in national championships in each of the past seven years, including gold medals in both 2016 and 2017. Maia is 23 and Alex is 26. They also competed in Sochi Olympics, where they placed ninth.

See Also: When, Where To Watch The Olympics On TV, Live Streams

(For more news like this, find your local Patch here. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)

Photo: American skier Mikaela Shiffin/AP Photo:Mikhail Metzel


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here