My Olympics faves

Since I hold dual citizenship, my Olympic loyalties are understandably split between France and the USA but I also admire some athletes that are neither French nor American. While my attention will be focused on alpine ski racing, I'll watch some freestyle but don't know the events and athletes well enough to root for anyone and while I'm on the subject I hate Ski Cross. Snowboard isn't big either on my list and while Nordic events aren't my cup of tea, I may watch some along with some ice skating. This is not the place to discuss the plethora of events that are choking the Olympics. For instance, I don't see why curling is still there, why there is Super G in the first place and why Ski Cross was brought into the picture, but that should be fodder for a totally separate debate. So with no further ado, here are my “faves” and the reasons why I like these athletes:

Men
Bode Miller, USA. He's got a chock-full of raw skiing talent. He recovers from near-misses like no other and a few podiums in Vancouver would justly reward this iconoclast.
Cyprien Richard, France. He's from my hometown in France. He's had a tough career plagued with too many injuries and I'd like to see him sharing the GS podium with Cuche and Ligety.
Didier Cuche, Switzerland. I know he's Swiss but the man can ski better than anyone, particularly down the Streif in Kitzbuehel, besides after passing the finish line he twirls his ski like no other.
Julien Lizeroux, France. A young, fast and promising slalom skier that I hope will dazzle us all.
Ted Ligety, USA. He's from my adoptive home in Park City. A great athlete with a superb attitude; I'll be rooting for him.

Women
Ingrid Jacquemod, France. She's from Val d'Isere and a medal would be a great way to reward her long career on skis
Julia Mancuso, USA. Hailing from Squaw Valley, she's got Olympic blood in her veins from her environment and it'd be nice to see her make a surprise comeback
Lindsey Vonn, USA. She's got talent, charisma, the right attitude and roots in Park City, what else can I say?
Maria Riesch, Germany. Not only is she Lindsey Vonn's best friend, but she's also one of the best female skier around
Sandrine Aubert, France. The rising slalom star; please, go for broke in Vancouver and make us scream “Vive la France!”

Of course and as always, unbelievable surprises are likely to emerge at the Olympics, but I won't get into that guessing game. Listing the above athlete was already a major cerebral work for me. If your list is different, please, don't hesitate to share it and post it as a comment; now, enjoy the Games!