Jump Shots
Mikaela Shiffrin, Chloe Kim and their Team USA teammates have a little fun in front of the camera and reflect on their Olympic experiences ahead of the Pyeongchang Games.
JUMP SHOTS
Mikaela Shiffrin, Chloe Kim and their Team USA teammates have a little fun in front of the camera and reflect on their Olympic experiences ahead of the Pyeongchang Games.
Interviews by Julie FoudyMaia & Alex Shibutani
Age: 23 & 26 • 2016 World silver medalists
"It's exciting to be heading into our second Olympics. We make a great team, and I wouldn't want to have any other partner." --Maia
Kehri Jones
Age: 24 • Brakeman for 2014 Olympic silver medalist Elana Meyers Taylor
"Our initiation into the sport is at the roughest, toughest track we have on this earth right now. It's horrible the first time because you just don't know what's going to happen. Now it's not so bad, but whew, the first time I was discombobulated."
Simi Hamilton
Age: 30 • Three-time Olympian
"The most important lesson I've learned is that the Olympics [are] such a unique setting to be in. There's all these Olympic distractions and Olympic pressure, but you just have to go out and do exactly what you know how to do. It's still just the ski race."
Mikaela Shiffrin
Age: 22 • 2014 Olympic gold medalist
"There are athletes who will say, 'I have no fear. Like, in order to win downhill, you can't have fear.' I call B.S. If you have no fear, you're insane. I have fear, and I'm just trying to overcome it every day."
Matt Hamilton
Age: 28 • 2016 Worlds bronze medalist
"It's pretty funny how every four years, people are into [curling]. But these middle three years, sometimes it's a little more forgotten or not nearly as hype."
Chloe Kim
Age: 17 • Youngest X-games medalist ever
"I honestly didn't see myself ever competing in Korea because I didn't think there would be an Olympics there. I got really lucky it all pieced together -- my first Olympics, being in Korea where most of my family is. I think that's going to be a really special moment for me."
Katie Uhlaender
Age: 33 • Four-time Olympian
"The best part of my sport is that the only way you can go fast is by letting go. You literally have to embrace the fear and the chaos and just relax through it."
Adam Rippon
Age: 28 • 2016 U.S. champion
"I was born in 1989, so in 1992, my mom was watching the men's Olympic figure skating free skate. I remember that a lot of the skaters had fallen. Every time somebody fell, I would stand up and fall down to the ground. That's my first Olympic memory."
Amanda Kessel
Age: 26 • 2014 Olympic silver medalist
"Our team is just so talented that every single person is a game-breaker. The unity that we have ... comes from years of playing together. A lot of us have played together since we were kids, went to high school together. A lot of people went to college together. It's really like going to work with your best friends every day."
Sarah Hendrickson
Age: 23 • Two-time Olympian
"Ski jumping is so unique. Time stops, and it just feels amazing. The wind in your face, and all your worries are a nonissue, and you just get to enjoy flying."
Jordan Greenway
Age: 20 • 2017 World junior champion
"Even though the NHL players aren't going, it's still going to be a great tournament."
Chris Mazdzer
Age: 29 • Three-time Olympian
"Everyone's like, are you retiring after this year? And I'm like, I am so much stronger than I've ever been before. I feel like I'm in my prime. How do you stop when you're in your prime? Approaching this Olympics, I am the strongest, most confident, healthiest I have ever been."
Joey Mantia
Age: 31 • Two-time Olympian
"Opening ceremonies [in Sochi] was on my birthday. It was the highest high of my life. Fast-forward a week later, I compete and do terribly. In a week, I went from the highest high to the lowest low, and that was really tough to deal with. So coming out of Sochi, the big takeaway was that nothing can shock me now."
Jessie Diggins
Age: 26 • Two-time Olympian
"My spirit animal is a sparkle chipmunk because I'm little, I'm full of energy, and I'm always running around. I put glitter on my cheeks before every race. My teammates will be like, 'Come on, spark chip, let's go.'"
Aja Evans
Age: 23 • 2014 Olympic bronze medalist
"Track and field was the only sport I did on a serious level before bobsled. I was a sprinter and shotput thrower in college, and my coach at the time told me how he thought I would be a good fit [for bobsled] because of my unique combination of sprinting and shotput. I had power, explosiveness and speed. And it transitioned well."
