Olympic Newsdesk - Bode Miller to Ski in Vancouver; Russia Rules at Wrestling Worlds

Bode Miller will compete at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. (Getty Images) After a two-year hiatus from the U.S. Ski Team, which involved two-time overall World Cup champion, Bode Miller skiing independently as part of his “Team America,” the veteran racer announced his return on Thursday at a press conference in Los Angeles.

“A big goal of mine has been to be part of a program that really maximizes my potential,” said the 31-year-old Miller. “I’ve had some great seasons, some great runs, but I’ve never really felt confident in hindsight to look back at a season and say I really did all the stuff that I can do and was supported by our program.”

Miller, a two-time Olympic medalist, took time off from the sport last February after a poor showing at the World Championships in Val d’Isere, France. He speculated that he would not return. After some reflection and a recent conversation with U.S. Ski Team Head Coach, Sasha Rearick, Miller changed his mind.

“He (Rearick) seemed really enthusiastic about the opportunity to re-integrate me into the team and for the first time I felt really positive about the whole thing,” he said. “It was kind of a no-brainer.”

“Bode ‘s been an inspiration over the years to a lot of us,” said Rearick. “He’s pushed the limit of the sport and innovated technique and tactics. To have that attitude of always seeking more speed as part of the team is really exciting to the coaches and athletes.”

At the 2006 Olympics in Torino, Miller was heavily criticized for his lackluster performance and late night antics.

“The intention is to come back and make everything positive so that it doesn’t turn into a regurgitation of the past,” said Miller. “We are all enthusiastic about the opportunity to move forward.”

Miller will still need to qualify for the Olympic team in Vancouver based upon World Cup performance.

“It’s what everyone tries to qualify for and if I’m qualified I intend to go.”

Russia Dominates at Wrestling Worlds

Russia won four of the seven weight classes in the freestyle competition at the world wrestling championships. (Getty Images) Russia won four of the seven weight groups in the men’s freestyle competition at the world wrestling championships in Herning, Denmark on Wednesday.

Winning gold medals for Russia were Bezik Kudukhov (60kg), Denis Sargush (74kg), Khadzhimurat Gatsalov (96kg) and Bilyal Makhov (120kg).

Other freestyle weight class winners were Kyong-Il Yang of North Korea (55kg), Taghavi Kermani of Iran (66kg) and Zarbeck Zokhiev of Uzbekistan (84kg).

Two gold medals were also awarded in the female competition. Mariya Stadnyk of Azerbaijan won the 48kg championship and Sofia Mattsson of Sweded was the 51kg winner.

The world wrestling championships continues on Thursday with finals in the 55, 59, 63, 67 and 72 kg divisions in the female wrestling competition.

PyeongChang Submits 2018 Bid

PyeongChang is officially bidding for the 2018 Winter Olympics.

PyeongChang submitted documents for its third Winter Olympic bid. (IOC)According to the Korean Yonhap news agency, the Korean Olympic Committee submitted official documents that declare the city’s candidacy to the IOC. The bid committee for the city’s third successive Olympic bid was announced last week.

"It is an honor to submit the application to the International Olympic Committee in support of the South Korean government and the KOC" the bid committee said in a statement. "PyeongChang will do its best to host the most successful ever Winter Olympic Games."

The IOC closes applications National Olympic Committees for cities wishing to bid for the 2018 Olympics on Oct. 15.

A decision will come at the 2011 IOC Session in Durban, South Africa.

Annecy, France and Munich are the other cities currently bidding for the Games.

Briefs…

…Tickets for the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games go on sale on Thursday at noon, one year to the day before the event begins in Lexington, Ky. Tickets will be available at the event’s website www.alltechfeigames.com, www.ticketmaster.com and at all Ticketmaster outlets.

…The International Baseball Federation will provide additional television coverage for the Baseball World Cup. The MLB Network broadcasted today’s U.S.-Cuba game and will televise the gold medal game in Nettuno, Italy on Sunday, while ESPN STAR TB will show Chinese Taipei’s games against Cuba and Venezuela to select markets as well as the championship game on Sunday on tape delay.

Written by Greg Oshust and Ed Hula III.

This coverage is proudly presented by Chicago 2016