With Beijing in the rear-view mirror, here are athletes to watch for 2010, 2012

Amy Rosewater - ESPN - August 31 2008
[...] In 536 days, on Feb. 12, 2010, the Winter Olympics begin in Vancouver. [...]

The host countries usually make an extra push for the medal podium, and Canada and Great Britain are no exceptions to this rule. Canada ranked third overall with 24 medals in 2006 (seven gold, 10 silver, seven bronze), an improvement from 17 in 2002. Back in 1988, when Canada previously played host to the Winter Games in Calgary, the home country didn't bring home any gold (two silvers and three bronze). [...]
Although predicting Olympic futures is hardly an exact science -- wasn't Tyson Gay supposed to be a headliner in Beijing? And wasn't Bode Miller predicted to be the king of Torino? -- we've tried to compile a list of athletes who should figure prominently in the upcoming Winter Olympics in Vancouver ...

2010 Vancouver Games
Apolo Anton Ohno: When he's not dancing with the stars, he's quite a short-track speedskater. Ohno, who has won five Olympic medals (two gold) in two trips to the Winter Olympics, could be back on the medal stand in 2010.
Shani Davis: Competing in Canada shouldn't be too problematic for U.S. speed skater Shani Davis considering he's trained in Calgary since 2002. The gold and silver medalist at the 2006 Olympics, Davis could find himself a champion again in Vancouver. For his sake, however, he hopes that controversy won't find him there. In 2002, there was talk that Ohno threw a race to help Davis make the Olympic team. And in 2006, Davis was criticized roundly for not participating in the team pursuit, an event he hadn't planned on entering, but one many thought the United States could win with him in the lineup.
Cindy Klassen: Klassen always dreamed about competing in the Olympics, but she thought that dream would be in ice hockey. When she didn't make Canada's team in 1998, so she decided to switch to speedskating. It proved to be a wise choice. Four years later, in Salt Lake City, she won a bronze medal. In Torino, she became Canada's most decorated Olympian, winning five medals (one gold). Now, she could win even more.

More -
Spreading our wings - Cam Cole - Vancouver Sun August 27th 2008
Memories of a gold drought in Calgary will be banished by our expanding skill set
Excitement for 2010 Olympics builds on both sides of border - Herald Net - August 27th 2008
With the close of the Beijing Games on Sunday, attention is now turning to the Eastern edge of the Pacific Rim, to ­Vancouver and Whistler, B.C., where the 2010 Winter Olympics will be held in just 18 months.