March 1, 2010
Complete List of 2010 Big Ten Winter Olympians
Thirty-one of the 34 Big Ten current and former student-athletes, coaches, and current and former university students earned Olympic medals at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games held in Vancouver, Canada, February 12-28. The conference brought home medals in both men’s and women’s ice hockey, ice dancing and speed skating, including two gold, four silver and a bronze. Illinois, Minnesota, Ohio State and Wisconsin saw all of its Olympic competitors bring home medals. Wisconsin led all schools with 12 participants and one coach medaling, including three gold.
As the 2010 Games came to a close on Feb. 28, the Big Ten was well represented in the men’s ice hockey finals. The United States challenged Canada in the gold-medal game, with the Canadians coming out on top, 3-2, in an overtime contest for the gold behind the play of former Michigan State icer Duncan Keith and former Wisconsin player Dany Heatley. Fellow Badgers Joe Pavelski, Brian Rafalski and Ryan Suter took home the silver skating for the United States. Also representing the Red, White and Blue was former Ohio State icer Ryan Kesler and Minnesota’s Erik Johnson, Phil Kessel and Paul Martin. Michigan’s Jack Johnson and Mike Komisarek and Spartan Ryan Miller also earned silver as members of Team USA.
On the women’s side, Big Ten representatives took one of each medal. Team Canada defeated Team USA, 2-0, for the gold with former Buckeye Tessa Bonhomme and Badgers Carla MacLeod and Meaghan Mikkelson. Under the direction of current Wisconsin head coach and 1980 men’s ice hockey gold medalist Mark Johnson, the United States women’s hockey team took second-place, earning Badgers Meghan Duggan, Molly Engstrom, Hilary Knight, Jessie Vetter, Kerry Weiland and Jinelle Zaugg-Siergej silver medals. Joining the Wisconsin sextet were Minnesota’s Natalie Darwitz and Gigi Marvin and OSU’s Lisa Chesson for the silver medal. Three women with Big Ten ties earned the bronze for Team Finland in Ohio State’s Emma Laaksonen and Minttu Tuominen and Minnesota’s Noora Räty.
Jonathan Kuck, a current student at the University of Illinois, helped his three-man team skate its way to a silver medal in the men’s Team Pursuit finals, clocking a time of 3:41.58, and finishing a mere .21 seconds behind Canada.
The ice dancing pair of Meryl Davis and Charlie White added a second silver to the Wolverines’ lot. The pair captured the United States’ third Olympic medal in ice dancing in 24 years.
Big Ten student-athletes and coaches have been a part of the Olympic experience on more than 1,256 occasions, including many taking multiple trips to the international event. That list of conference standouts has accumulated at least 460 medals, including 214 gold.
