Here are the official statements from VANOC about the test events this weekend. Not surprisingly it's declaring them all a success.

- Whistler Bobsled and Skeleton World Cup
- Cypress Freestyle Skiing World Cup
- Four Continents Figure Skating Championship

Help us determine the best ski area in the Northwest by voting for your favorite resort, lodge food, ski run and more.

Click below to take the quick survey. Your favorites will featured in 2008-09 Ski preview sections in newspapers across the Northwest. Voters from around the region - Idaho, Washington, Oregon and B.C. - are participating so make sure your favorites are well represented.

2008-09 Snow Ride Guide Survey

LOCAL ATHLETES
- Cle Elum mogul skier Patrick Deneen was named the FIS rookie of the year and celebrated March 15 by finishing third in a race in Italy.
- Federal Way native Apolo Anton Ohno finished his season with a strong performance at the World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in South Korea. He won gold at 500 meters and overall. He also took the 1,000- meter silver and bronze at 3,000 meters. Ohno has won 18 world championship medals – six of each hue.
- Yakima’s Phil Mahre, a gold medalist in the 1984 Olympics, fell short of his goal of qualifying for this month’s U.S. Alpine Nationals. He turned down special invitations to compete because he wanted to qualify on his own.
- Crystal Mountain’s Scott Macartney finished 26th in the World Cup’s downhill standings this season despite not racing since January because of an injury. A ski team spokesman said he’s hoping to return to racing speed this summer.
- Crystal’s Libby Ludlow finished 32nd in the giant slalom and 36th in the Super G. She participated in the NorAm Finals in New York despite knee injuries.

TEAMS USA UPDATES
- March was an historic month for the U.S. Ski Team as it finished one of its best World Cup seasons ever. Bode Miller and Lindsey Vonn took the overall titles. It’s the first time U.S. men and women have swept the titles since 1983 when Yakima’s Phil Mahre and Kentucky’s Tamara McKinney won the titles. Miller also claimed the season combined title and Vonn took the downhill title in February.
- Olympic gold medalist Ted Ligety won the World Cup season giant slalom title.
- Vonn and Jimmy Cochran each won slalom and combined titles at this week’s U.S. Alpine Championships.
- Miller did not compete in the U.S. Alpine Nationals.
- Katherine Ruetter won Team USA’s only women’s medal at the speed skating world championships. She took bronze at 3,000 meters.
- The 1998 Olympic Women's Hockey Team, which won the first-ever Olympic gold medal in the sport, is one of five finalists for the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame. It’s the only winter team nominated. Its competition includes the 1992 Men’s basketball team - the original Dream Team.
- Figure skater Brian Boitano and speedskater Sheila Young Ochowicz are among the 18 individuals nominated. Fans can vote at usolympichalloffame.com.

FACILITY UPDATES
- Testing at the sliding center on Blackcomb Mountain continued this month.
- Work is expected to be completed on the Hillcrest/Nat Bailey Stadium Park, the Whistler Athlete’s Centre, the UBC Winter Sports Centre and the Richmond Oval this year.

OTHER OLYMPIC NEWS
- Some members of the Canadian cross-country team have complained that the 2010 Nordic venue is too easy according to the Vancouver Sun.
- The 2010 day-by-day competition schedule can be viewed online at blogs.thenewstribune.com/adventure.

COMING UP
- The U.S. Freestyle Championships start today in Park City, Utah.

TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets go on sale Oct. 11, 2008. Tickets.com was selected as the games’ official ticket service.

This isn't necessarily Olympic related, but we'd love to have your help:

Help us determine the best ski area in the Northwest by voting for your favorite resort, lodge food, ski run and more.

Click below to take the quick survey. Your favorites will featured in 2008-09 Ski preview sections in newspapers across the Northwest. Voters from around the region - Idaho, Washington, Oregon and B.C. - are participating so make sure your favorites are well represented.

2008-09 Snow Ride Guide Survey

Cle Elum's Patrick Deneen was named the FIS rookie of the year and celebrated Saturday by finishing third in a race in Italy. Teammate David Babic of Vermont took gold.

Here's the release from the U.S. Ski Team:

The U.S. Ski Team's David Babic (Washington, VT) went all out to bring home his first World Cup win of the season, and second of his career, in moguls at the 2008 Freestyle FIS World Cup Finals in Italy Saturday. Newly named FIS Rookie of the Year Patrick Deneen (Cle Elum, WA) finished third.

=> Read more!

It’s seemed inevitable for sometime now that Lindsey Vonn would someday be crowned queen of the ski world.

The coronation was this morning when she became the first U.S. woman to win the World Cup overall title since Tamara McKinney in 1983.

As McKinney drove her kids to ski training at Squaw Valley USA this afternoon she talked about finally having to relinquish her title as the only American woman to win the overall.

“It’s great to see another generation be able to get up there and be consistently at the top of the world in skiing,” McKinney said. “Skiing not the No. 1 sport in America. You can win from any country if you have the love of the sport, the equipment and the talent. ... This is great for the sport of skiing.”

When the final downhill of the season was canceled earlier this week, Vonn was a little nervous about losing her lead in the overall. The downhill is her best event. She won the World Cup season downhill title in Whistler last month.

“I was worried to say the least, but Thomas calmed me down,” Vonn said, referring to her new husband.
With the crystal globe in hand, Vonn says she’ll have bigger goals for next season.

“One thing I’m good at is goal setting,” Vonn said. “I’ll definitely come up with some more goals. I will continue to work hard do the same thing next year and try to win another downhill and a super G globe and maybe another overall.”

Bode Miller won the Olympiabakken Downhill this morning to extend his U.S. record for World Cup wins to 31.

He finished 0.4 seconds ahead of Didier Cuche of Switzerland and is now just five points behind Cuche in the downhill standings.

Miller extended his lead in the overall by 100 points.

Read the release from the U.S. Ski Team below.

=> Read more!

Covering the World Cup at Whistler last week I compared Bode Miller and Lindsey Vonn, each the best in the world right now at what they do.

Vonn might be seven years younger, but Miller, 30, could learn a lot from her. Vonn is polite and engaging. Miller is brash and, well, imagine Barry Bonds on skis.

Chris Dufresne of the L.A. Times, who was also at the World Cup, had a nice piece on the duo today. Click here to check it out.

Vonn holds court with the press during the Whistler World Cup.

Lindsey Vonn finished sixth Sunday in the super combined (a super G run followed by slalom), the last event of the Whistler World Cup, to maintain her lead in the overall standings.
Nicole Hosp of Austria closed the gap a bit by finishing fourth. Vonn has 1,103 points for the season and Hosp has 1,049.
“My goal was to fight hard and not lose too much ground to Nicky and I think I did that,” Vonn said.
American Julia Mancuso finished seventh. Germany’s Maria Riesch took first followed by Marlies Schild of Austria and Anja Paerson of Sweden.
Vonn finished her second run .01 seconds off the lead. She was second by .01 seconds in Thursday’s downhill.
“We are getting killed on the hundreds,” said her husband, Thomas Vonn. Vonn has a missed a podium five times this season. “We’re calling for all those hundies back for the Vancouver Olympics.”

Julia Mancuso was second this morning in the Super G, the first event of the Super Combined, which will be the final event of the Whistler World Cup.

Mancuso is 0.42 seconds behind Germany's Maria Riesch. Canada's Emily Brydon is third.

Lindsey Vonn is tied for 10th 1.13 seconds behind Riesch.

Stacey Cook is 31st and Chelsea Marshall is 32nd.

Three pics from the finish area at today's women's downhill.

Vonn (white cap)meets the press after winning the World Cup downhill.

Crystal Mountain's Libby Ludlow, who is battling back and knee problems, after finishing 44th today.

If this woman hands you a cup, look out.

Lindsey Vonn finished second by a hundredth of a second to Nadia Styger of Switzerland a few minutes ago in the Whistler World Cup. The finish locked up the season World Cup downhill title for Vonn. Vonn also took sole possession of first place in the Overall standings.

"It will come down to the last week," Vonn said of the overall title.

A slip near the end of the run cost Vonn the win.

Julia Mancuso was third.

Libby Ludlow finished 44th.