Friday’s top events at the Vancouver Olympics

The women’s portion of the Alpine skiing competition ends with the slalom. The top contenders are France’s Sandrine Aubert, Germany’s Maria Riesch and Austria’s Kathrin Zettel. But keep an eye on the U.S.’ Sarah Schleper, who will be easily recognized because of her fluorescent-colored ski helmets and trademark roar before her start. Schleper is in her second season after two years off because of an injury and the birth of her first child.

Hockey

The men’s semifinals take place, with the U.S. playing Finland in the first game and Canada taking on Slovakia in the other. It seems that all of Canada is hoping for a U.S.-Canada rematch in the gold-medal game Sunday, as the Americans have suddenly been cast as the bad guy in Vancouver after beating Canada earlier in the tournament.

Short-track speedskating

Apolo Anton Ohno has a chance to add two medals to his collection as the short-track competition concludes. Ohno is favored to win the gold medal in the men’s 500 meters, the most unpredictable race in a sport that thrives on its unpredictability. The event’s fast speed and short distance mean that if Ohno is assigned to the outside lane for the start of the race, it could be enough to cost him gold.

Also Friday is the men’s 5,000-meter relay. The U.S. is the reigning world champion in this event, thanks in large part to having Ohno and J.R. Celski. Jordan Malone, Simon Cho and Travis Jayner are also part of the team, which should get a strong challenge from Korea and Canada.