Here’s a look at some of the top attractions for the upcoming two weeks-plus of Winter Games telecasts:

Friday

Irina Slutskaya from Russia performs recently during the ladies' free skating at the 2002 European Figure Skating Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland. Slutskaya will compete in the Salt Lake Olympic Games.

Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic Cauldron in what proved to be one of the most stirring moments of the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta. Who will be so honored at the Opening Ceremony in Salt Lake City?

The ultimate moment comes after 2,500 athletes from 80 nations march into Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium. Bob Costas and Katie Couric host the 3 1/2-hour celebration.

Saturday

No need to adjust your TV set; all that white stuff in the background is either snow or ice. Opening-day frosty treats include the Nordic combined, women’s moguls finals and the pairs short program in figure skating.

It could be interesting to see how Kentuckian Tom Hammond, who drew the plum figure skating broadcasting duty, pronounces the names of Russia’s top pair: Yelena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze.

The best bet to win the first medal for the U.S. team is Hannah Hardaway, a former softball, volleyball and basketball star in New Hampshire, who has given it all up for moguls.

For hockey fans, there is Slovakia vs. Germany and Austria vs. Latvia in men’s competition on CNBC.

Sunday, Feb. 10

It’s an Alpine skiing, ski jumping, snowboarding, luge and Nordic combined kind of day. Daron Rahlves is the United States’ best hope in Alpine events. He’s the 2001 world champion in the super-G, which he won in ski-crazed Austria. The Austrians are the favorites in men’s downhill, but Rahlves skiing on home snow could pull the upset. Do you believe in miracles?

	Coverage of the Winter Olympic Games will air starting Friday on NBC, Sunflower Broadband channels 8 and 14.

For hockey fans, there is Austria vs. Germany and Latvia vs. Slovakia in men’s competition on CNBC.

Monday, Feb. 11

The first figure skating medal of the Salt Lake Games will be handed out. If Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze don’t win the pairs competition, they’ll have to explain why they couldn’t make it 11 Olympic gold medals in a row in the event for Soviet or Russian skaters

There’s a familiar name in Alpine Skiing’s women’s downhill. Yes, Picabo Street, we’ll be seeing you.

MSNBC’s coverage debuts at noon with men’s and women’s biathlon and a women’s hockey featuring Canada vs. Kazakhstan.

Over on CNBC, a U.S. men’s team makes its debut. But not in hockey, in curling, The opponent is the feared Canadian team.

Tuesday, Feb. 12

To the great sports rivalries of our time, add Yevgeny Plushenko vs. Alexei Yagudin. The Russian figure skaters may be teammates, but that doesn’t mean they have to like each other. Plushenko, the 2001 world champion, is favored to take home the gold. Yagudin may have to settle for the silver and console himself with his hoard of female fans. Of course, Americans Todd Eldredge, Timothy Goebel and Michael Weiss will also get plenty of air time in the men’s short program.

Over on cable, MSNBC has a women’s hockey game featuring the U.S. team vs. Germany, and a women’s curling match-up between the U.S. team and Japan. If you can’t get enough women’s curling, CNBC comes back with U.S.-Sweden.

Wednesday, Feb. 13

It’s mostly downhill from here; men’s combined skiing takes center stage. Bode Miller and Erik Schlopy lead the U.S. team. If skating is more your speed, there’s the final of the women’s 1,500 meters short track speed skating. In men’s skating, Seattle’s Apolo Anton Ohno is the best in the world and has a chance to win four medals in Salt Lake. He’s 19, and this is his coming-out party.

Thursday, Feb. 14

It’s medal night in men’s figure skating. The gold will be presented after the long program. Eldredge, Goebel and Weiss hope to knock off the Russians, Plushenko and Yagudin. In Alpine skiing, the United States’ Caroline Lalive goes for the gold in women’s combined.

Cable offers up a U.S.-China women’s hockey game on CNBC. In curling, there’s U.S. vs. Sweden in the men’s and women’s competitions, also on CNBC.

Friday, Feb. 15

The NHL players finally arrive. The U.S. men’s hockey team takes on Finland on NBC’s late-night show, which starts at 11:05 p.m. Feb. 14. Just how much of the game is shown remains to be seen. Tune in to see how much face time the Dallas Stars’ Mike Modano and Jere Lehtinen get. Pray that Lehtinen, playing for Finland, doesn’t check his NHL linemate Modano into the boards.

In prime time, snowboarding is king. If skating is more your game, there’s ice dancing. Both have more appeal, the ratings say, than a good old hockey game.

Saturday, Feb. 16

What a world! The U.S. is playing the Russians in hockey, and it is ticketed for the late-night show, which starts at 10:30 p.m. So much for the Cold War. Both teams are loaded with so many NHL standouts that it will look more like the NHL All-Star game.

The prime-time star of the night could be Ohno, the speed skater, who should be going for his first gold medal in the 1,000-meter final. For bobsled aficionados, there is the start of two-man competition. In skiing, there’s the men’s and women’s aerials and the men’s Super G.

Sunday, Feb. 17

The United States has not won an Olympic medal in bobsled since a 1956 bronze. Texan Todd Hays, who is from Del Rio, hopes to end the futility driving a two-man bobsled. Hays, 32, played football at the University of Tulsa and was a national kick boxing champ.