Filip Bondy

Since almost nobody is paying attention to the Olympics yet, almost nobody has noticed that the one-time projected star of these Winter Games will have a tough time even getting there.

Kwan withdrew from the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Thursday, but plans to petition for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.

Michelle Kwan, the five-time world and nine-time U.S. champ, has been battling back from a hip injury this season, and seems to be losing the war.

Skating at a Boston exhibition in December, in a pseudo-competition judged by fans, she managed only to complete double jumps – and we’re not even talking about combinations.

Because Kwan is Kwan, the fans still voted her the winner over the likes of Sasha Cohen. But in order to qualify for Turin, the 25-year-old star was scheduled to skate before real judges at the U.S. trials this month in St. Louis, using a new and unforgiving scoring system.

However, with her withdrawal, she is left with just one other route: She can ask for an injury waiver, which was used to get Nancy Kerrigan to Lillehammer in 1994 and, more relevantly, Todd Eldredge on the 1992 team. Kerrigan’s knee injury was a special case of assault at a competition venue, but Eldredge simply had back problems.

Judges and U.S. officials will no doubt bend over backwards to get Kwan to a third Winter Games (she was also an alternate at Lillehammer, just in case Tonya Harding was kicked off, but never got closer than a rink in Oslo).

Kwan has never captured an Olympic gold medal, but has won everything else under the sun. It looks very unlikely she will complete the portfolio now, but if she heals up and gets a waiver, it might be easier for her in Turin in February.

Q: With Apolo Ohno, Shani Davis, Chad Hedrick, Jennifer Rodriguez and Chris Witty, it seems like the U.S. speedskating team is deep and talented. What are the odds the U.S. takes home more medals in speedskating than any other sport?
Kris Curtis, Madison, Wis.

A: That certainly looks like a good bet. Recently, Davis, Joey Cheek and Casey FitzRandolph swept a 1000-meter World Cup race in Milwaukee, fueling thoughts of an enormous medals rush in Turin.

Slide show   U.S. Olympic hopefuls A look at athletes who have the best shot at gold in Turin.

Back in 2002 at Salt Lake City, the Americans captured a total of 10 gold medals, and 34 medals altogether at the Winter Olympics. Of those, four gold medals, two silvers and five bronzes were in long- and short-track speedskating, for a total of 11. The U.S. men won two golds, a silver and two bronzes in long-track. The U.S. women won one gold and two bronzes in long-track, and the U.S. men captured a gold, a silver and a bronze in short-track.

This year, the team looks at least as strong. The Americans should clean up in these disciplines, and in the hybrid, X-Games kind of events out on the slopes.