The 2010 Winter Olympics were exciting, thrilling, heartbreaking and surprising, to say the least. The U.S. hockey team almost got the gold, the U.S. won the overall medal count at 37 and Apolo Ohno didn’t get any golds. And yet one of the most talked about events at the games was the so-called “feud” between U.S. ski teammates Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso.

This is ridiculous and, I think, more of an attempt to keep two attractive women in the limelight than an actual catfight between the two skiers. Yes, the two have some strain in their friendship, but I think the media blew it out of proportion.

Julia Mancuso was quoted in Sports Illustrated as saying, “People are having a hard time reaching their potential because it’s such a struggle for attention. You come to meetings after races and it’s like it’s a bad day if Lindsey didn’t do well.”

While I’m sure Mancuso is a little bitter about Vonn’s gold medal, Vonn’s appearance in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition 2010 and about the fact that the media focused most of the attention on her throughout the games, I think it is a poor attempt to keep the ski team as the center of attention.

The games shouldn’t be about fighting, especially with your fellow Americans. They’re also not about winning the most medals or dominating other countries. The games should be about the integration of the world, a time when we all have the same goals and we all want the same things.

While I’m sure there is tension between the countries, there should be none within your own country, much less your own division. And even though the two have been competitors most of their lives, they should be able to come together for the good of the team and forget about past wins and losses because, for the first time, they were on the same side.

There were many more groundbreaking things going on. The U.S. hockey team almost won the gold medal – it would have been a “Miracle on Ice” all over again! I just think these girls needed to grow up and focus on the big picture. The Olympics should be about coming together as a country and making nice with other nations, not about two wannabe celebutantes fighting for the spotlight.

I am happy for both women though, as Vonn ended up winning a gold and Mancuso is the most decorated female American Olympic alpine skier in history. They need to get over their fight and realize they both heavily contributed to the best alpine ski team the U.S. has ever seen.

Ashley Iovine is a sophomore broadcast journalism major from Katy.