She's 19 and is carrying her hockey nation. Zuzana Tomlikova is the goalie for Slovakia, a nation that has qualified for its first Olympics in women's hockey. Zuzana is working on her English, and ventured into her mixed zone interview without a translator. She is now a sophomore at Division I Bemidji State of the powerful WCHA conference, facing the Big 3 of Wisco, Minnesota and Duluth on a regular basis. Those schools have had a stranglehold on the last 10 NCAA championships.
As a freshman, Tomlikova took two lengthy hockey absences to play for Slovakia in Olympic qualifying tournaments. She passed her courses, learned English, secured a starting spot at Bemidji, and oh, got Slovakia into the Olympics.
"We you great in those quali tourneys?" she was asked.
"Not great, but we won." She later admitted that she had two shutouts along the way.
Duluth coach Shannon Miller calls her one of the most athletic goalies she has ever seen, and she coaches the legendary Kim Martin.
Tomlikova's goals for The Winter Games?
"I'm just hoping we don't finish last."
Slovakia opens the Olympics in the first women's game of the tournament, in front of 19,000 fans against defending gold medalist Canada on Saturday.
another female athlete to root for in Vancouver.
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