Unsurprisingly, New England is well represented in a skiing event at the Olympic games. But Freestyle Skiing is not your normal downhill affair — it takes a little bit of flair. Whether it is in moguls, aerials or the new ski cross event, these athletes show you have to go all out. Yes, that is actually the U.S. ski team’s catchphrase.

Here are the New England hopefuls from the Freestyle events. For a full list of the athletes competing, click here.

Hannah Kearney

The star of the above video, Kearney headed to Torino, Italy, for the 2006 Olympics as one of the favorites in the Freestyle moguls event. The then 19-year-old Norwich, Vt., native was coming off a gold medal win in the World Ski Championships in 2005, but stumbled to a disappointing 22nd place finish. Now she will head to Vancouver as one of the favorites once again, as she is pegged to finish on the podium after finishing at the top of the overall World Cup standing in 2009. Needless to say, Kearney has had up-and-down results. The question is, will she falter again, or can she rise to the occasion this time around?

Oh, and if you ever wanted to get the feel for what it is like to be an Olympic-level skier, she can help you in that regard, too.

Michael Morse

Morse is well traveled as he competes in his first Olympics at the age of 28. The Duxbury native grew up skiing the slopes at Killington in Vermont, and headed to the University of Vermont for college. But halfway through, Morse transferred to Northeastern to pursue a degree in English, or so he thought. Once again he left school, this time to move to Steamboat Springs, Colorado to ski full time.

Morse almost made the Olympic team in 2006 thanks to a remarkable run in the final World Cup at Lake Placid before the team was named. Sitting in third place with just one skier remaining, Morse seemed on the verge of an improbable spot on the Olympic squad. But that skier was Australian Dale Begg-Smith, who ended up the victor in the event and went on to win gold in Torino

Morse suffered through injuries after that fourth-place finish, but came back to win the moguls and dual moguls titles at the U.S. Freestyle Championships in 2008. That victory helped him get an invite from the Red Sox to throw out the first pitch in a game that May. Sox fans might remember that one, because it was the game where Jon Lester no-hit the Royals. That should be enough to get Morse some fans for his 2010 campaign.

Emily Cook

Cook has had a hard road at the Olympics. The Belmont, Mass., native made the team in 2002, but was injured three weeks before the games when she had a hard landing, shattering both of her feet and leaving her in a wheelchair. Forced to give up her spot on the squad, Cook spent years rehabbing her injured feet. Though doctors thought she would have trouble even walking, she miraculously returned to competing. She came back in 2006 and finally seems to be fully recovered, as evidenced by her career-best fourth-place finish in the World Championships in 2009.

Dylan Ferguson

The 21-year-old Amesbury resident has been making a name for himself as of late, and seems to be peaking at the right time. He earned a career-best sixth-place finish at a World Cup on Jan. 15 in Deer Valley, Utah, on a day when most of his other high-profile American teammates faltered.

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