A year ago, Team USA was competing at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino. Today, these athletes are scattered across the country, excelling on and off the snow and ice.

Joey Cheek

U.S. speed skater Joey Cheek gained attention after he donated his $40,000 in winnings to Right To Play after earning gold and silver medals in the men's 500m and 1000m.

That was just the beginning of the three-time Olympic medalist's involvement with Right To Play and other foundations.

Moved by the crisis in the Sudan, the North Carolina native has spent the past year raising money and awareness for Right To Play and the Save Darfur Coalition. He traveled with the Red Cross to Ethiopia and Chad to bring supplies and aid to refugees and then jetted to China and Egypt with Hollywood stars George Clooney and Don Cheadle to raise awareness for the situation in Darfur.

"(The experiences) certainly make me perceive the world differently," Cheek said. "I think it's made me a much better person for it."

With a busy year behind him, Cheek has no plans to slow down. He plans on remaining involved creating awareness for the situation in the Sudan and will also enroll at Princeton in the fall.

What isn't on Cheek's schedule is skating. Now retired, the 2005 world sprint champion has only skated a handful of times since the Torino Games.

"I definitely made the right decision," Cheek said about retiring. "Absolutely, no question, I don't doubt it for a second. Once you've done all that you want to do, it's time to try and figure out how to do something else."

Lindsey Jacobellis

Snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis entered the Torino Games as one of the most talked about American Olympians. She left the Games the same way, but for different reasons.

A star in her sport, Jacobellis was expected to win gold in the inaugural snowboard cross event. With a sizable lead in the final, Jacobellis was one jump away from getting that gold. However, the Worlds and X Games champ showboated on the jump -- grabbing her board -- and fell.

Her wipeout allowed Tanja Frieden to slide across the finish first and Jacobellis recovered in time for silver.

Hounded by questions after the Olympics about why she decided to perform the trick, Jacobellis hoped to finally quiet her critics when she won gold at the 2007 World Championships.

"I'm glad people can look at me in this way as coming back strong," Jacobellis said in a teleconference after Worlds. "I'd like to be recognized for what I've accomplished, rather then my mistake. I know my mistake will carry over for a long time, probably until the next Olympics ... this will hopefully dilute that some."

However, memories of the past were brought to light again at the Winter X Games. In the lead nearing the finish, Jacobellis crashed on the final jump -- this time it wasn't caused by showboating, though -- and tumbled across the finish line in second place.

Kimmie Meissner

Figure skater Kimmie Meissner, who finished sixth in Torino, used the Olympic experience to catapult her career after the Games.

The Maryland native surprised even herself when she captured gold at the 2006 World Championships, beating the likes of Japan's Fumie Suguri and compatriot Sasha Cohen.

A world champion at 16, Meissner became America's new leading lady on the ice after Michelle Kwan and Cohen announced they were taking a break from the sport.

"It was kind of a shock to see my picture everywhere, like 'What's that doing there?'" Meissner, now 17, said in a teleconference before the 2007 U.S. Championships.

But Meissner wasn't content with her abilities and wanted to add to her arsenal.

Known for her jumping abilities, the world champion has focused on her artistry since last winter, and her presentation improvements showed at the 2007 U.S. Championships.

In a mature and captivating program, Meissner beat Emily Hughes to win her first national title.

“I was just getting used to the World champion thing, now this is going to be something new to get used to,” Meissner said.

She added to her accolades with a win at the Four Continents event in February.

Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto

In Torino, Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto captured silver to give the U.S. its first Olympic ice-dancing medal in 30 years.

After a trying Olympic year -- the pair had to overcome uncertainty over their Olympic eligibility when it seemed the Canadian-born Belbin wouldn't receiver American citizenship in time -- the team was able to overcome the adversity.

Belbin and Agosto took bronze at the 2006 World Championships and performed well on the Grand Prix circuit before being forced to withdraw from the Grand Prix Final after Agosto injured his back.

Healed and back on the ice, the pair made a risky decision -- to bail on their current free dance program and start from scratch. They felt they weren't performing well to "That's Entertainment" and opted for the soundtrack to "Amelie" instead.

The program was debuted at the 2007 U.S. Championships, and the result was golden, giving the ice dancing pair their fourth national title.

"It’s been a really good learning experience for us,” Agosto said. “We had to get ourselves together and dig down and really just do our job well, and we knew we had a very short amount of time. It came together so fast and I think it’s a great accomplishment for us as a team.”

They will take on the world's best again at the 2007 Worlds, where they will look to add the title of world champions to their already robust resumes.

But win or lose, this team is in it for the long haul.

"We're definitely committed to 2010," Belbin said. "That's always been our main goal … This is all just a lead up to 2010."

Shannon Bahrke

A silver medalist at the 2002 Salt Lake Games, Shannon Bahrke finished 10th in women's moguls in Torino.

But the U.S. veteran has been tough to beat in the 2007 World Cup season, winning events in Deer Valley, Utah and Canada. Her efforts rank her fourth overall in the women's freestyle standings, trailing only Olympic gold medalist Jennifer Heil of Canada, Jacqui Cooper of Australia and Li Nina of China.

She credits her success to her revised outlook on freestyle skiing.

"Last year one of the tricks I worked on was the D-Spin, which is a back flip 360. I worked so hard on it, I never really got to ski; I was always training my jumps. That was hard. It almost caused me to retire this season," Bahrke said. "So I told myself that I'm just going to ski this year, take the degree of my jumps down and enjoy skiing again. That's really helped. Now in the starting gate I can focus on just skiing and speed."

What's also kept Bahrke going is her attitude. Naturally upbeat, the skier has been called "Sparky Bahrke" and compared to the Energizer Bunny by her teammates.

"I don't know where it comes from. My brother has the same level of energy. I think everyone is energetic, I just think we portray it differently, we wear it more on our sleeves," Bahrke said. "It helps when I have a rough day. I'm able to bounce back. I know to keep things in perspective."