VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- Bode Miller won another medal Friday, adding to an American haul at the Vancouver Games that has been as varied as it has been surprising.
On a relatively light day of action heading into the middle weekend of the Olympics, Norway's Marit Bjoergen put herself in position to be the most decorated athlete of these Games.
Amy Williams also won just the second gold medal for Britain in the last seven Winter Olympics, and the defending champions became the latest heavyweight to sweat out a victory in the hockey tournament.
For Miller and his fellow Americans, however, it was a day to reflect on the opening week of the competition and just how unexpectedly successful it has been for the United States.
The American alpine racer, attempting to make up for a non-productive 2006 Olympics in Turin, finished second to Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway in the super-giant slalom. It was the second medal for Miller at these Olympics and his fourth overall.
That puts him in rarefied company since he is only two medals short of equaling Bonnie Blair for the best American showing during a Winter Olympics career.
Miller's effort, however, was just part of the American story.
Andrew Weibrecht, a U.S. skier with just one Top 10 finish to his credit on the World Cup circuit this season, won the bronze medal in the super-G.
With six of the 10 Olympic alpine races still to go, the U.S. team already has six medals. That is the most ever at an Olympics for an American alpine squad. Four different skiers have won medals, and that has happened only one other time.
Through seven days of competition, there have been 20 U.S. medals -- seven more than any other country has won. In Turin four years ago, the Americans collected 25 during the entire Games.
Americans have won medals in speed skating, short-track skating, snowboarding, freestyle skiing, figure skating and -- for the first time in Olympic history -- the Nordic combined. The United States barely missed a medal in the women's skeleton Friday, and two American ice dancing teams placed among the top four after the compulsories.
Before the Olympics come to an end, Norway and Germany could well bring their depth to bear on the medal table. The first week of the Games, however, has been an American show.
Norway made a move Friday by winning two of the four gold medals available.
In addition to Svindal's victory in the super-G, Bjoergen won the women's cross-country pursuit race.
Bjoergen became the first person at these Olympics to win three medals and also became the first to claim two golds. With two cross-country relays left to race and with the Norwegian team being so strong, Bjoergen could easily collect at least five medals before leaving Canada.
Sweden, meanwhile, survived with a 4-2 victory over lightly regarded Belarus in the hockey tournament. With Canada also struggling in an overtime win against Switzerland 24 hours earlier, a wide-open battle should be expected for the gold medal.
