Valentine's Day on ice: Athletes in Italy juggle romance with medal pressure

MILAN, Feb 2 : With Valentine's Day falling in the middle of this month's Winter Olympics in Italy, dinner reservations and roses will have to share space with early alarms, sore muscles and the emotional strain of competing on sport's biggest stage.

U.S. ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates, a married couple appearing in their fourth Games together, have not locked in plans yet but expect Italy to do some of the work for them.

"I love an Olympic Valentine's Day," Chock told Reuters.

"We don't really have any plans at the moment, so we are open to suggestions. But I think Italy is a very romantic place, so I'm sure we'll find some lovely Valentine's Day opportunities."

Bates said the couple's approach, on and off the ice, is to stay grounded in the routines and the relationship that brought them there.

"We've always just tried to be ourselves and stay rooted in what we love, which is skating," he said.

"And I hope people will connect with that authenticity, because that's really who we are and what we're about - loving what we do and loving the person that we get to do it with."

SHARED UNDERSTANDING

For athletes in other sports, Valentine's Day at the Olympics can be less about a night out than having someone who understands the high-performance mindset and pressure that comes with it.

U.S. women's ice hockey player Hilary Knight said having her partner, speed skater Brittany Bowe, in her corner has provided perspective when the intensity ramps up and the margin for error narrows.

"Sometimes being in different sports provides a level of perspective and clarity," Knight said, describing how Bowe's input can help when she is too close to a problem.

"She knows that high-performance mindset. She knows what it takes to get into