Hughes sisters' warm bond strengthened by time on ice

TURIN, Italy -- She's her inspiration, her role model, her soft shoulder in sad moments, her dry hanky in happy moments.

Basically, Sarah Hughes is Emily's sister.

And sisters are always there for each other.

It's not usually this smooth with kid combinations. For example, brother and brother have this understanding: The oldest will pick on the youngest, starting at birth. The poor little guy will get his ear flicked, or experience the annoyance of a well-applied noogie, or always feel pressure to catch his big brother's baseball throw, which always comes too hard.

Brother and sister? They sometimes can be as compatible as dog and cat. They share a strong desire to dominate the bathroom in the morning, use the telephone during the day and own the remote control at night. Fights are common, referees are required.

But sister and sister? That is true and everlasting bliss.

That's what Sarah and Emily have, a bond strengthened by gender, by a remarkable facial resemblance, by closeness in age, by a love of shopping and manicures. And of course, by figure skating. That last part has allowed Sarah and Emily to share the unique status of being Olympians. It doesn't get any better than the older sister winning the gold medal in Salt Lake City and, four years later, the younger sister using that as motivation to reach Turin.

"Emily is going over to enjoy the competition and take it in," said Sarah, 20. "This is all a bonus for her. No one works harder than she does. She really wanted to be part of this team and she earned it. I am really just so proud of her. It is terrific."

On a certain satisfaction level, this will mean almost as much to Sarah as it does to Emily. They come from a tight family of six kids, all born and raised on ice, all nurtured wonderfully in Kings Point, N.Y., by Amy and John Hughes, the Canadian who handed his love of skating down to his children. Sarah and Emily, separated by three years, are the fourth and fifth youngest (Taylor's the baby of the bunch). While the boys played hockey, the sisters did what girls do.

Sarah and Emily spent plenty of time twirling together when they first caught the skating bug, back in grade school. That's where the bond took hold. Amy Hughes drove the sisters to the rink and to school. As time went by, the older Sarah's skating became much sharper, her jumps higher, her landings firmer. Clearly, she had the look. She had the making of a champion.