Team USA's Heather Richardson and Brittany Bowe will look to take the podium as they compete in the women's 1000-meter speedskating event of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics on Thursday at the Adler Arena Skating Center.

Richardson is considered Team USA's top gold medal bet as she is currently on a roll, winning three gold medals and one silver medal in four 1000-meter races in the current world cup season.

Richardson, who has improved a lot since finishing 10th during the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games, recently recorded her personal best of 1:12:61 seconds, which is the second-fastest time in a 1000-meter race in US history.

The 24-year-old American struggled in the 500-meter race on Tuesday. Richardson ended up eighth in the race after clocking 37:73 seconds in the first run and 38:02 seconds in the second run.

But despite failing to land a medal in the 500-meter event, Richardson remains confident about her chances in the long distance race on Wednesday, saying that Tuesday's event was a good warm-up for the 1000-meter event.

"It's a good warm-up for the 1,000. I just want to go into it as calm as possible, just think of it as another 1,000 to do," Richardson told the Associated Press, via News Record.

Bowe, on the other hand, is expected to give her teammate a run for her money as she is also expected to be one of the strongest medal contenders in the race.

Bowe, who holds the world record with her 1:12:58 seconds clocked earlier in the season, is familiar with the Sochi track. The 25-year-old American, who ended up 17th in the 500-meter event, won the bronze medal in the 2013 World Single Distance Championships held in Sochi.

Richardson and Bowe are facing strong competition, which also includes South Korean speedskating star Sang Hwa Lee and hometown hero Olga Fatkulina.

Lee bagged the gold in the 500-meter race with her Olympic record time of 74:70 seconds, while Fatkulina came out .36-seconds slower to finish second in the thrilling race.

Canadian bet Christine Nesbitt, who won the gold in the 2010 Vancouver Games, is also considered a dark horse despite struggling in her recent World Cup stints.

The 1000m women's speedskating will start at 9 a.m. EST.

Complete TV schedule can be viewed here, while a live stream is available at NBC Olympics Live Extra.

Complete start list and running results are available here.