Name: Apolo Anton Ohno
Birthdate: May 22, 1982
Hometown: Seattle, Washington
Current Residence: The Olympic Training Center,
Colorado Springs, Colorado, Alex Izykowski is his roommate
Olympic Sport: Short Track Speed Skating
Torino Medals: Gold, Men's 500m, Bronze, Men's 1000m, Bronze, Men's 5000m Relay
Movie: For Love of the Game, Rocky
Book: "It's Not About the Bike" by Lance Armstrong
Hobbies: in-line skating, hanging out with friends, listening to music
Apolo Anton Ohno began his short track speed skating career in 1995, at the age of 13. A former state championship swimmer and in-line skater, Ohno soon became the top athlete in the sport. Apolo's father, Yuki Ohno, stated in an interview with NBC Olympics Online, "I noticed his ability to adapt to new things. And the competitiveness to want to win, the desire to perform the best, it's in him. That he definitely had since he was little."
Apolo initially desired to compete in the 1998 Olympic Games, but struggled in the Olympic trials, placing 16th. After his disappointing finish at the trials, Apolo's father brought him to a cabin on the Pacific Ocean. After a week of no television, telephone, or other distractions, Apolo decided to continue with speed skating.
Apolo first competed in the Olympics at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games. It was there that
he became a media darling. The then 19-year-old skater won the hearts of the nation as
the long-haired, soul-patched, speed demon. However, there were no "easy" wins for Ohno
during these Games. A heart-breaking wipe out in the Men's 1000m final, which Apolo was
leading, brought him to a gut wrenching second place finish. Apolo literally hurled his body,
skate first, across the finish line in order to ensure the silver medal. In the men's 1500m,
Apolo won a gold medal, but only after South Korea's Kim Dong-Sung was disqualified for
cross-tracking. You can read Yuki Ohno's thoughts on his son's performance in
Salt Lake here.
The start of the 2006 Torino short track competition was a bit shaky for Apolo. A stumble in the 1500m semi finals, the first of his 4 events, took Ohno out of medal contention for the event which he had previously won gold.
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 | On the final night of competition at the 2006 Torino Games, Ohno truly shined. Taking the lead right from the start, Ohno's consistency and sharp skating won him his first gold medal of the Games. Later that evening, Ohno pulled past the Italian relay team on his final lap of the Men's 5000m team relay, clinching a bronze medal for the U.S. team. |