Biography

The Following bio is from NBCOlympics

Torino update
On Day 2, American Apolo Anton Ohno stumbled in the 1500m semifinals and failed to advance to the medal round, Final A. He finished third in Final B. He came back on Day 8 to earn bronze -- behind South Korea's Ahn Hyun-Soo and Lee Ho-Suk -- in the 1000m, and then won gold in the 500m -- in front of Canada's Francois-Louis Tremblay and Ahn -- on Day 15.

Oh yes for Ohno
In his Olympic debut, Ohno -- who sported the unique look of long hair, a bandana and a soul patch -- drew international attention en route to winning two medals at the 2002 Salt Lake Games. The short-track star earned his first Olympic jewel in the 1000m (watch video). Ohno led the race heading into the final lap, but his advantage evaporated when he was involved in a four-skater crash. The American recovered to finish second after Australia's Steven Bradbury (who was so far behind the leaders he was not affected by the fall) won the gold. Ohno was a part of another controversy in the 1500m. The Seattle native initially finished second to South Korea's Kim Dong-Sung, but Ohno was awarded the gold when Kim was disqualified for interference (watch video).

Ohno vs. South Korea
The controversy over Ohno's 1500m gold at the Salt Lake Games grew after the race. Within five hours of the event, more than 16,000 angry e-mails (which Ohno's father later learned came from only a couple of individuals) from South Korea fans crashed the USOC Internet Server in the Olympic Village. Over the next year Ohno received death threats. The controversy even crossed over to soccer when at the 2002 World Cup in Daegu, South Korea, South Korean Ahn Jung-Hwan celebrated a goal against the U.S. by imitating a short track speed skater. The bad blood between Ohno and South Korea intensified, and in November 2003 the short-track star announced he would not compete at a World Cup event in Dechoun, South Korea, because of security issues. Ohno returned to South Korea in October 2005 for a World Cup stop (see slideshow).

Success since Salt Lake
Ohno continued his success after the Salt Lake Games, winning the 2002-03 World Cup title, finishing fourth overall at the 2003 Worlds and earning his fifth U.S. crown. The Seattle native slipped in the 2003-04 season, finishing third overall in the World Cup standings and ninth overall at the 2004 Worlds, but still remained the top American short tracker when he swept all seven events at the 2004 Nationals. Ohno returned to top form for the 2004-05 season when he won four of the six World Cup events to grab his third overall title, earned his seventh national crown and won the 1000m and non-Olympic 3000m titles to finish second overall (behind South Korean Ahn Hyun-Soo) at Worlds.

Short-track beginnings
Although Ohno didn't begin his short track career until 1995, it took him less than two years to become the best short-track skater in the United States. At 14, after training under Pat Wentland in Lake Placid for just six months, Ohno claimed his first overall title at the U.S. Championships. Ohno's success made him a likely candidate to make the 1998 U.S. Olympic team, but the American struggled with his fitness throughout the 1997-98 season and finished 16th at the Olympic Trials. Ohno committed himself to making the 2002 Olympic squad, and by the 2000-01 season he was one of the world's best skaters. The Seattle native won the World Cup title in the 500m, 1000m and 1500m en route to winning the overall crown, making him the first American to win a World Cup title at any distance.

What's in a name?
Ohno was not named for Apollo, the Greek god of sunlight and prophecy. His unique first name was given to him by his father, who combined the Greek words "Ap," meaning "steering away from," and "lo," meaning "look out, here he comes." Yuki says his son's middle name, "Anton," means priceless. Ohno also goes by the nickname "Chunkie," a holdover from his youth, when he was one of the stockier members of his roller skating team.

The Yuki factor
Yuki Ohno, who raised Apolo by himself, owns a Seattle hair salon called Yuki's Diffusion. The elder Ohno was the driving force behind Apolo's skating career, taking him to Canada for an age-group short-track competition and motivating his son to push himself in short track. It was also Yuki who encouraged his then-14-year-old son to move to Lake Placid in 1996 to train under Pat Wentland. Initially, Apolo was apprehensive about the move to New York and rebelled against his father by skipping his flight after Yuki dropped him off at the airport. Aware that his son did not board the plane and was instead staying with friends in the South Seattle area, Yuki eventually accompanied Apolo on the flight when he finally convinced him to move to Lake Placid.

 Wilderness retreat
Ohno, 15, came to a crossroads in his short-track career when he didn't make the 1998 U.S. Olympic team and needed to decide if he wanted to continue skating. Yuki, concerned that his son was making a rash decision after the devastating and emotional experience at Trials, brought Apolo to a secluded cottage three hours northwest of Seattle on the Pacific Ocean for a week where he had no distractions (including no TV and no telephone) and could think about his future. To entertain himself, Apolo took long runs during the day. On one run he stopped and sat on a rock on the side of the road in the pouring rain one morning and concluded that he wanted to keep skating and not waste his talent.

Post-Olympic celebrity tour
Ohno was treated like a celebrity after winning gold and silver at the Salt Lake Games. Elton John invited the skater to an Oscars party (see gallery), where he met celebrities such as Halle Berry and Denzel Washington. He also made a trip to the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, where he endured what he labels his most embarrassing moment. Ohno cut himself several times while shaving in the dressing room, and although the makeup artists were able to cover up the cuts before he went on stage, Leno witnessed the amusing incident and mentioned it during his interview. Ohno also appeared on MTV's Total Request Live, where he breakdanced, and participated in a made-for-TV sports challenge between a group of U.S. Winter Olympians and NFL stars.

Grounded at the OTC
Although Ohno has become a star in his sport, he still remains grounded. The Seattle native forwent the temptations to buy a house in Colorado Springs and opted to keep living at the Olympic Training Center, where he says he is one of the facility's longest full-time residents (see slideshow). Now Apolo trains in Salt Lake City, where USSpeedskating has moved its training facilities to.

Lucky tee
The American star often wears a tattered old t-shirt at competitions that reads, "No pain, no gain." "This has a lot of blood, sweat and tears," he said of the shirt.

Off the ice
Away from skating, Ohno enjoys music, cars and electronics. His favorite book is Lance Armstrong's "It's Not About the Bike," and he lists "For the Love of the Game" and "Rocky" as his favorite movies. Before he dedicated himself to skating, he was a state champion in swimming and was also in the Northwest Boys Choir.

Dancing with the Stars!

MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS

For a Major List of ShortTrack Results of Apolo, please check out his page at Cybescoreboard

 

2007

US Champion
 

 

2002, 2006 Olympian

Salt Lake City Olympic Games 2002: Gold 1500m, Silver 1000m

Torino Olympic Games 2006: Gold 500 M, Bronze 1000M, and Bronze 5000 M Relay

Olympics 2006
Date Round Result
02/25 Men's 5000 m Relay Final A  Bronze 6:47.990 (3rd)
02/25 Men's 500 m Final Rankings Gold  (1st)
02/25 Men's 500 m Final A   41.935 (1st)
02/25 Men's 500 m Semifinal 1   42.400 (2nd)
02/25 Men's 500 m Quarterfinal 4   42.020 (1st - Qualified)
02/22 Men's 500 m Heat 7   42.836 (1st - Qualified)
02/18 Men's 1000 m Final Rankings Bronze  (3rd)
02/18 Men's 1000 m Final A   1:26.927 (3rd)
02/18 Men's 1000 m Semifinal 2   1:28.080 (2nd)
02/18 Men's 1000 m Quarterfinal 2   1:29.650 (2nd - Qualified)
02/15 Men's 5000 m Relay Semifinal 2   6:55.082 (1st)
02/15 Men's 1000 m Heat 7   1:36.120 (1st - Qualified)
02/12 Men's 1500 m Final Rankings    (8th)
02/12 Men's 1500 m Final B   2:24.789 (3rd)
02/12 Men's 1500 m Semifinal 3   2:20.346 (4th)
02/12 Men's 1500 m Heat 6   2:23.668 (1st - Qualified)

 

 

 

2004-2005

2005 World Cup Overall Champion

2005 2nd Place World Champion

2003-2004

 

2002-2003

2003 World Cup Overall Champion (also champion in 1000m)

 

2002 and earlier

US Nationals Champion

1997, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007

 

Records:
500m: 41.628 Kearns, UT, USA (Dec. 21, '01)
1000m: 1:27.410, Changchun, CHN (Dec. 5, '99)
1500m: 2:13.728 Kearns, UT, USA (Dec. 15, '01) Current WR
3000m: 4:51.157 Szekesfhervar, HUN (Nov. 8, '98)

Member of American Record 5000-meter relay team (6:48.815, 10/20/01, Calgary)

American Record holder in 4-lap time trial (37.368)

 


Read his Bio at US Speedskating here!

 

Information Credit:

NBC Olympics

US Speedskating

Apolo Anton Ohno.com

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