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ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
Apolo Ohno: Next Asian American Olympic Hero?
e's the U.S. athlete most likely to lead the medal count at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, with an even chance of winning gold in all four short track speedskating events. What's more, the 19-year-old half-Japanese kid comes with a backstory that's sure to add cache and even a dab of poignance to his achievement.
Apolo Anton Ohno exploded onto the speedskating scene at the absurd age of 14 when he became the U.S. national men's speedskating champion. In 1999 and 2000 he came in first overall in the World Cups in China and Canada. He lost last year's World Championship to South Corean Kim Dong-Sung, but came right back to set a new world short-track record of 2 minutes, 13.728 seconds in the 1,500-meter in December's U.S. Olympic trials.
At those same trials Ohno became caught in a scandal that may only add badboy cache to his Olympic exploits -- he was accused of deliberately coming in third in the 1,000-meter race in order to ensure an Olympic berth for close buddy Shani Davis, the first Black to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Speed Skating Team. Davis's win bumped 1998 Olympian Tommy O'Hare off the team. O'Hare filed a complaint with the U.S. Olympic Committee. The arbitrator bought Ohno's story that, having racked up more than enough points to qualify for all four short-track events, he had simply decided to play it safe. But the suspicion lingers that Ohno had rigged a race to help a buddy, especially when it finds support in the testimony of two skeptical referees and of three other teammates who heard Ohno and Davis rigging the race.
Then there's the poignance.
Apolo Ohno was raised entirely by father Yuki who had immigrated alone from Tokyo at the age of 18. Yuki dropped out of accounting studies at Seattle City College in favor of the less cerebral profession of cosmetology. He opened his own Seattle beauty salon and enjoyed enough success to party hearty with other young hairdressers. He was 36 before marrying Apolo's mother. The marriage ended within a year, putting Yuki in the unfamiliar position of having to provide mothering and a stable home for his infant son. To make ends meet Yuki had to moonlight at a second salon. That left many unsupervised hours for Apolo. His after-school mischief with friends became worrisome. Yuki got him involved in swimming and in-line skating, then after watching a short-track race from the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Games, he hooked Apolo up with the sport in which he would make his mark. He was so surprisingly good, in fact, that father and son set their sights on qualifying for the 1998 Nagano games. The combination of pressure and inexperience proved too much. In the Olympic trials Apolo came in 16th out of 16 hopefuls and failed to make the team. For some time his ultimate comeback was doubtful, then painful, but ultimately successful beyond the Ohnos' wildest expectations.
And now Apolo Anton Ohno twinkles as the pole star in the U.S. quest for a record-setting 20 medals in Salt Lake City. Those bright metal tokens won't come easy. Ohno must pit cunning, muscle and heart against better seasoned Corean and Chinese foes in the 500-meter, 1,000-meter and 1,500-meter individual races, then pull the team in the 5,000-meter relay. Ohno's spandex may not throw off the glamour of Michele Kwan's ice dresses but this February millions of new aficianados will likely thrill to the wicked glint of steel slashing in switchblade duels on the unforgiving short track.
Will Apolo Ohno leave Salt Lake City as the next American Olympic hero? Or has he already disqualified himself with his badboy image?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Wednesday, Jan 22, 2025, 04:38:55 AM)
Now that Canada has the shared gold medal for Pairs Figure skating with the Russian team, does this mean that the China team will move up from Bronze to Silver and be celebrated accordingly?
Bet you never thought about it!
Monday, February 18, 2002 at 16:04:54 (PST)
Ohno deserved that gold he fell on. He was practically at the finish line! Whoever won the gold didn't even deserve to be happy. What was he so happy about?? He won by default! I hope Apolo gets better luck in the future and wins all the gold that he deserves. And YES, he's very cute.
apolo love
Monday, February 18, 2002 at 11:35:02 (PST)
is it just me or is apolo kinda cute?
?
Monday, February 18, 2002 at 07:49:27 (PST)
Hooray for Australia's first gold medal winner Steven Bradbury!
"God smiles on you some days and this is my day. "
Proud of you.
Australian Born Chinese.
Who cares about another US medal winner?
Monday, February 18, 2002 at 07:22:09 (PST)
I hope Apolo Ohno is ok that fall looked very bad he still won the silver we should all be very proud of him.
From African-American Beauty
Sunday, February 17, 2002 at 00:31:37 (PST)
Was watching the Olympics a couple of nights ago and was proud to see the commentators making a big deal about Ohno and about his Japanese father. Then I saw him skate and knew why. Even to my inexperienced eyes, the guy was so much quicker and more powerful than the other skaters except maybe that Korean guy. I have a feeling Ohno's going to win at least a silver in all three solo races. And the way the U.S. men blew past the Korean 5,000-relay team, I suspect they will gold on that one for sure. Unless there is some wicked wipeout like the Korean team suffered.
And I am wowed by short-track. I see why it's such a big deal in Asia! It's a fast and deadly sport!
Newly Converted Short-track Fan
Thursday, February 14, 2002 at 23:13:32 (PST)
Personally, I don't think that Ohno's "badboy" image would be detrimental to him - in fact, I think it is actually beneficial, since mainstream America would see that not all Asian American kids are "nerds"- the quiet, studious and passive "model minority." Even if there is nothing wrong with being studious, Ohno's presence shows that Asian Americans come with different unique personalities and that they/we are not two-dimensional.
Hi I'm New
Monday, February 04, 2002 at 21:35:38 (PST)
I think it's regrettable that Ohno relaxed in his performance that helped his friend qualify, but his whole story is fascinating.
I didn't realize that he was competing in both short track and longer distances like the 5000 meter relay. This is quite unusual isn't it? Most skaters seem to specialize in one or the other like the great Eric Heiden. Short track involves more people in each heat, and you need to use strategy. The Koreans have been very successful in short track as well as the Chinese. I wish I had vacation time to use, I'd be going to Utah.
Marginal Man
Monday, February 04, 2002 at 16:21:27 (PST)
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