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Short-track skating has a rosy future
By Maria Titze
Deseret News Olympic specialist
Coming in a close second to figure skating as the "scandal sport" of the 2002 Winter Games, short-track speedskating has weathered its share of negative publicity. Nevertheless, observers see a bright and healthy future for the sport.
The controversies started long before opening ceremonies as Americans Apolo Anton Ohno and Rusty Smith dodged allegations that they had conspired to fix the final race of the Olympic trials so their friend, Shani Davis, could make the U.S. team.
Then there was the unbelievable men's 1,000-meter final that saw every skater but one — including Ohno — crash in the last turn of the race.
Ohno captured gold in the next distance, the 1,500-meter, but not because he crossed the finish line first. Korea's Dong-Sung Kim was disqualified for cutting into Ohno's path — again in the last seconds of the race. The Korean Olympic Committee — bolstered by allegations of impartial officiating on the part of the Canadians and the Russians in other sports — filed futile appeals of the call.
Black marks on an Olympic sport not even a decade old?
Not according to former Olympian Andy Gable.
"I think it's going to be positive," he told the Deseret News. "If you look at everything that's happened, and yet every night we had almost 16,000 fans, people going nuts every time . . . even though there was some negative stuff going on out there, I think overall the sport has a very positive image."
Dan Weinstein, a member of this year's U.S. team, cites high TV ratings, magazine covers, even detailed newspaper diagrams of crosstracking — an illegal move in the sport — as evidence that the public is catching on.
Weinstein even found the furor over refereeing something of a relief, since it distracted the media from the allegations of race fixing.
"The earlier controversy has gone away, which is pretty awesome," he said. "People are learning about short track and they seem to be loving the sport."
Ohno, clearly the sport's young prince, is aware that his success — and even his notoriety — has raised the visibility of short-track speedskating.
"I'm surprised at how fast people are able to pick up what's going on," he said. "It's fast and furious. I definitely don't think it's going away."
Gable, who lives in Park City, believes the legacy of the speedskating oval in Kearns will attract young athletes from around the state.
"We've got the facilities here now," he said.
And the role models. Smith and Ohno are young and plan to be back for the Games in 2006.
"They'll be around for a long time, and that's only going to help," Gable said. "I'm excited about it."
E-mail: mtitze@desnews.com
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February 25, 2002
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