Ohno Zone >
Apolo Anton Ohno Interview, June
2004
Part 4: The 2006 Games and
beyond
Obviously
you're focused on 2006 right now, but is there any possibility you will compete at the
2010 Games in Vancouver? It's virtually your backyard. I feel bad asking you this,
but we can't help wondering!
Sure. I think they’re gonna do an awesome job in
Vancouver, I really do. I just have a gut feeling that it’s gonna be
spectacular. No matter what, I want to be there, either way, if I'm
skating or I'm not. I'm going to be at the rink, either way. I may not be
in the heat box, but I will be there, no matter what happens. You can
guarantee that.
It’s really too early [to know if
I’ll still be skating], but I would love to be there. I’m young. I’m
having a great time and I’m
growing every
day.
So you’re not tired of this at all?
No. No. It was hard
after last season. It made me double-check some things and look over, but
like I’ve said, this
is a journey for me. This is just one of
the paths I’m taking, and
I’m enjoying it. Win, lose or draw, it doesn’t matter. I’m here and I’m enjoying
it and that’s the most important part for me.
Looking to 2006, how would you approach
the Olympics differently than you did in 2002?
I think my approach would not be that much different.
I’m still looking to perform well, but at the same time, I’m going to
enjoy the Games. I was so incredibly, extremely focused for the last Games
that it’s hard to remember some things. I was just in the zone, the
intensity was just radiating from me. That’s obviously where I have to be,
because at the Games you have to step it up. It’s not like Worlds, it’s
not like a World Cup. It’s like nothing in the world.
It took Marc Gagnon many, many years to finally get his gold medal –
and he was one of the best skaters in the world, ever. So, like I said,
it’s a different competition and luckily for him, he got it together, and
he performed like everybody knows Marc can. Hopefully for me, I can do the
same.
How do feel about the ISU’s new Olympic
qualifying rules?*
I’m
still kind of looking it over. I
haven’t really made my
decision on it yet, on what I think is going to be right or wrong.
I’m not sure yet, to be honest with you. Hopefully this will be better, but I
know there’s gonna be [potentially] three skaters
[from one country competing in individual distances], so that is going to make it
different, because before it was only two, so [concerns] about team skating [weren’t
as strong]. But now this is a whole new thing in the mix.
*Note: The ISU Congress of June 2004 decided that
'qualification for the Olympic Games in Short Track will be through
results of two World Cups held in Europe during the season of 2005/06. A
country may qualify up to three skaters in each distance (must have three
skaters in the top 8 in that distance in overall classification for the
two World Cups to do this); the number of skaters from each country for
each distance is based on that distance's results.' Previously, a special
Olympic qualifying event was held, and no country could qualify more than
two skaters in each distance.
Do you know why they decided to change that
rule?
I don’t know why.
I’d like to know!
Have you officially been approached to participate in
the international sports festival being planned for the Seattle area next
summer?
Not
yet, but that’s gonna be awesome.
I’m telling you, that is gonna be awesome, if that goes through. And
I will help them with that campaign. I’ll help them promote that, as a
Seattle native, a Seattleite.
You would be the marquee athlete at that event.
That’s going to be crazy. It’s going to be
awesome.
Everyone will be excited to see that – short track in the
summer!
I know… it’s awesome. I always
thought that we should have a short track tour in the summer. We’d just
get the top eight, top ten guys from Worlds, or top two from each country,
and just go tour the United States and have competitions all over the
place. I’ve been pushing for that for years. But we’ll see if anybody
listens!
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