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March 18, 2006
Apolo and Korean skater Song Suk-woo
Thanks to reader Audrey for sending these in a while back. Not sure when they were taken (left: Nov. 2005 - Netherlands, right - Feb. 2005 - Hungary, info courtesy of starangel).
Posted by noelle at 10:35 AM | Comments (178)
March 17, 2006
U.S. National Short Track Championships - day 1 & 2 results [updated]
Day 2: Full results from Friday aren't available just yet but thanks to various operatives on the net, we know the men's and women's medalists, and here they are.
Great smiles from the men's 1500m medalists: J.P. Kepka (bronze), Jordan Malone (gold), Travis Jayner (silver)
1500m medalists: Amy Peterson (bronze), Tina Koenig (gold), Lezleigh Jaworski (silver)
Congrats to them all and thanks to Peggy Aitken for the photos!
Unofficially (because it's according to my calculations) standings are as follows:
Men: 1. Malone (68 pts), 2 (tie). Jayner and Kepka (34 pts)
Women: 1. Koenig (68 pts), 2. Peterson (30 pts), 3. Jaworski (22.1 pts)
Day 1: Nationals got underway yesterday in Verona, Wisconsin with time trials to seed the top 16 men and women in the senior-elite division.
This is the national championships and also the event that will determine the team that will represent the USA at World Teams and World Championships later this month. Those who skated individually in Torino have an automatic bye onto the World team and are not competing at nationals.
Here are the top 10 after yesterday's time trials:
Men:
1. Jordan Malone: 1st 9lap TT;1st 4 lap TT; TP34
2. J.P. Kepka: 2nd 9lap TT; 2nd 4 lap TT; TP 21
3. Travis Jayner: 3rd 9lap TT; 3rd4 lap TT; TP 13
4. Jeff Simon: 5th 9lap TT; 4th 4lap TT; TP 6.5
5. Trevor Marsicano: 4th 9lap TT; 6th 4lap TT; TP 5.5
6. Ryan Bedford: 6th 9lap TT; 5th 4lap TT; TP 4.0
7. Joey Lindsey
8. Thomas Anderson
9. Levi Kirkpatrick
10. Levi Sinak
Women:
1. Tina Koenig: 1st 9lap TT; 1st 4lap TT; Total Points 34
2. Amy Peterson: 3rd 9lap TT; 2nd 4lap TT; TP 17
3. Sarah Lang: 2nd 9lap TT; 8th 4lap TT; TP 11
4. Lezleigh Jaworski: 5th 9lap TT; 3rd 4lap TT; TP 9.1
5. Katherine Reutter: 4th 9lap TT; 7th 4lap TT; TP 5.0
6. Alyson Dudek: 7th 9lap TT; 4th 4lap TT; TP 5.0
7. Cherise Wilkins
8. Jade Wheeler
9. Hannah Dyrud
10. Rebekah Dyrud
Posted by noelle at 2:28 PM | Comments (92)
New video clip: Ellen!
In case you missed Apolo's appearance on Ellen (like me) or you just want to relive it in all its glory, we now have it in digital version. Many thanks go out to Maggie, who's been hosting video clips and providing bandwidth to make them accessible for a few years now, as well as to newcomer Carol for providing the video footage in the first place!
Click here to download it!
Posted by noelle at 12:51 PM | Comments (45)
March 16, 2006
Telma's Roots experience!
I really thought we'd seen the last one, but Telma surprised me with her report in my inbox this morning. Enjoy!
Apolo and Telma
This day marked the greatest day of my life. It all began last night when I was browsing around on the net about Olympic athletes and I stumbled upon the Roots website. It said Apolo Anton Ohno will be making an appearance to sign autographs and take pictures with his fans at the Roots store in Beverly Hills. I was enthused by just reading the headline. For some reason I was skeptical, so I came to check it out on ohnozone.net and it was there as clear as black and white. It was one opportunity I was going to go through with despite having class at the exact hours he was appearing. I went to half of my class and my professor said I could make up the lab during another hour.
Click below for more from Telma!
So everything was working out just fine until I got lost trying to find my way there. I somehow, with luck managed to end up on Beverly. I eventually found parking and the Roots store. I stood in line waiting to meet him, made some new friends, talked about Apolo (OF COURSE)!
After about an hour of waiting it was finally my turn. I wasn't too excited until I spotted him. He was even more handsome then I had thought. He has it all; he's an athlete, he's good looking, and he's bright. Not only is he all of the above, but Apolo is genuinely a friendly person. As I was waiting my turn I observed him with everyone in front of me; laughing, hugging, taking pictures, squatting down and talking with the little boys that look up to him for inspiration. Not only is he one of the most talented people in our generation, but he's down to earth and he isn't letting all the fame of the Olympics go to his head.
I shook his hand, congratulated him on his amazing accomplishment at this year's games. He asked my name, for the first time someone pronounced it correctly on their first attempt. (TEL-MA) He hugged me and thanked me for supporting him, asked if I wanted to take a picture, signed his picture and gave it to me. I told him I'll be seeing him in Vancouver, and he said he'll be looking for me. I asked if he’d be competing and he said it a long process so he isn’t able to tell now if he will be prepared. We said our goodbyes and I was on my way with the biggest smile on.
Apolo is a true inspiration for me. He’s overcome so much to be where he is right now. His journey is admirable, and his dedication can never be marveled with mere medals. It’s the feeling in his heart that makes it all worth the hard work. When one athlete can inspire another one (myself) in an entirely different sport (basketball) you know there is something truly amazing about that athlete (Mr. Ohno).
I'm usually good with allowing words to embody my feelings, but at this point I was at a loss for words. The only word I came up with to sum up my day was "amazing." It truly was just that. Thank you Noelle and Todd for telling us about Apolo’s appearance at Roots. Your wonderful work is greatly appreciated.
Posted by noelle at 5:14 PM | Comments (38)
March 15, 2006
Apolo on the radio Thursday morning
This just in from Melissa: I heard on the radio that Apolo will be on KOST 103.5 tomorrow (a radio station in LA) between 5 and 10am. I don't know the exact time he'll be on.
You can listen live online on their web site: kost1035.com/main.html
Posted by noelle at 6:13 PM | Comments (119)
March 14, 2006
Scenes from Apolo's 500m final in Torino
Still working on photos from Torino! Here are the latest. Lots more in the 500m final photo gallery.
I've also begun a new OZ Friends & Family gallery for 2006 onwards!
Flou and Apolo at the start line
Apolo leads Tremblay, Bedard and Eley
Apolo Ohno and François-Louis Tremblay in the lead
Ohno, Tremblay, Bedard
Turning for home - Ohno, Tremblay, Ahn, Bedard
Bear hugs and back slaps all around
Posted by noelle at 9:55 PM | Comments (110)
Apolo's Olympic jacket auction for charity
From Clothes Off Our Back:
"We wanted to let you know that Apolo Anton Ohno’s Roots Olympic jacket is currently up for auction at clothesoffourback.org. Proceeds benefit children's charities Cure Autism Now, Half the Sky and UNICEF's work in Darfur. Please bid and pass along the information. The auction runs through March 31."
[update] E! airs a special tonight called From the Red Carpet to Your Closet: Clothes Off Our Back tonight (3/14/06) at 10PM ET/9PM CT. It will also air on March 16 at 10:30AM, March 17 at 5PM, March 19 at 11:30AM and March 20 at 9:30AM.
Posted by noelle at 3:43 PM | Comments (64)
March 13, 2006
Michelle's Roots experience
That's right folks - we have one more Roots report after all! Also, over at ApoloAntonOhno.com there are new photos from Roots - I see some familiar faces!!
Read on for Michelle's report:
Hello everybody!!! Well, my name is Michelle and I would like to share the best day of my life ever!!!!
Apolo and Michelle
Well it all started on Wednesday night when I had a dream that I had met Apolo. OMG! It was so real!!! I remember waking up with the biggest smile ever!!! On Thursday night I missed him on the Jay Leno Show right before he came on. As a daily routine as I get ready for school I turn on the TV to channel 11 and watch Good Day LA. As soon as I turned it on the TV on Friday morning, Julian B. announced that Apolo Anton Ohno would be on the show. As soon as I heard his name my heart just stopped! I decided I would miss class so that I can see precious Apolo! As I watched the show it was getting closer to 10am so, I nicely asked my younger brother if he would please record the show for me since I had missed him on the Jay Leno show the night before.
As soon as I walked into my house I turned on the TV and I watched the tape with Apolo on the Good Day LA show. They announced that he would be making an appearance at Roots in Beverly Hills the next day. When I read this my heart completely stopped and I was like “OMG this is my chance to finally meet the love of my life!!!†I was jumping up and down and screaming, so I called my cousin to tell her if she would go with me the next day. That night I remember I couldn’t go to sleep. I couldn’t believe that I was actually going to meet Apolo Anton Ohno the next day!!! That’s like every girls wish!
Saturday morning I called Borders at the Montebello Mall to see if they had the Cosmo magazine since Anton was on the cover. The phone rang and rang, but no answer. So, I decided I would go anyway and see if they had it. When I got to the store I schemed through the shelves but no luck whatsoever!!! I decided I would go to Tower Records in Monterey Park and look for it. As I walked into the store I hurried to the magazine section since it was getting closer to 2pm. Once again no luck! I was getting so sad cuz I didn’t know where else I would find it since I never buy that magazine and the only reason why I wanted it was because Apolo was on it….pssshhh who wouldn’t?!?! he’s so HOT!
I asked one of the girls that worked there if she can call any other Tower records around the area to see if they would have it, so she did. She finally found the magazine but all the way to Hollywood and put it on hold under her name. I said thank you and I ran out and into the car and on my way to Hollywood! On my way over there I still couldn’t believe I was going to meet Apolo in a couple of hours, I thought I was still dreaming from Wednesday night! Well, I got to Tower records and bought the magazine. On our way to Beverly Hills me and my sister Marlene were thinking on what we were going to ask Apolo. We had so many things in mind!!!
Apolo and Marlene
When we arrived to Roots the line wasn’t so long as I thought it would be. Don’t get me wrong there was a line that went around the corner of the store but not as bad as I thought it might be. At 1:40pm I called my boss to let her know that I would be running late to work. I told her I was in Beverly Hills waiting to meet Apolo. She was so excited for me since she knows I love Apolo so much. All she told me was “We need proof you were there†I was like “okâ€. Well, we stood in line for about an hour or so, until we heard girls screaming in the front of the store. OMG! When I heard them scream, my heart just started beating even faster!!! I knew he had arrived!!! I couldn’t take standing in line any longer without actually getting a glimpse of him. So I decided I would go to the front of the store and check him out!
My first glimpse of Apolo was amazing!!! My first reaction and words were, “OMG! He is hotter in person!!!†His smile was so Adorable, I thought I was going to FAINT! It’s so BEAUTIFUL that it can make a girl MELT right in the spot! Well, after this I went back in line and all I can think of was wow!!! He’s AMAZING!!!
While waiting in line me and my sister made some friends. We started talking about how we heard about him making this appearance and how we all loved Apolo so very mucho!! As we got closer to the front of the line I started getting really nervous! It was finally our turn to go inside the store and make a little more line. As I walked in I got my camera ready and started snapping all kinds of pictures of Apolo. This was my chance to take as many pictures possible! Since we were only allowed to take one shot with him :(
Ok, so it was finally my turn to meet Apolo. OMG!!! I remember saying hello to him and him shining this big most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen!!! It made me so nervous that I forgot to shake his lovely hands. (Duh Michelle!) I remember opening my Cosmo magazine and him signing it while running his hand through his soft and healthy hair! Man, he even had nicer and healthier hair than me!!! LOL! Anyways well after he signed my magazine, without my name on it! I went around the table where he was waiting for me to take a picture with him. As we were getting ready to take the picture he held me from my waist and I held him very, very tight!!! But before the man that was taking our picture snapped it, I asked Apolo if it was ok if I wore his Gold Medal for the picture? He looked at me with the most beautiful greenish hazel eyes and a smile and said “sure go ahead†and handed me his gold medal in my hands.
When he handed it to me I was like WOoowww!!! This thing is heavy!!! Once I received it on my hands I put it around my neck and proudly posed for my picture with Apolo. I thought to myself, “Hey I'm actually wearing his gold medal, the same one that I seen him win in Torino that night!!! How exciting!! I felt so special and so honored to have worn it because I mean, Apolo worked so hard for it and sacrificed so much and I wore IT!!! How exciting!!! Once we took our picture I took off the gold medal and handed it back to him and I told him thank you for letting me wear it and he said “no problem†and smiled once more! I told him congratulations on his victory and wanted to kiss him but at that moment that I was speaking to I him, I completely froze. I couldn’t feel anything!!! I was actually speechless and forgot to tell him and ask him everything else that I wanted to. :(
As I was leaving I gave him a big hug and said nice meeting you and he said “thank you for coming out†He has the sweetest voice ever! Everything about him is so great!! He is very friendly, nice, sweet, gorgeous, down to earth but most importantly he takes time out of his busy schedule to meet fans.
As I walked through the doors to go outside I was still speechless! I couldn’t believe that I had just met Apolo. I was so tempted to go back in line just so that I can see him one more time and actually talk to him and give him that kiss that my body dint let me give him! But I didn’t because my mom was waiting for me. On my way home I was crying because I had forgotten to ask him If I can please see what he is most proud of which are his legs! Not that I think he would have shown them to me but hey I could’ve tried!!! I also regret not kissing him or asking him if he really does have a myspace profile or if it’s just somebody who pretends to be him!
Other than that I was so happy that I finally met Apolo and that he turned out to be the person that I seen on TV and read about in books and on the internet. It was like a dream come true! It all started on Wednesday and it was as if God answered by prayers and relived my dream!!!
Ps. Sorry if it so long, but I just wanted to share this amazing experience with all you Apolo fans!
Posted by noelle at 6:14 PM | Comments (50)
New sponsor for Allison Baver
Congratulations to Allison on being sponsored by Penske Truck Rental!
Penske Sponsors Local Olympian Allison Baver
Posted by noelle at 5:53 PM | Comments (28)
March 12, 2006
With Many Thanks!
I wanted to take a brief moment to thank everyone who has contributed toward the general operating support of the Ohno Zone. This site is made possible by the selfless generosity of so many people who have given (and given repeatedly, I might add) so much to support the great community we've built over the past 4+ years. This is entirely a volunteer effort - the money raised is invested right back into the site, paying for storage space (we're extra large), bandwidth (we blow thru it like water) and monthly hosting.
This site has always been about community, and I have never encountered such an amazing bunch of people, anywhere (and if we met in SLC in '03 or in Cleveland - you know what I mean!).
As always, a very special thank you to Noelle who has given so much, and continues to work hard every single day. You know I can never adequately express my gratitude for all you've done and continue to do. It's a lot of work, and I am deeply grateful for your passion and commitment to the OZ.
Anyway, I just wanted to reiterate my thanks to all of our friends, far and wide, who help us do what we do every single day.
We thank you & we love you!
-Todd
Posted by noelle at 10:28 PM | Comments (28)
Access Hollywood video clip
Thanks to Sonia for sending this one in! It's Apolo's first look at Cosmo magazine during an Access Hollywood interview in Torino, and it's pretty hilarious. Lots of AAO laughter. Enjoy!
Access Hollywood: Apolo Goes Topless
Posted by noelle at 7:57 PM | Comments (66)
New home on the web for AAO art
Theresa of SimplyApolo.com has been creating gorgeous Apolo wallpapers and online art for a few years now. She wanted to share her latest creation with you:
click to enlarge
Theresa has graciously stepped up and offered to host the great fan art creations people have been creating. I've found it difficult to keep up with all the submissions and Theresa can provide a home for all the great art in one location. Visit the media section of SimplyApolo.com, or email your creation to simplyapolocom@yahoo.com.
Thanks to Theresa for providing this great service and to everyone who has shared their AAO art so far!
Posted by noelle at 8:27 AM | Comments (16)
Boston Globe | Hallisey reflects on the Olympics
After 12 years and 3 Olympic Games, Caroline Hallisey plans to leave elite-level competition in order to focus on completing her education before deciding whether to make a push for Vancouver 2010. Long track is one option she is considering. She has been a mainstay of the U.S. team and it's hard to imagine it without her. Best wishes to Caroline in her future endeavors!
Posted by noelle at 8:19 AM | Comments (8)