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November 11, 2006
Anthony and Nick train Friday at the Midland Civic Arena
Posted by noelle at 2:34 PM | Comments (11)
Detroit Free Press | Local skater driven after loss
As she approached the starting line that night in Torino, Italy, most everyone knew of her overwhelming sorrow. Now they were learning of her courage.It was a sense of responsibility that pulled short-track speedskater Kimberly Derrick of Caledonia through her 1,000-meter quarterfinal race -- the reason she competed the day after her grandfather died while attending the Olympics in February.
"I had to do it," she said.
Posted by noelle at 9:36 AM | Comments (1)
November 10, 2006
American Cup 2 coverage continues
Seems like Bay City and Midland papers are trying to outdo each other with coverage. This is great! Nice to see them profiling all the different skaters:
First up, Tina Koenig, in her first year at the Olympic Training Center at Colorado Springs finds herself without any female training partners, since Halie Kim and Allison Baver aren't currently training:
Bay City Times | Skater trains without other women to push her
''It's both good and bad,'' said Koenig, who earned the second spot on the World Team that just returned from China and Korea. ''I have to push myself a lot harder to skate with them (the guys). They're a lot stronger and they go a lot faster. I've gotten used to it now, but it's still hard not having other girls to skate with.''***
Next, catching up with J.P. Kepka and Jordan Malone:
Bay City Times | Kepka trying to stay on inside track
''After the games, a lot of the guys ... they're hungry and this is like their year to get something in,'' said Kepka, who skated with Alex Izykowski, Rusty Smith and Apolo Anton Ohno to a bronze medal. "It's harder for us [former Olympians]. We got a medal last year and want to take it easy. But you still want to perform well. It's just not the same mindset as those other guys who are trying to knock you off.''One of those other guys: ''The first guys you have to look at are the relay medalers,'' said Malone, who skated with Kepka, Izykowski and Anthony Lobello to a bronze medal in the World Short Track Championships in Minneapolis earlier this year. ''And then you look at those guys training in Marquette - Lobello, he's going good, and Jeff Simon, he's a young gun running fast. They're looking at us and we're looking at them.''
***
Finally, what does it take to put on a meet like American Cup 2 with 140 registered skaters competing over 2 days? A lot more than we can imagine, I suspect...
Midland Daily News | American Cup II organizers prep for weekend's meet
It takes more than 100 volunteers to pull off an event that's a stepping stone to world recognition. Preparation for an event like this takes at least a year of planning. That planning includes finding a local organization to commit to helping, and bidding between cities who want to host the event. After the location is selected, more details are put in place."We have to book the ice and get sponsors, because the major cost is the ice," [meet director] Beth Bedford said. "We also have to book the hotels and have people take care of the marketing." Safety is also important, so Bedford and her staff work with the hospitals to make sure there are qualified medical personnel at the rink during the meet.
Posted by noelle at 4:38 PM | Comments (17)
November 8, 2006
Photos from Midland
[update THU PM] I've added 7 new photos courtesy of Phil Bedford to the gallery. Click here to see the new shots.
Some training photos of several skaters in Michigan this week prior to American Cup 2. Enjoy!
Also, a new article on Alex Izy:
Midland Daily News | Bay City's Izykowski back to skate in Midland
"I've been staying at home all week, and that's been great," Izykowski said. "It's a great facility here. The ice is good. We have no worries about the way the meet is going to be run. The organization here is great."
Amen to that! Michigan clubs do a bang-up job of putting on meets.
Posted by noelle at 11:58 PM | Comments (18)
Profile of Midland native Ryan Bedford
Midland Daily News | Bedford back for American Cup II speedskating championships in Midland
[Bedford] moved to Marquette, Mich. when he was about 15, then to Montreal at 17, but being able to see different parts of the world have helped him gain a worldwide appreciation, he said. "Moving away wasn’t hard because my sister had already done it. It was a goal," he said. "You have to learn a different language and about a different atmosphere. I’ve learned a lot."Ryan is glad to be back. In fact, he’s even adopted fellow teammate Travis Jayner as one of Midland’s very own. The 24-year-old Jayner, originally from Canada, said although it’s his first time to Midland, he feels like he belongs. So in a sense, the teammates, who are basically family, will be giving the crowd an even bigger reason to cheer.
And just like with family, if problems arise, their relationship isn’t damaged. "I don’t feel as bad if he beats me. I’d rather him than someone else," Bedford said. "If we knock each other down on the ice, we don’t hold grudges. We brush it off – it’s just part of the sport."
Skating is one thing, but what the athletes gain from the sport, such as teamwork and patience, go beyond the ice. For Bedford and his teammates, working together has been a learning experience, especially with not having a coach until about a week ago. They’ve learned to push one another.
Photo by Daily News / BRETT MARSHALL
Posted by noelle at 5:10 PM | Comments (67)
Welcome back, Izy!
Bay City Times | Izykowski returns to ice for weekend event in Midland
Izykowski, who has been on a roller-coaster ride in the last year that took him from illness and injury to a bronze medal in the Winter Olympic Games, will be skating in his first competitive race of the new season. He missed American Cup I because of bicycle mishap over the summer.''I just want to skate well,'' said Izykowski, who battle 34 other American for six spots on the World Cup Team that will compete in Quebec, the Netherlands, and Belgium this winter.
These articles keep talking about Belgium, but World Cup #4 is in Hungary.
Posted by noelle at 11:43 AM | Comments (3)
November 7, 2006
American Cup 2 this weekend!
The fall is flying... It's already time to pick the team for World Cups 3, 4, 5 and 6, as American Cup 2 gets underway this weekend (Nov. 11 and 12) in Midland, MI:
Midland Daily News | Midland gears up for speedskating's best
"We have several Olympians on the short-track side coming," meet director Beth Bedford said. "We also have one of the members of the Olympic long-track pursuit team competing (Charles Leveille). We try to put on a good show," Bedford said. "The ice that we had last year for the juniors was some of the best ice in the country. It was fast, cold and flat."
- Schedule & ticket info available on the Official meet web site
- List of skaters registered to compete
Good luck to all the skaters, including our very own Nick Ah Kun, Cassie Dins and Chris McLaughlin!
Posted by noelle at 9:15 AM | Comments (21)
November 6, 2006
Photo galleries from Simon P
Montreal photog Simon has several galleries online, including loads of great photos from last month's Elite Cup competition as well as last season's World Team Championships in Montteal. He'll also be shooting the upcomng World Cups next month so we'll be seeing lots more where these came from!
Posted by noelle at 8:52 PM | Comments (4)
November 5, 2006
Video clip: Apolo training in Korea
'Maybe you'll see me in 2010 - I don't know'
A million thanks to Starangel for these links (if anyone can translate for us, it would be great to know what's being said!). I think it's so cool to see how everything has come full circle so that Apolo is doing this training in Korea.
The clip has footage of him enjoying himself at training sessions with Korean skaters and coaches... Thankfully we can hear Apolo in his own words (anyone know what the 'stingray' he refers to is?).
click image to watch the interview clip:
Accompanying article for any Korean readers out there!
Posted by noelle at 11:21 AM | Comments (25)