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March 30, 2007
Moving to SLC
Apolo is a busy boy! The short track team recently traveled to Salt Lake City to get the lay of the land and check out their new training home. Of course, Utah is pleased and proud to welcome back one its favorite stars of the 2002 Winter Games!
Utahn Julianne Hough and Olympic speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno, who are partners on "Dancing With the Stars," meet Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. Thursday. Ohno will train in Utah for the 2010 Games. Mike Terry, Deseret Morning News
Deseret Morning News | Speedskater moving to Utah
"With short-track speedskating, I'm hunched over ... relaxed. I don't have any facial expression. I'm in the zone." Earlier Thursday, he gave Hough a chance to try speed-skating at the Kearns oval in front of the series' camera crew.She said it was hard for her just to stand upright on the skates. "My ankles were going like this," Hough said, bending her hands outward. Ohno offered that "she did pretty well, considering. She doesn't have to compete in four days."
APOLO ANTON OHNO laughs with Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. in Huntsman's office Thursday afternoon. Olympic speed skater Ohno, who is moving to Utah to train in short skating, and his "Dancing With the Stars" partner, Julianne Hough, made the trip to meet the governor. (Chris Detrick/The Salt Lake Tribune)
Posted by noelle at 9:12 AM | Comments (51)
March 28, 2007
Link roundup for DWTS
Love this! USA Today | Athletes survive 'Dancing' cut
Apolo Anton Ohno, only a couple of weeks removed from World Championship competition, won rave reviews. Laila Ali leads the scoring. Clyde "the Glide" Drexler ... well, he's hanging in there.The full roundup is at Ohnozone, where the short-track skater's considerable fan base isn't the least bit surprised that he's faring well.
ABC News | DWTS results show photo gallery
MSNBC | 'Dancing With the Stars' Makes First Cut
Out of nowhere: Unlike Joey Fatone, who at least has a background in entertainment and therefore counts as a bit of a ringer, Apolo Anton Ohno has never been a showman. In fact, he’s always come across as an intense, usually silent figure in speed skating, which is not one of our more high-profile sports, except for a couple of weeks every four years. Little did anyone know he would be not only a good dancer, but a charismatic entertainer — a quality never hinted at in his previous career. While Joey has the stage experience, Apolo has the chops to put up an excellent fight.
USA Today | Head over heels for 'Dancing'
As far as who will remain standing at the end of the competition, Mills says that boxing pro Laila Ali, former 'N Sync member Joey Fatone, Olympic speed skating star Apolo Ohno and former Beverly Hills, 90210 star Ian Ziering have the best chance. "If they vote on capability alone, it'll be Joey. If they go on personality, it's Laila. Apolo could be a surprise. And Ian is great."
MSNBC | Surprise! Porizkova sent packing on ‘Dancing’
It seemed like the competition for the encore would be a toss-up between Laila Ali and Apolo Anton Ohno, both of whom did very well with their partners on Monday. Laila ultimately emerged victorious and repeated her mambo, making her the official frontrunner for the moment — which is consistent with the fact that she also had the highest combined judges’ scores after the first two performances.
Posted by noelle at 5:42 PM | Comments (39)
March 27, 2007
DWTS post-mortem - week 2
MSNBC | Ali, Ohno are ‘Dancing’ contenders
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the season so far is Apolo Anton Ohno, who charged out with a controlled but buoyant quickstep that left the judges duly impressed. Apolo’s partner, Julianne Hough, is only 18, but she’s doing something right. Despite the fact that his practice time has been cramped by speed skating practice, Apolo looks surprisingly comfortable, and he executed some leaps that would probably not have been attempted by a lot of the other men in the competition.
Again - natural athlete, people. Say it with me: NATURAL ATHLETE.
'San Jose Mercury News | Dancing With the Stars: Billy Ray Cyrus improves big-time; Laila Ali the one to beat\
TV Squad | Dancing with the Stars: Week 2
Baltimore Sun | 'Dancing With the Stars': more performances - live blog article summarizing all the performances
[update]
EW.com | Come On, Get Hoppy
Apolo Anton Ohno definitely stepped it up this week — footwork-wise, his routine was very complicated, and he and Julianne were almost alarmingly in sync. And since they're so young, they look a bit like that power dance couple who are way better than everyone else at their high school's talent show, sort of a Benji and Heidi from So You Think You Can Dance kind of thing, half sexy, half incestuous, only not annoying. I dig. For now.
ET Online | Backstage Report: The 'Dancing' Recap
TV Guide | Second Chances
zap2it.com | 'Dancing': Who's out first?
Posted by noelle at 9:27 AM | Comments (97)
March 26, 2007
Live-blogging Dancing With the Stars - week 2
VOTE FOR APOLIANNE! 1-800-868-3411 and/or VOTE ONLINE You can vote up to 11 times per phone line or screen name so get busy!!
9:49 - Wow, Joey Fatone and partner really ham it up as they start tehir quickstep. Very nice, energetic number. Maybe a little bit excessive showmanship.
9:38 - Look at Laila Ali shake her thang! Girl's got moves. Definitely my 2nd fave pair. Best mambo, says Len. Only possible pair so far who can match the standard set by Apolianne! Score: 9's across the board, they bump Apolo & Julianne out of the top spot. Grrr.
9:23 - Heather Mills & partner get 8's across the board. I think that's the 2nd highest score this evening, behind Apolianne!
9:13 - A moment of respect for the great Johnny Cash. Billy Ray's stock rises in my book on that alone!
9:04 - Best part of Billy Ray's dance for me - dancing to 'Ring of Fire.' Love that song! Definitely looked better than last week. And blessedly, no wardrobe malfunctions.
From the DWTS message boards: "Apolo had the best execution of the Quickstep in the history of DWTS. Julianne had the best choreography of the Quickstep in the history of the show. This pair is unbeatable. They will win this season." (posted by a dance fan, not an AAO fan)
8:44 - Ok, competition alert. Ian Ziering & Cheryl Burke are up. I don't think they'll exceed Apolianne's scores, but if they have a good dance, they could still retain the overall lead... oh but wait... they aren't in the overall lead after week 1, are they? It's Joey Fatone and partner... another pair to watch out for..
Very nice quickstep by Cheryl & Ian but perhaps lacked the panache of Apolianne. Or am I biased? I think Cheryl and Ian got better and better throughout. They'll score well.
Ha! Bruno basically describes Ian's quickstep technique as the 'jackrabbit on crack'. Too much like a hare, too much hopping! Score: 7,8,7 - 22/30. Apolianne still leads!
8:37 - Sorry, peeps. It's lame, but I'm only going to continue live-blogging haphazardly if at all! Apolo and Julianne are waaay too tough an act to follow. Must be a bit demoralizing for the other couples! I'm going to go catch up on the DWTS message boards, where I'm feeling the Apolo love!
8:25 - ok, well Clyde Drexler is totally adorable, if a giant can be called 'adorable.' Their quickstep lacked the fleet-footednes and well, QUICKNESS, of Apolianne's but they did a nice job, IMO. score: 6 across the board. Gee, I thought they were better than Shandi and Brian!
8:24 - Sorry, people. I've lost all interest without the promise of seeing Apolianne on-screen. I have a terrible attention span for these things. Yano, please take over!
8:16 - ok, the show is over for me now. It's a tough act following Apolianne the Great! Not sure how much more I'll live blog this. Shandi Finnessey looks hot. She's probably the only female star who can pull off one of the pro female's showgirl-style skimpy costumes. But no charisma, sorry.
8:11 - YES! Apolianne get an 8 from Carrie Ann, 9 from Len, 9 from the other guy whose name escapes me because I'm so excited. Total of 26! Carri Anne mentioned earlier that they're not supposed to be this good this soon. I told you people WEEKS ago - Apolo is a natural athlete! And we all know no one works harder. Combine those two and this should surprise no one! But it's a huge thrill all the same...
Top THAT, all the other pairs. I dare you! Duke it out for 2nd place now...
8:08 - Incredible - that quickstep was incredible! No one can say Apolo was hunched over in the slightest, either. Julianne's expert tutelage is paying off!
Len to Apolianne: 'You're going to stay [on the show] for weeks and weeks!'
I think I love you, Len
Carrie Ann tells them to watch the sliding, I noticed that too... but c'mon, the skater's gotta bring some ice technique to the routine!
Apolo: 'It's hard to take Julianne seriosly when she's yelling.' Damn, boy. I hope she kicks your ass for that!
8:05 - Wow, Apolianne go out FIRST! Probably toughest to start with but at least we don't have to wait till the bitter end. Apolo admits he's a wimp above the waist; Julianne suggests he needs to transplant his thigh muscles to his upper bod. They both admit she's the boss on the dance floor - a tough taskmaster! But they seem to keep it light.
Apolianne dance the quickstep tonight - 'ballroom's fastest dance.' How come I never heard of it before?
8:02 - Hm... Apolianne is introduced last. So does this mean they go last all the time? And wowza... Julianne is resplendent in a coral/salmon colored gown; AAO decked out in a suit with salmon tie to match. Unbelievably dapper.
8:01 ACK! I missed part of the intro 'cause I still had the tv on CBS for Entertainment Tonight. BAD NOELLE!
Thanks to Theresa of SimplyApolo.com for the voting icon!
Posted by noelle at 7:25 PM | Comments (119)
Are you ready ...
for week 2 of Dancing With the Stars?!
Here's some great news to tide you over while you get your voting fingers warmed up:
ET Online | Breaking News From a 'Dancing' Star!
Julianne: "I definitely think the Latin dances are [Apolo's] strength. He can move those hips!"
Read the article and watch exclusive video of Apolo and Julianne rehearsing for tonight's quickstep performance!
***
This next piece is really touching!
Marquette Mining Journal | Dancing with Apolo Ohno
Apolo Anton Ohno poses with U.S. Olympic Education Center head short track speedskating coach Jimmy Jang following his gold-medal performance at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy. (USOEC photo)
Jimmy Jang, who has been a guiding force in Ohno’s life since the 2006 Olympic Games, has continued to support Ohno as he adds dance shoes to his footwear collection. “Some athletes argue with their coach, but he never does,” said Jang. “We have trust in each other. I believe in him.”On his way to bronze in Italy, he won a gold medal in the 1500 meters. Jang said, “After Apolo won the race, he gave the medal to me. He said, ‘this medal is yours not mine.’ I almost started crying. All of the coaches from the international teams said I was a lucky coach because their athletes would never give them their medal.”
Posted by noelle at 5:15 PM | Comments (45)