More shots from Apolo's 1500m semifinal in Sweden:

Seung-Jae Lee (KOR), Nicola Rodigari (ITA), Jean-Francois Monette (CAN), Apolo Anton Ohno (USA), Jiajun Li (CHN)

Charlotte Observer | IRL needs U.S. presence in cars

Just a mention of AAO in an article about car racing:

...American fans are notoriously provincial. Remember Apolo Ohno, the sensation in the 2002 Olympics in short-track speed skating? If Ohno had been from Japan, neither he nor his sport would have been a blip on the U.S. radar.

Full article

ISU Congress Wrapup

The ISU Congress concluded today in the Netherlands. It seems we're doomed to disappointment, as no new speed skating news has been forthcoming.

The following summarizes everything relevant to short track that has been announced -- most of it reported previously:

ISU restructuring changes
-- Technical Committees (for Figure Skating, Ice Dancing, Synchronized Skating, Speed Skating and Short Track) will consist of six people of whom four will be elected and two appointed. The appointed members will be a coach and a skater. Skaters and coaches will participate in Technical Committee activities immediately but only in an advisory capacity until the new Constitution takes effect in 2006.
-- A new Disciplinary Commission of 5 people was elected on 11 June to hear charges of disciplinary or ethical offences, including doping offences. The disciplinary function is therefore removed from the ISU Council with immediate effect.

Short Track
The Speed Skating section agreed to modify the qualification system for Short Track skaters for the Olympic Winter Games. For the 2006 Games two of the four ISU World Cup Short Track competitions will be designated as qualifying events.

The Congress acknowledged the substantial progress in the area of sponsorship and television in this exciting discipline.

via ISU Congress Concludes Successfully

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That's it! No word on who the five people elected to the new disciplinary committee are. Surely decisions were made on the various proposals introduced, but we can only guess as to what those decisions were. I suppose it's safe to assume that the ISU didn't adopt Italy's proposal to shorten the short track ice surface from 111 to 100 meters. But who knows?

Seattle Post-Intelligencer | Seattle sports festival planned

A major international athletics competition -- modeled after the Goodwill Games held [in Seattle] in 1990 -- is scheduled for Seattle next June, with plans for similar events in the following two years.

The athletic events being planned include track and field, archery, diving, table tennis, badminton and also short-track speedskating -- an Olympic winter sport -- which would be expected to feature gold-medalist Apolo Anton Ohno of Seattle.