Apolo Anton Ohno

Highlights

Won two Olympic gold medals in 2002; He has been the reigning U.S. short track speed skating champion since 2001, and has won the U.S. men's title a total of seven times

Fee Range: $10,000 - $20,000

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Apolo Anton Ohno is one of the world's best short track speed skating competitor.

Ohno was born in Seattle, Washington to Jerrie Lee and Japanese Yuki Ohno). When Apolo was 14 years old (1997), he became U.S Champion, the youngest ever. A year before, he had appeared in Sports Illustrated for Kids as a "Hotshot."  In the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics Ohno won the gold medal in the 1500-meter race as well as the silver medal in the 1000-meter race.

Both of Ohno's 2002 Olympic medals came with controversy. In the 200 meter race, Ohno was leading the pack after the last corner, but then fellow skater Li Jiajun crashed, taking himself, Ohno and two other skaters into the barriers. The sole man standing was Steven Bradbury, who trailed behind and won a shock gold medal. Ohno scrambled up and won silver.

His gold medal win was controversial because he was the second to cross the finish line in the 1500-meter final. He had received the gold medal because Korean Kim Dong-sung, who had been leading in the race, was disqualified by judges for crosstracking -- a disqualification many thought was unfair. The controversy was aggravated by accusations that Ohno, after several failed attempts to cut in front of Kim, play-acted a near miss with Kim and then stood up and held his hands in the air to attract the attention of the judges. Ohno defended his actions stating that he was forced to stand up to avoid a collision with Kim. He was allowed to keep the gold medal, but other skaters and South Korean fans expressed their displeasure with his actions.

The prevailing anti-American atmosphere in South Korea was exacerbated by the race, and an estimated 100 riot police stood guard at Incheon International Airport to make sure no harm came to Ohno when he went to South Korea for the second World Cup meet in 2005. Ohno won two gold medals, the only medals won by the Americans.

Ohno has continued to be at or near the top of his sport since the 2002 Winter Games. He was the first American to be the overall World Cup champion during the 2000-01 season and repeated as champion in the 2002-03 and 2004-05 seasons. Ohno has also been the reigning U.S. short track speed skating champion since 2001, and has won the U.S. men's title a total of seven times.

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