Apolo Anton Ohno

Speed Skater

Apolo Anton Ohno won the gold medal in 1500-meter short track speedskating at the 2002 Winter Olympics. (The win was controversial; Ohno moved up to first after apparent winner South Korean Kim Dong-Sung was disqualified.) Ohno also won silver in the 1000 meters at the same Olympics, held in Salt Lake City. Ohno was already something of a star: his youth, mixed ethnic heritage, and signature "soul patch" chin whiskers, combined with the exotic charms of his fast-moving sport, made him a 21st-century favorite with teen fans and the media. Ohno was the overall short track World Cup champion in 2001, 2003, and 2005, and in 2006 he again raced in the Olympics, winning a gold medal (at 500 meters) and two bronze (at 1000 meters and in the 5000-meter team relay) in Torino, Italy. He gained even wider fame by winning the 2007 TV talent contest Dancing With The Stars, competing in ballroom dancing against Heather Mills, Laila Ali (daughter of boxer Muhammad Ali), and others.

Extra credit: Ohno published his autobiography, A Journey, in 2002... Ohno's father Yuki, a hairstylist, raised him as a single parent... Ohno is no relation to artist Yoko Ono.

Other athletes of Ohno's era include skateboarder Tony Hawk and figure skaters Sarah Hughes and Sasha Cohen.

Blog posts mentioning Apolo Anton Ohno: