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Post by Laura (Lori) on Dec 26, 2013 10:13:05 GMT -8
Long Track Olympic Trials are underway - the broadcast starts tomorrow! There are a number of ST skaters we've followed over the years who are competing - GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE! LADIES 1000M: Petra Acker; Erin Bartlett; Allison Baver; Bridie Farrell; Liz Looby; Sarah Warren 1500M: Petra Acker; Erin Bartlett; Allison Baver; Bridie Farrell 3000M: Petra Acker; Erin Bartlett; Allison Baver; Bridie Farrell 5000M: Petra Acker; Erin Bartlett; Allison Baver 500M(1): Petra Acker; Erin Bartlett; Allison Baver; Bridie Farrell; Liz Looby; Sarah Warren 500M(2): Erin Bartlett; Allison Baver; Bridie Farrell; Liz Looby; Sarah Warren MEN 10000M: Alex Hopp; Paul Dyrud 1000M: Nick Frank; Alex Hopp; Robert Lawrence; Brett Perry; Jonathan Garcia; Kevin Geminder; Andrew Astalos 1500M: Nick Frank; Alex Hopp; Robert Lawrence; Brett Perry; Jonathan Garcia; Kevin Geminder 5000M: Alex Hopp; Paul Dyrud; Kevin Geminder 500M(1): Levi Kirkpatrick; Nick Frank; Alex Hopp; Paul Dyrud; Robert Lawrence; Brett Perry; Jonathan Garcia; Kevin Geminder; Andrew Astalos 500M(2): Levi Kirkpatrick; Alex Hopp; Robert Lawrence; Brett Perry; Jonathan Garcia; Kevin Geminder; Andrew Astalos I do not see Shani Davis on the list! Here is the complete list of signups: webpoint.usspeedskating.org/wp15/Events2/ViewEvt.wp?EventID=2721&isPopup=&Tab=Event+EntriesThe NBC Broadcast schedule (all times Eastern): Friday, Dec 27: Men’s 5000m/Women’s 3000m - NBCSN 8:00PM Saturday, Dec 28: Men’s/Women’s 500m - NBC 3:00PM Sunday, Dec 29: Men’s/Women’s 1000m - NBC 3:00PM Tuesday, Dec 31: Men’s/Women’s 1500m - NBCSN 6:00PM Wednesday, Jan 1: Men’s 10000m/Women’s 5000m - NBCSN 5:00PM It looks like www.icenetwork.com is also broadcasting - I don't remember if it's one of their free broadcasts, and I wonder if they'll be covering more of the races than NBC. Does anybody know?
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Post by sk8erfan on Dec 26, 2013 12:09:00 GMT -8
Canada's long track trials start on December 28th and run until January 3rd. Canada can send a maximum of 10 women and 8 men. The schedule is: Saturday, December 28 - Men 5000m, Ladies 3000m, Men 500m, Ladies 500m Monday, December 30 - Men 1000m, Ladies 1000m Thursday, January 2 - Men 1500m, Ladies 1500m Friday, January 3 - Men 10000m, Ladies 5000m Correction: Canadian long track trials will be webcast, the link is here - liveresults.oval.ucalgary.ca/LiveWebcast.aspx------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here's a good article from NBC Olympictalk previewing the U.S. Long Track Trials. It lists how many spots are available in each event and some of the contenders for those spots. olympictalk.nbcsports.com/2013/12/26/us-olympic-speed-skating-trials-preview-shani-davis-heather-richardson-brittany-bowe/The article says that Shani Davis is entered in the 500m, 1000m, and 1500m. Also, this isn't a free broadcast from the icenetwork. From what I can tell, NBC won't be showing the trials live (for example races tomorrow start at 3:30pm MST but the NBC broadcast is at 8pm EST) and I can only assume the icenetwork will show them in full and live. The NBC broadcast will probably only show select races but that's just a guess. Anyways, best of luck to all of the Canadian and American skaters at their respective trials!
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Dec 26, 2013 15:20:18 GMT -8
I have a subscription to IceNetwork, so I'll check out their schedule later tonight. Some posts I've seen from friends on FB indicate that they're already having Time Trials for the US skaters(?), though the dates on the USS site don't show today as being a competition day (they DO include the Time Trial day for ST). Thanks for the info about Shani - I knew he HAD to be there somewhere! This actually gives me some hope that a few other lesser-known LT skaters whose names I'm not seeing may still be competing...
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Dec 27, 2013 16:52:53 GMT -8
The Long Track Trials will be starting soon - tonight are the Ladies 3000M and the Men's 5000M. From what I understand, the top 2 Ladies and the top 3 Men in these events qualify for the team, and there will be NO discretionary selections. It's simply a race against the clock. I say 'qualify', because according to the article below, we can only send 10 individuals per gender. If too many different skaters (by name) qualify in all the various events, I suppose some won't go(?) Does anybody know how that works - do the finishers in some distances take precedence over others? U.S. Olympic Speed Skating Trials previewBy Nick Zaccardi, NBC OlympicTalk / Dec 26, 2013 www.nbcolympics.com/news/us-olympic-speed-skating-trials-preview----------------------- Good luck to all the skaters!
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Post by sk8erfan on Dec 27, 2013 20:23:35 GMT -8
The Long Track Trials will be starting soon - tonight are the Ladies 3000M and the Men's 5000M. From what I understand, the top 2 Ladies and the top 3 Men in these events qualify for the team, and there will be NO discretionary selections. It's simply a race against the clock. I say 'qualify', because according to the article below, we can only send 10 individuals per gender. If too many different skaters (by name) qualify in all the various events, I suppose some won't go(?) Does anybody know how that works - do the finishers in some distances take precedence over others? The winner of each distance gets their spot, guaranteed. After that US Speedskating has a percentage system to rank the skaters in case too many individual skaters finish in qualifying positions. Skaters are ranked based on their percentage time in relation to the 1st place finishers time. Skaters with the highest percentage time will be eliminated first if the need arises. For example Jonathan Kuck finished 1st in the 5000m with a time of 6:19.75 (379.75 seconds) and Emery Lehmen finished second with a time of 6:25.72 (385.72 seconds) so his percentage time would be 385.72/379.75 = 101.5721%. They would calculate this for each skater in qualifying spot in every distance and create one list for each gender. Using the rankings they'll eliminate skaters in the respective gender until they no longer exceed 10 individuals per gender. After that they'll fill any empty quota spots with the next highest ranked skater from trials in that distance that's already made the team. I hope that makes sense, if not, I can try to clarify further or you can try reading the selection procedures. The information about the percentage system is on page 6: www.usspeedskating.org/sites/default/files/14%20OWG%20SSK%20LT%20ATH%20Ammended%2012%2020%2013_1.pdfAlso, no discretionary selections isn't necessarily true, there are 2 discretionary selections that could be used: 1) The medal contender clause: if a skater is sick or injured and cannot compete at trials and if they placed in the top 5 if that distance at world championships or are ranked in the top 5 for that distance after the fall world cups then they can apply for this clause. -This would apply to Heather Richardson (500m, 1000m), Britany Bowe (1000m, 1500m), Shani Davis (1000m, 1500m), & Brian Hansen (1500m). 2) Team pursuit clause: up to 2 skaters per gender that haven't qualified to an individual distance can be added to create the most competitive team.
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Dec 27, 2013 23:06:08 GMT -8
Thanks for the clarification, sk8erfan! The process you described seems very fair. I was aware of the Medal Contender clause, but it has parameters that are well-defined as opposed to discretionary. I didn't know about the Team Pursuit option - but with 10 skaters to choose from, I wouldn't think it likely that they'll find the need to play that card... I felt SO bad for Petra Acker in the 3000M - she was a top contender and came so close... but how 'bout Anna Ringsred coming out of retirement to qualify! For the men, a special congrats to Patrick Meek (he was an overnight guest at our house once). Emery Lehman (at age 17) was a surprise - what a talent he is! Paul Dyrud ALMOST made it, and it would have been quite a story if he had - good effort, Paul! I think that all of our ST 'crossovers' have other chances to make the team. It was an exciting day of competition, and I can't wait 'till tomorrow!
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Post by sk8erfan on Dec 28, 2013 8:17:58 GMT -8
I agree Lori, I don't think they'll need to use the team pursuit clause but it's there so I thought I'd point it out. I don't think the women will need the percentage time system. If Brittany Bowe and Heather Richardson qualify for the 500m, 1000m and 1500m like they're expected to then they won't go over 10 skaters. I'm not as familiar with the men who are likely to qualify and it could come down to the percentage system but who knows, there's still lots of racing to go.
I'm excited to watch the competition today. I don't get NBCSN and I haven't shelled out the money for icenetwork so I'll get to watch the American trials on NBC and the Canadian Trials online! I think they'll be on at around the same time so I'll have to put my multi-tasking skills to the test.
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Dec 28, 2013 10:33:31 GMT -8
I had no luck with IceNetwork yesterday - it showed the competition on their schedule from Dec 27-Jan 1, but there seemed to be no way to find out exactly when it would start (or IF). I always seem to have a hard time trying to find the proper links on their site to tune in. Don't forget, everyone - the 500M is being contested today, NBC, starting at 3pm Eastern time. We have qualified to send 4 men and 4 women in the 500M - our ST friend JONATHAN GARCIA will be skating, and is considered a 'favorite' to qualify!
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Dec 29, 2013 7:39:34 GMT -8
And the hits just keep on coming - first the horrible news about Jeff Simon's injury, then Jonathan Garcia skates a helluva race, only to be 'Dairy Queen'd' with a transponder issue. I don't know for sure, but judging by his smile and the announcers' reactions prior to the DQ, he did well enough in that skate to make the team. He was awarded a re-skate - but when you have to skate alone (and probably tired), it doesn't bode well. He didn't make it. But he has the 1000M today - the broadcast starts at 3pm Eastern on NBC GO JONATHAN!!!
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Post by sk8erfan on Dec 29, 2013 8:35:48 GMT -8
Jonathan Garcia's original skate would've put him in 4th place which is in Olympic qualifying position. After the reskate he sits in 6th place. Something to note is that Brian Hansen and Shani Davis who finished in 3rd and 4th aren't sure if they'll skate the 500m in Sochi. Their strongest distances are the 1000m and 1500m so depending on how they do in those distances they may choose to not skate the 500m which would put Jonathan in qualifying position. Brian and Shani both earned their spots in the 500m so if they want the spots then they're theirs but there is a very real possibility that Jonathan could still make the team in the 500m. According to the NBC article Jonathan is also one of the favourites in the 1000m. Best of luck to him! I'll be cheering! Here's a really good article explaining what happened with quotes from Jonathan. I'm glad he was able to find a silver lining with his time being Olympic worthy. Speedskating: Despite DQ, Garcia finds silver lining Missing transponders nullify 27-year-old’s Olympic-worthy run. Kearns • Jonathan Garcia pumped his legs and waved his arms searching for as much speed as he could find in a sliver over 35 seconds. Soaring solo around the track at the Utah Olympic Oval, the 27-year-old searched for a time that could get him to Sochi. Because the best 500-meter race his skates had ever produced, a 34.85 in the second of the two men’s heats in the Olympic qualifying trials Saturday afternoon, had been disqualified. He’d forgotten to strap the velcro transponders — the third timing device officials look at during qualifiers — to each of his ankles prior to that second run, a result that would have assured him one of the four nominations for the U.S. long-track speedskating team. So having been tasked with burning another 500-meter race searching for an Olympic result, Garcia lined up alone 30 minutes after the competition ended for a re-skate he was awarded. The packed crowd rose in acknowledgement as he sped through straightaways and edged through turns. Two-time gold medalist Shani Davis, who sat in the fourth spot, clapped and screamed in support of his friend and teammate. But Garcia’s third run wasn’t enough. His 35.33 time, coupled with his first run of 35.19, put him out of contention. "I’ve been to the Olympics four times, I remember a special feeling I had when I went the first time, and I was really pulling for Garcia to pull through and make the spot, even if it knocked me off the team," Davis said. "He’s a friend of mine and I clearly want the best skater to go. If someone’s clearly faster than me, then they deserve it." After Mitchell Whitmore sprayed his victory champagne and after Tucker Fredericks and Brian Hansen earned nominations for the Sochi Games, Garcia found the silver lining — his 34.85, official or not, was Olympic-worthy. "I know that was good enough to be on the team," he said. "That’s something nobody can take away from me." Having raced his first heat with the transponders on, Garcia said he was in the zone prepping for his second race, "thinking about everything that was kind of in my control and I forgot to put them on." "It should be the athlete’s responsibility," Garcia added. "I’m not putting any blame on anybody. I should have had them on. It’s nobody’s fault but mine that I didn’t have them on." He said it wasn’t for a few minutes until after the 34.85 race that coach Ryan Shimabukuro approached Garcia and told him his personal best had become a sudden DQ.www.sltrib.com/sltrib/sports/57326228-77/garcia-meter-olympic-race.html.csp
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Post by sk8erfan on Dec 29, 2013 13:09:44 GMT -8
Great news for Jonathan Garcia, he's in qualifying position for the Olympic team in the 1000m by finishing 4th! Shani finished 1st and qualified in another event. It's good that skaters are qualifying in multiple events to make sure everyone in qualifying position makes the team. 9 different men are in qualifying position and there are 2 distances and 5 quota spots left for the men.
I'm also really excited for Kelly Gauthier. She had a really tough 2010, she was announced as being part of the Olympic team but was bumped off after another skater had a re-skate and then she suffered a horrible cut to her ankle in a speedskating accident and could've lost her foot. I'm so glad she was able to make an Olympic team and realize her dream. She really deserves it.
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Dec 29, 2013 16:16:30 GMT -8
Earlier today, several of us were discussing the announcers' comments yesterday about Davis & Hansen possibly skipping the 500M in Sochi in order to concentrate on their better distances - and what that could mean for Jonathan as a possible substitute. Glad to see that you concur, sk8erfan - I guess we'll just have to wait and see! Shani did skip the Team Pursuit in Torino for that very reason, so it's not outside the realm of possibility. It's nice to see Shani's comments in the article you posted above - first class!
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Jan 1, 2014 23:37:50 GMT -8
She just missed qualifying in the 3000M, and the accident caused her to miss the 1500M yesterday. I haven't seen any updates on her condition, nor whether she was able to compete in her final event today (I was traveling all day). Shani David also just missed being hit! This is eerily similar to a collision a few years ago that cause LT skater Liam Ortega to be VERY seriously injured... Speedskater Cliff-Ryan injured in high-speed practice collisionDecember 30, 2013 KEARNS, Utah (AP) -- Olympic hopeful Theresa Cliff-Ryan was injured Monday when she landed on her head after being struck on the sidelines by a crashing speedskater.
The 35-year-old Cliff-Ryan had her back to the ice during an off-day practice session at the Utah Olympic Oval, having completed her workout. Suddenly, Kevin Geminder lost his balance on the front straightaway while going full speed. He slid off the track and right into Cliff-Ryan, flipping her into the air. Trainers raced to the track within seconds and put her in a neck brace.
Cliff-Ryan was placed on a backboard and taken by ambulance to a hospital. There was no immediate word on her condition, but she was conscious and talking to paramedics.
Geminder just missed two-time Olympic gold medalist Shani Davis, who was sitting on a bench getting ready to go on the ice. Davis ran away as the crashing skater slid by, clearly shaken by the close call.Read it all: sportsillustrated.cnn.com/-olympics/news/20131230/theresa-cliff-ryan-injury-speedskating-crash.ap/
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Post by sk8erfan on Jan 2, 2014 17:38:15 GMT -8
The US Olympic team has been announced and everyone in qualifying position will be going to the Olympics! The team consists of 9 men and 8 women. Long track Olympic team announcedSALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Following the conclusion of the 2014 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Long Track Speedskating in Salt Lake City, Utah, US Speedskating is proud to announce the athletes who will represent the United States at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Long Track Speedskating.
2014 U.S. Olympic Long Track Speedskating Team
Women: Brittany Bowe (Ocala, Fla.), Lauren Cholewinski (Rock Hill, S.C.), Kelly Gunther (Lorain, Ohio), Maria Lamb (River Falls, Wis.), Heather Richardson (High Point, N.C.), Anna Ringsred (Duluth, Minn.), Jilleanne Rookard (Woodhaven, Mich.), Sugar Todd (Milwaukee, Wis.)
Men: Shani Davis (Chicago, Ill.), Tucker Fredricks (Janesville, N.C.), Jonathan Garcia (Houston, Texas), Brian Hansen (Glenview, Ill.), Jonathan Kuck (Champaign, Ill.), Emery Lehman (Oak Park, Ill.), Joey Mantia (Ocala, Fla.), Patrick Meek (Chicago, Ill.), Mitch Whitmore (Waukesha, Wis.)www.usspeedskating.org/node/1371Some notes: Theresa Cliff-Ryan was unable to skate the last day of trials since she was still suffering from a concussion. Also, I'm not sure if Shani Davis and Brian Hansen decided to skate the 500m or not but they were supposed to confirm which distances they would be skating on January 1st after the trials so they should have already made the decision. Joey Mantia and Jonathan Garcia finished in positions 5 and 6 and they both made the team in other distances so that doesn't say much. Also, the last day of Canadian Long Track Trials are tomorrow. The team won't be officially announced until January 22nd but the team shouldn't go over the quota so we should know who all the skaters after tomorrow's competition.
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Post by Laura (Lori) on Jan 15, 2014 16:05:51 GMT -8
I know we all remember this - a well-done video on a piece of Olympic history that touched the hearts of the world: Memorable Moments: Dan Jansen skates from tragedy to Olympic triumphMon, Jan 13, 2014 2:06 PM EST 11:00 Yahoo Sports Videos Olympic speed skater Dan Jansen suffered through a series of heart-wrenching tragedies until his triumphant breakthrough in his final race in the 1994 Olympics.sports.yahoo.com/video/memorable-moments-dan-jansen-skates-190619863.html
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