Cheek wins speedskating gold, donates bonus to charity
Posted: Tuesday Feb 14, 2006 12:20 AM
TURIN, Italy (AP) - Joey Cheek walked in with everyone expecting him to talk about winning an Olympic speedskating gold medal. Instead, he had something else on his mind.
The moderator immediately asked for questions. Cheek interrupted, explaining that he wanted to make a statement.
Did he ever.
The Olympic 500-meter champion declared that he was giving away his $25,000 U.S. Olympic Committee bonus for winning the event to help children in the war-torn region of Darfur in Sudan.
"I wanted to make it meaningful,'' he said. "It's empowering to think of someone else.''
Actually, Cheek came up with the idea long before he skated the two best races of his life Monday. His combined time was .65 seconds ahead of the silver medalist, Russia's Dmitry Dorofeyev - an amazing margin in a furious sprint usually decided by hundredths of a second. South Korea's Lee Kang Seok took the bronze.
"I've been plotting this a little bit in my head,'' the American said.
Cheek stopped by the athletes' village office of Johann Olav Koss' group, Right To Play, hours before his race to read up on the charity that helps impoverished children. Koss won three golds at the 1994 Lillehammer Games and inspired Cheek to take up speedskating.
"I thought maybe I could walk a little in his rather large shoes,'' said Cheek, who met with Koss a few days ago.
Cheek challenged his sponsors to match his donation. He plans to visit the Darfur region, where some 180,000 people have died and 2 million forced to flee in a bitter conflict, and see how his money is helping.
"I have been blessed with competing in the Olympics,'' said Cheek, who recalled something his mother Chris told her two sons: "Not to have good intentions, but to do good things.''
Before doing his best work off the ice, Cheek tore up the oval. He was the only skater to break 35 seconds - and he did it in both his races, giving him a combined time of 1 minute, 9.76 seconds.
"It's miraculous,'' he said. "I'm kind of shocked that I skated that fast.''
Cheek gave the United States its second speedskating gold medal of the Turin Games, adding to the one Chad Hedrick earned in the 5,000 on Saturday.
"That was awesome,'' teammate Casey FitzRandolph said. "He not only won, he blew everybody away.''
Cheek followed FitzRandolph as the second consecutive U.S. champion in the 500. FitzRandolph won four years ago, but this time he nearly fell in his first race and finished 12th.
The other Americans faltered, too. Tucker Fredricks was 25th and Kip Carpenter, the 2002 bronze medalist, was 26th.
By finishing his first race nearly a half-second ahead of everyone, Cheek left little suspense about the outcome.
"He's incredible,'' Carpenter said. "He's the only guy who brought his 'A' game to this competition.''
Cheek, a former inline skater from Greensboro, N.C., had greatly improved coming into the Olympics, winning his first major title at the world sprint championships last month.
"I knew I was in great shape, but there's so many amazing skaters here,'' he said. "I screwed up so many times over the years, but I've always tried to learn from what I did wrong.''
With a gold medal added to the bronze he won in the 1,000 four years ago, Cheek has done everything he ever wanted in speedskating. He'll retire at the end of the season and head to college, where he plans to study economics.
Maybe now Harvard will give him a second look. The Ivy League school turned down his application, but the 26-year-old Cheek was understanding.
"I've been out of school for 10 years,'' he said. "They're probably not sure I can still read and write.''
And don't be surprised to see Cheek's name on a political ballot down the road, either.
"He works harder than anyone,'' Fredricks said. "Everything he gets, he deserves.''
The 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino Italy
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Miller out after straddling slalom gate
Raich moves into first, American Ligety to third
Posted: Feb.14, 2006, 11:13 am CST
SESTRIERE, Italy (AP) -- American Bode Miller was disqualified from the Alpine combined Tuesday for straddling a gate in the first slalom run, just when he seemed to have built a commanding lead for his first Olympic gold medal.
Bode Miller straddled the 42nd gate of the first slalom course Tuesday and was disqualified.
The disqualification, the fifth straight time the often-reckless American has failed to finish a slalom race, gave the lead to Austrian Benjamin Raich , who had trailed Miller by nearly a second before the disqualification was announced.
Miller said he would leave it up to U.S. team coaches whether to protest.
It was Miller's eighth slalom this season, and he's only finished two without either a disqualification, a crash or skiing off course.
Like a cowboy riding a wild horse, Miller flailed down the course, a sharp contrast to the smooth, swivel-hipped style of Raich in a classic U.S.-Austrian showdown on a cloud-shrouded evening in the Italian Alps.
About three-quarters of the way through the run -- on the 42nd of 56 gates -- Miller pinned a red gate with his left ski and the post popped up between his feet.
The large scoreboard at the foot of the hill showed several replays after his run, but Miller's name remained atop the leaderboard for nearly a half-hour.
Miller, who had seemed set to become the first U.S. Alpine skier to win three Olympic medals, had a time of 2 minutes, 23.68 seconds through the downhill and one slalom run. Raich was 97-hundredths of a second back at 2:24.65.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Raich moves into first, American Ligety to third
Posted: Feb.14, 2006, 11:13 am CST
SESTRIERE, Italy (AP) -- American Bode Miller was disqualified from the Alpine combined Tuesday for straddling a gate in the first slalom run, just when he seemed to have built a commanding lead for his first Olympic gold medal.
Bode Miller straddled the 42nd gate of the first slalom course Tuesday and was disqualified.
The disqualification, the fifth straight time the often-reckless American has failed to finish a slalom race, gave the lead to Austrian Benjamin Raich , who had trailed Miller by nearly a second before the disqualification was announced.
Miller said he would leave it up to U.S. team coaches whether to protest.
It was Miller's eighth slalom this season, and he's only finished two without either a disqualification, a crash or skiing off course.
Like a cowboy riding a wild horse, Miller flailed down the course, a sharp contrast to the smooth, swivel-hipped style of Raich in a classic U.S.-Austrian showdown on a cloud-shrouded evening in the Italian Alps.
About three-quarters of the way through the run -- on the 42nd of 56 gates -- Miller pinned a red gate with his left ski and the post popped up between his feet.
The large scoreboard at the foot of the hill showed several replays after his run, but Miller's name remained atop the leaderboard for nearly a half-hour.
Miller, who had seemed set to become the first U.S. Alpine skier to win three Olympic medals, had a time of 2 minutes, 23.68 seconds through the downhill and one slalom run. Raich was 97-hundredths of a second back at 2:24.65.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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American Ligety, 21, wins combined gold medal
Posted: Feb.14, 2006, 1:22 pm CST
SESTRIERE, Italy (AP) -- Ted Ligety gave the United States the Olympic gold medal that Bode Miller couldn't deliver Tuesday night, putting together the two fastest slalom runs of the day to win the men's combined and break the Americans' bad luck in Alpine skiing.
The 21-year-old from Park City, Utah, skier had a combined time of 3 minutes, 9.35 seconds, for the downhill and two slalom runs. Ivica Kostelic of Croatia won the silver medal and Rainer Schoenfelder of Austria the bronze.
Austrian favorite Benjamin Raich , last contender down the mountain as the leader going into the final slalom run, skied off course, sending Ligety into an explosion of joy at the finish area.
Miller was disqualified for straddling a gate in the first slalom run, just when he seemed to have built a commanding lead for his elusive first Olympic gold medal.
Ted ligety won three slalom medals this season on the World Cup circuit.
The disqualification gave the lead temporarily to Raich, who had trailed Miller by nearly a second.
U.S. Alpine director Jesse Hunt said the team would not protest the disqualification.
"We looked at it enough times," Hunt said. "We're satisfied."
Miller was nonchalant.
"I've straddled probably more times than most people have finished the slalom," he told reporters at the bottom of the run.
Indeed, the often-reckless American failed to finish five of seven slaloms on the World Cup circuit this season.
"If it's clear, it's clear," Miller said. "I don't plan to get disappointed."
U.S. hopes were left to Ligety, who was third, 86-hundredths of a second behind Raich's leading time of 2 minutes, 24.65 seconds, after the first slalom run.
"Teddy will save the day," U.S. men's coach Phil McNichol said.
He did, and he picked up his older and more famous teammate in the process.
Like a cowboy riding a wild horse, Miller was a sharp contrast to the smooth, swivel-hipped style of Raich in a classic U.S.-Austrian showdown on a cloud-shrouded evening in the Italian Alps.
About three-quarters of the way through the first of two evening slalom runs -- on the 42nd of 56 gates -- Miller pinned a red gate with his left ski and the post popped up between his feet.
"I came down and the run felt fine," Miller said. "I had no idea I had straddled. ... I was in the recovery room already getting ready for the second run when I heard it on the radio and I looked at the replay."
By his own assessment, Miller was not as wild as he usually is.
"I wasn't so much conservative as just bad," he said.
Still, it might have been good enough had it not been for his mistake in the "flush," when the skier comes out of a straight line of flags and makes a sharp turn.
"It's a clear straddle," McNichol said.
The large scoreboard at the foot of the hill showed several replays after his run, but Miller's name remained atop the leaderboard for nearly a half-hour. That's when an orange asterisk went up beside his name, and seconds later "*1. Bode Miller" was gone completely, replaced at the top with Raich.
Miller had seemed poised to become the first U.S. Alpine skier to win three Olympic medals. His time of 2 minutes, 23.68 seconds through the downhill and one slalom run was 97-hundredths of a second better than Raich's -- not an insurmountable lead, but one he could easily have held.
All of a sudden, those numbers were meaningless.
Miller was the 2002 Olympic silver medalist in the event and the reigning World Cup circuit champion. Raich came into the competition the No. 1-ranked combined skier in the world and won a bronze at Salt Lake City four years ago.
A few hours earlier, Miller had charged down the downhill course with trademark abandon to take the lead while Raich struggled to finish 13th in that portion of the combined, 2:06 behind Miller.
Raich is one of the world's best slalom racers, though, and he sliced Miller's lead by more than half with an aggressive run, always in control down the icy, steep course on the edge of the village of Sestriere.
The fastest combined time in all three runs wins the gold medal.
Fourteen of the 56 skiers either didn't finish the first slalom run or were disqualified. Among them were medal contenders Aksel Lund Svindal and Lasse Kjus of Norway, downhill silver medalist Michael Walchhofer and Didier Defago of Switzerland, who was second in the downhill portion of the combined.
Miller had the fastest downhill in 1 minute, 38.36 on a course slightly shortened from the one on which he finished a disappointing fifth in Sunday's downhill medal race.
Miller picked up time through the middle portion of the course Tuesday to finish 32-hundredths of a second ahead of Defago. He was 32nd out of the gate after skipping the Monday training run that determined Tuesday's starting order.
He delivered the kind of nail-biting run that has made him among the world's best, making turns on one ski and soaring through jumps.
Miller found a tight line, swiping many of the red gates with his arms as he sped by. The line made for speed -- at one point he was clocked at 78 mph.
Within view of the finish line bleachers, Miller nailed the last jump in unusual style. In midair, rather than thrusting out his arms sideways for balance as he often does, he extended them behind his back, his poles sticking straight up.
It was classic form that for once didn't elude Miller. The gold medal still did, though.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Posted: Feb.14, 2006, 1:22 pm CST
SESTRIERE, Italy (AP) -- Ted Ligety gave the United States the Olympic gold medal that Bode Miller couldn't deliver Tuesday night, putting together the two fastest slalom runs of the day to win the men's combined and break the Americans' bad luck in Alpine skiing.
The 21-year-old from Park City, Utah, skier had a combined time of 3 minutes, 9.35 seconds, for the downhill and two slalom runs. Ivica Kostelic of Croatia won the silver medal and Rainer Schoenfelder of Austria the bronze.
Austrian favorite Benjamin Raich , last contender down the mountain as the leader going into the final slalom run, skied off course, sending Ligety into an explosion of joy at the finish area.
Miller was disqualified for straddling a gate in the first slalom run, just when he seemed to have built a commanding lead for his elusive first Olympic gold medal.
Ted ligety won three slalom medals this season on the World Cup circuit.
The disqualification gave the lead temporarily to Raich, who had trailed Miller by nearly a second.
U.S. Alpine director Jesse Hunt said the team would not protest the disqualification.
"We looked at it enough times," Hunt said. "We're satisfied."
Miller was nonchalant.
"I've straddled probably more times than most people have finished the slalom," he told reporters at the bottom of the run.
Indeed, the often-reckless American failed to finish five of seven slaloms on the World Cup circuit this season.
"If it's clear, it's clear," Miller said. "I don't plan to get disappointed."
U.S. hopes were left to Ligety, who was third, 86-hundredths of a second behind Raich's leading time of 2 minutes, 24.65 seconds, after the first slalom run.
"Teddy will save the day," U.S. men's coach Phil McNichol said.
He did, and he picked up his older and more famous teammate in the process.
Like a cowboy riding a wild horse, Miller was a sharp contrast to the smooth, swivel-hipped style of Raich in a classic U.S.-Austrian showdown on a cloud-shrouded evening in the Italian Alps.
About three-quarters of the way through the first of two evening slalom runs -- on the 42nd of 56 gates -- Miller pinned a red gate with his left ski and the post popped up between his feet.
"I came down and the run felt fine," Miller said. "I had no idea I had straddled. ... I was in the recovery room already getting ready for the second run when I heard it on the radio and I looked at the replay."
By his own assessment, Miller was not as wild as he usually is.
"I wasn't so much conservative as just bad," he said.
Still, it might have been good enough had it not been for his mistake in the "flush," when the skier comes out of a straight line of flags and makes a sharp turn.
"It's a clear straddle," McNichol said.
The large scoreboard at the foot of the hill showed several replays after his run, but Miller's name remained atop the leaderboard for nearly a half-hour. That's when an orange asterisk went up beside his name, and seconds later "*1. Bode Miller" was gone completely, replaced at the top with Raich.
Miller had seemed poised to become the first U.S. Alpine skier to win three Olympic medals. His time of 2 minutes, 23.68 seconds through the downhill and one slalom run was 97-hundredths of a second better than Raich's -- not an insurmountable lead, but one he could easily have held.
All of a sudden, those numbers were meaningless.
Miller was the 2002 Olympic silver medalist in the event and the reigning World Cup circuit champion. Raich came into the competition the No. 1-ranked combined skier in the world and won a bronze at Salt Lake City four years ago.
A few hours earlier, Miller had charged down the downhill course with trademark abandon to take the lead while Raich struggled to finish 13th in that portion of the combined, 2:06 behind Miller.
Raich is one of the world's best slalom racers, though, and he sliced Miller's lead by more than half with an aggressive run, always in control down the icy, steep course on the edge of the village of Sestriere.
The fastest combined time in all three runs wins the gold medal.
Fourteen of the 56 skiers either didn't finish the first slalom run or were disqualified. Among them were medal contenders Aksel Lund Svindal and Lasse Kjus of Norway, downhill silver medalist Michael Walchhofer and Didier Defago of Switzerland, who was second in the downhill portion of the combined.
Miller had the fastest downhill in 1 minute, 38.36 on a course slightly shortened from the one on which he finished a disappointing fifth in Sunday's downhill medal race.
Miller picked up time through the middle portion of the course Tuesday to finish 32-hundredths of a second ahead of Defago. He was 32nd out of the gate after skipping the Monday training run that determined Tuesday's starting order.
He delivered the kind of nail-biting run that has made him among the world's best, making turns on one ski and soaring through jumps.
Miller found a tight line, swiping many of the red gates with his arms as he sped by. The line made for speed -- at one point he was clocked at 78 mph.
Within view of the finish line bleachers, Miller nailed the last jump in unusual style. In midair, rather than thrusting out his arms sideways for balance as he often does, he extended them behind his back, his poles sticking straight up.
It was classic form that for once didn't elude Miller. The gold medal still did, though.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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