Ohno glides toward another Olympics

MARQUETTE, Mich. — An older, wiser Apolo Anton Ohno seems just as motivated, just as passionate, just as eager to win Olympic medals as the soul-patched teenager from the Salt Lake City Games.

Not that he's making any predictions for Turin.

Short track is too capricious — even for someone as talented as Ohno — to come up with a forecast for gold, silver or bronze. The goals for this sport must be doled out in generalities, the skater learning to accept the random inevitability of slips, crashes and DQs.

"You can say you want to get on the podium," Ohno said. "But anything can happen. There are no guarantees."

Just ask Shani Davis, who failed in his bid to make both Olympic speedskating teams. He'll have to settle for the traditional long-track version in Italy, finishing just out of money for the five-man short-track team at the national championships held in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

"I guess it was not meant for me to do it," said Davis, who already has qualified for a spot on the long-track team that will be firmed up at a meet in Salt Lake City just after Christmas. "I tried my best. My hat's off to the guys who made the team."

Ohno's spot was never in doubt, even though he worried about running into trouble at the make-or-break trials. He skated out front throughout the four-day meet, which ended Friday night, winning seven of eight events and solidifying his reputation as the one guy who can keep up with the powerful skaters from South Korea and China.

Now 23, Ohno is nearly four years removed from his electrifying Olympic debut, when he captured gold and silver medals in thrilling races tinged with controversy. While that performance certainly removes some of the burden heading into these Winter Games, Ohno hasn't lost any of his desire to succeed.

If anything, according to his father, Ohno is better positioned for success this time around than he was in 2002.

"He's more motivated now," Yuki Ohno said. "He's more experienced. He really continues to love this sport."

The younger Ohno has branched out a bit — he's been dating fellow skater Allison Baver, who also made the Olympic team, for nearly two years — but short track remains his primary focus. He still lives in a Spartan apartment at the national Olympic center in Colorado, where he can limit outside distractions and focus almost entirely on his training.