Ohno gets squeezed out

TORINO, Italy — Apolo Anton Ohno threw up his arms at the finish line of the Olympic 1000m short track speedskating race in a "What can you do?" gesture.

South Koreans Ahn Hyun-Soo and Lee Ho-Suk went 1-2 in the race Saturday, just as they did in the 1,500 earlier in the Games. Lee passed Ohno on the penultimate turn to force the American to settle for bronze.

"Man, there was just no room to move," Ohno said in explaining his gesture.

In this race four years ago in Salt Lake City, a Chinese skater trying to pass Ohno fell down and took the other skaters - including Ahn - down with him like dominoes. Australia's Steven Bradbury, who was so far back he was out of the fray, won the gold as the last man standing. Ohno crawled across the finish line for the silver.

Ohno said he had a couple of opportunities Saturday to move up on Ahn. But the South Koreans were skating "so tight," he said. "Any type of move would probably result in disqualification. I didn't want to risk it."

However, Ohno, who wore a blue bandana under his yellow helmet, was pleased with the medal, which completes his set of Olympic gold, silver and bronze medals.

"I made some mistakes," he said, "I could have skated the race better, but all in all, it was pretty powerful for me to come back from that 1,500."

On Sunday, Ohno failed to advance to the semifinal in the 1,500, the race in which he won the gold in Salt Lake City.

Instead of retreating within himself, Ohno actually opened up more. He even checked his e-mails.

"Usually, I totally shut myself off from all friends and family except my dad," Ohno said.

He found e-mails from folks back home in Seattle and guys he trains with.

"It was unbelievable the support I was getting," Ohno said. "One guy said, 'You're the man, here and now. Breathe and relax.' "

"That really boosted me to be able to compete my best."

The South Koreans, who bitterly protested in 2002 when Ohno won the gold medal and a Korean skater was disqualified, got a measure of satisfaction from beating him. Lee, pressed to tell his strategy on the final lap, smiled at the interpreter. "He says he sped up," she told reporters.

Lee added, "I was going for Ohno, but, more importantly, I was going for the gold."

At the flower ceremony Ahn invited Lee and Ohno to join him on the top step of the podium.

U.S. skater Rusty Smith, who held the Olympic record in the race for "about two hours," was fourth after not making a World Cup final all season.

"I'm extremely pleased with the way I skated," Smith said, "because the end result was the best three guys in the world got an Olympic medal, and I was behind them."

Ohno compared the Olympics to "a mental war with yourself."

He "wasn't skating in my zone," Ohno said. "If you try to force something, it never happens. I had to back off and enjoy skating for what it is, enjoy the Olympic Games for what it is."

Ohno said he was happy for his friend Shani Davis, who won the long track 1000: "I'm going to really love sharing the moment with him."