Richardson gets her first World Cup medal
Richardson gets her first World Cup medal
Davis brings home the 1000m gold
March 6, 2010--Erfurt, Germany
Going straight from the Olympic Games to World Cup competition can be difficult, but U.S. long track speedskater Heather Richardson (High Point, NC) won her first World Cup medal in Germany in the Ladies 500m, finishing third with 38.93.
Elli Ochowicz (Palo Alto, CA) and Lauren Cholewinski (York, SC) both had a rough day during the 500m event, ending in 17th and 18th place respectively. Ochowicz had to pull out of the 1000m because of illness but is looking to recover for the World Cup Final next weekend in Heerenveen. Rebekah Bradford (Apple Valley, MN) was fourth in the B Group and Anna Ringsred (Duluth, MN) was 11th.
In the Men’s 1000m, Olympic Gold Medalist Shani Davis (Chicago, IL) had to battle off some strong Dutch performances to win his fifth straight World Cup 1000m event. Davis was paired with 1500m Olympic Gold Medalist Mark Tuitert (NED) and was behind Tuitert with 200m remaining in the race. Davis skated an incredible last turn to overtake Tuitert and win the gold.
“The Dutch finished second, third, fourth and fifth,” said Mike Kooreman, US Speedskating assistant coach. “Without Shani it would have been the Dutch national championships today.”
In the 1000m B Group, newcomer Joey Lindsey (West Jordan, UT) finished in third place with a time of 1:11.59. He is looking to win the B Group tomorrow to earn himself a spot at the World Cup Final next weekend. Mike Blumel (Woodbury, MN) was eighth and Matt Plummer (ST. Louis, MO) was 13th.
In the Ladies 1000m, Richardson was again the top American finisher with a sixth-place finish, posting a time of 1:17.29. Jen Rodriguez (Miami, FL) made some mistakes on her opener but still managed to pull off a ninth place finish. Bradford won the B Group which not only moves her into Group A but also qualifies her for the World Cup Final next weekend in Heerenveen. Kelly Gunther (Clinton Township, MI) was fourth in the B Group which is her best World Cup performance to date.
Despite not feeling well, Tucker Fredricks (Janesville, WI) finished fourth in the Men’s 500m with a time of 35.38. He has his eye on the podium for tomorrow’s 500m race. Brent Aussprung (Madison, WI) was 18th and Davis was 20th. In the B Group Clay Cholewinski (York, SC) finished 12th while Plummer was 14th.
Racing concludes tomorrow with the second 500m and 1000m events for Men and Ladies. For complete results, visit www.usspeedskating.org.