2011-2012 A SEASON TO SHINE By Linda Jager
The 2011-12 was a season to shine for
US Speedskating athletes. With impres- sive performances at World Cup and World Championship events across the globe, Team USA continued their positive mo- mentum as they prepare for Sochi 2014.
Looking Back at Long Track “I think there were several highlights
that the entire Long Track team produced this year,” said Team USA Sprint Head Coach Ryan Shimabukuro.
“Shani Davis was able to overcome a unusually slow start to the season to win the overall 1000m World Cup title and fin- ish 3rd overall in the 1500, while winning a bronze medal in the 1000m and a silver in the Team Pursuit at the World Single Distance Championships.”
“Jonathan Kuck had a standout per- formance at the World Single Distances Championships in the long distance events, winning two bronze medals as well as a silver in the Team Pursuit. Also, he performed very well in the Mass Start event in the World Cup,” said Shimabukuro.
“Heather Richardson bounced back
very strong in the second half of the sea- son aer her knee surgery in the Fall to finish 2nd overall in the 1000m in the World Cup and had two 4th place finishes at the World Single Distance Champion- ships, ” he added.
“Tucker Fredricks finished 3rd overall in
the 500m in the World Cup as well as 5th in the 500m at the World Single Distance Championships, aer having to overcome a lower back injury in January which cost him 6 weeks of training going into the last part of the season,” said Shimabukuro.
“Brian Hansen skated very well in
the 1000m, 1500m and Team Pursuit events. He finished 8th overall in the 1500m & 12th in the 1000m in the World Cup as well as winning a silver in the
6 RACING BLADE Summer 2012
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Team Pursuit at the World Single Dis- tance Championships,” he added.
“Brittany Bowe had a huge rookie season, having two top 5 finishes in the 1000m in the World Cup, while finishing 8th overall in the World Single Distance Championships and 10th overall in the World Cup,” said Shimabukuro.
“The main challenge was overcoming
unforeseen injuries and illness at very untimely periods in the competition sea- son. The ISU international calendar con- tinues to be a challenge to us physiologi- cally and financially since it forces us to be overseas for long periods of time. This results in lost of training days due to in- creased travel days and higher expens- es,” explained Shimabukuro.
This year marked another impressive
showing from the younger members of Team USA. “The Junior Long Track Team once again stepped-up and sur- prised everyone,” said Nick Pearson, US Speedskating Long Track Coordi- nator. “Each year we wonder who the next athletes are going to be coming up through the ranks and there is al- ways a group of athletes that have huge improvement gains and step into the spotlight to be the up-and-coming elite skaters. This year was no exception to that with a strong Junior World Team that included five skaters making their first team. Emery Lehman continued to impress with top-5 finishes in both the 5k and 3k events. He followed that up with a bronze medal the following weekend in the 3k at the Junior World Cup Final,” added Pearson.
Short Track Reflections “Two seasons into our four-year
plan, it is a very tough year both men- tally and physically for the athletes,” explained Team USA Short Track Head Coach Jae Su Chun. “I’m very thankful to the athletes who worked so hard this season.”
The short track rookies had a stand-
out season on both the senior and junior world stage. On the ladies side, Tamara Frederick and Sarah Chen continue to impress on the ice. “ Tamara was one of the most improved skaters this season, but she still has even more potential,” said Chun. “Sarah made big improvement in her second year, but faced some chal- lenges with injury. She will look forward to a strong season in 2012-13.”
“On the men’s team, we had several
new skaters – Adam Calllister, Keith Carroll, Cole Krueger – who joined John- Henry Krueger in offering a good balance with the older members of our team. John Henry has lots of physical strength, his potential for future is amazing. I’m proud of his results, which will give him more confidence moving forward for next season, added Chun.”
Congratulations to Team USA skaters, coaches and staff on a great season! n
“I’m very proud of the ladies team, it’s
been their best season ever,” he added. “I also saw a lot of potential and oppor- tunity for better results from the men’s team, but we also had many injuries that held us back from reaching our poten- tial. Overall, we built a strong foundation this season, and I’m confident that this coming season and the Olympic year we be successful.”
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