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USOC honors January athletes
By Angela Pinder // USOC Media Services // February 11, 2005
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The U.S. Olympic Committee today named figure skater Michelle Kwan and speedskater Shani Davis as its January Athletes of the Month. The USOC Team of the Month honor was awarded to the U.S Women’s Bobsled Team.
Kwan (Lake Arrowhead, Calif.) won her ninth national title at the 2005 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships in January, tying her with Maribel Vinson for the most U.S. titles won. Kwan also holds the record for the most consecutive championship medals with 12. During the competition in Portland, Ore., she was awarded seven perfect 6.0 marks, which brought her U.S. Championships career total to a record 42 6.0s.
Davis (Chicago, Ill.) set a new world record at the North America & Oceania Regional Qualifier on Jan. 9 at the Utah Olympic Oval in Salt Lake City. Coming off a 500-meters victory Jan. 8, he set a new 1500-meters world record of 1:43.33, bettering the mark set by Derek Parra in Salt Lake City in 2002.
The U.S. women’s bobsled team of Jean Racine (Waterford, Mich.), Vonetta Flowers (Birmingham, Ala.), Shauna Rohbock (Orem, Utah), Valerie Fleming (Foster City, Calif.), Jill Bakken (Park City, Utah) and Erin Pac (Farmington, Conn.) had their best month of the season in January. Rohbock and Fleming set the push record on their way to a silver medal at Cesana Pariol, Italy. It was Rohbock’s best World Cup finish. Racine and Flowers claimed the gold medal and the track record in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
Second place for the women went to long track speedskater Jennifer Rodriguez (Salt Lake City, Utah). Rodriguez came back from a month-long illness to set three new personal best times at the World Sprint Championships in January. She had four impressive races over the championship weekend and clinched the overall title.
Luge athlete Ashley Hayden (Westborough, Mass.), placed third in the women’s vote. Hayden became the first U.S. women’s singles slider to win a luge World Cup medal in Winterberg, Germany when she raced to the bronze in a series race on Jan. 23. It was also her first individual World Cup medal. Prior to her bronze-medal finish, Hayden also had three top-seven results in January. In addition, she helped USA Luge to a bronze-medal finish in a World Cup team competition Jan. 6 in Koenigssee, Germany.
Second place in the men’s ballot went to skier Jeremy Bloom (Loveland, Colo.). Bloom took second in a U.S. sweep in Mont Treblant, Quebec on Jan. 8. His Jan. 29 win at Deer Valley, Utah put him in the lead in World Cup points. Bloom earned 100 points Jan. 27 in singles, and another 100 on Jan. 29 in dual moguls. He is the current World Cup leader with 340 points.
Swimmer Matthew Patton (Charlotte, N.C.) finished third in the vote. Patton dominated the Junior Pan Pacific Championships Jan. 5-9 in Maui, Hawaii. He won four medals, the most of any U.S. athlete, and earned the Male High Point Award. Patton captured gold in the 800m freestyle, bronze in the 800m free relay, gold in the 1500m free and silver in the 400m free. One of the team captains, Patton posted best times in all four of his events.
Figure skaters Tanith Belbin (Kinston, Ontario, Canada) and Ben Agosto (Chicago, Ill.) took second place in the team vote. Belbin and Agosto won their second consecutive U.S. ice dancing title at the 2005 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships. They received 14 perfect 6.0 marks for presentation, nine of which were awarded for presentation in free dance. That was the first time any skater or skaters received all 6.0s in a certain mark at the U.S. Championships. Their gold medal was their fifth consecutive medal at the U.S. Championships.
Finishing in third on the ballot were USA Luge’s Mark Grimmette (Muskegon, Mich.) and Brian Martin (Palo Alto, Calif.). Grimmette and Martin ranked fourth in the overall doubles luge World Cup standings at the end of January. The pair raced to a bronze-medal finish Jan. 23 and also led USA Luge to a bronze-medal result in a World Cup team competition Jan. 6.
Results (first place votes in parentheses)
WOMEN
1. Michelle Kwan 28 (7)
2. Jennifer Rodriguez 20 (2)
3. Ashey Hayden 18 (4)
Also receiving first place votes: Lindsey Jacobellis (Snowboard), Jean Racine (Bobsled), LaShondra Rawls (Taekwondo) and Sally Roberts (Wrestling)
MEN
1. Shani Davis 31 (7)
2. Jeremy Bloom 20 (4)
3. Matthew Patton 19 (3)
Also receiving first place votes: Steven Lopez (Taekwondo), Chris Soule (Skeleton), Johnny Weir (Figure Skating) and Joe Williams (Wrestling)
TEAM
1. U.S. Women’s Bobsled Team 42 (8)
2. Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto, Figure Skating 35 (8)
3. Mark Grimmette and Brian Martin, Luge 23 (1)
Also receiving first place votes: U.S. University Select Hockey Team
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