Apolo Ohno (Seattle, Wash.) won gold in a time of 2:20.146 and was the only U.S. speedskater to qualify for the final. Having positioned himself very well throughout the race, Ohno took the lead with two laps to go and was able to hold off the surge of Korea's Ahn Hyun Soo and China's Li Ye, who finished second and third, respectively. "Apolo skated an aggressive but controlled tactical race, which is what it takes to win in short track," U.S. Speedskating Short Track Managing Director, Derrick Campbell commented "He did an excellent job of counter-attacking all attempts by the Koreans to control the race."

J.P. Kepka (St. Louis, MO) qualified for the semifinal but was eliminated after finishing fourth in a time of 2:19.867. Travis Jayner (Midland, Mich.) skated a strong quarterfinal but did not move on due to a disqualification.

U.S. National Champion Hyo-Jung Kim (Fullerton, Calif.) had a strong showing in the ladies’ 1500 meters semifinal, narrowly missing a berth in the final after finishing third in a time of 2:26.447. Allison Baver (Sinking Springs, Penn.) also qualified for the semifinal. She finished fourth in a time of 2:29.635 and did not advance. Competing in her first World Cup event, Kimberly Derrick (Caledonia, Mich.) had a strong performance qualifying third in her heat. She did not move on to the semifinal round. Derrick set a new personal best in the 1500 meters with her finish time of 2:29.600. "Our girls skated very well today but made a couple of costly mistakes," U.S. Speedskating Head Coach Li Yan said. “There are a lot of good things to take from the races but it also shows that there are things that we need to work on."

Both the U.S. men’s and ladies’ relay teams qualified for Saturday’s semifinal events. The men’s 5000 meters relay team consisting of Ohno, Kepka, Jayner, and Rusty Smith (Long Beach, Calif.) won their heat in a time of 7:03.998. The ladies’ 3000 meters relay team consisting of Kim, Baver, Caroline Hallisey (Natick, Mass.), and Kristen Biondo (Broadview Heights, Ohio) also qualified in second position in a time of 4:24.066.

The 1000 meters and relay semifinals will take place Saturday.

Results: (for more detailed results, please visit: http://isu.cyberscoreboard.com/interlynx/index.asp?SUBSPORTID=5&VIEW=RESULTS&SCOPE=0&DIVISIONID=&COMPETITIONID=340&SEASONID=31)

Ladies’ 1500 meters:
1. M. Wang CHN 2:23.375; 2. S. Jin KOR 2:23.440; 3. C. Byun KOR 2:24.027; 4. X. Cheng CHN 2:24.215; 5. Y. Kang KOR 2:24.288; 6. Y. Yang CHN 2:24.462

Americans:
8. H. Kim; 10. A. Baver; 19. K. Derrick

Men’s 1500 meters:
1. A. Ohno USA 2:20.146; 2. H. Ahn KOR 2:20.254; 3. Y. Li CHN 2:20.404; 4. H. Seo KOR 2:20.412; 5. H. Lee KOR 2:20.545; 6. C. Hamelin CAN 2:20.595

Americans:
11. J. Kepka; 36. T. Jayner

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U.S. Speedskating is a nonprofit organization recognized by the United States Olympic Committee as the governing body for the sport of Speedskating in the United States. To date, U.S. Speedskating has won a total of 65 Olympic medals, making it the most successful winter sport in the USA.

USS expresses its sincere appreciation to its gold medal sponsors (ADT, Qwest), silver medal sponsors (Nike, IHC) and bronze medal sponsor (Dow) as well as its Official Sponsors (Jet Set, Hilton Salt Lake City, 24 Hour Fitness), Official Suppliers (USANA, DMT), Official Licensee (XP Apparel) and Official Provider (Froedert Memorial Hospital) for their generous support.