By William Beacom
Marquette, MI – Injury plagued skaters on the final night of the Short Track Speed Skating 2010 U.S. Olympic Team Trials. "Did not skate" entries filled result sheets at the end of the night. J.R. Celski and Maria Garcia were immediately transported to Marquette General Hospital after colliding with side boards. Celski cut his leg while sliding into the boards after he lost an edge in the turn. EMS quickly began treating the wound. Garcia injured her back after losing an edge and hitting the protective padding. Skaters reach speeds of 30 m.p.h. making every mistake costly. Skaters Morgan Izykowski , Tamara Frederick, and Lezleigh also received injuries from crashes.
The results from the final night of races distributed the final round of points, determining who received an Olympic Team Nomination.
Senior Ladies 500m final results have Katherine Reutter in 1st place, Alyson Dudek in 2nd, and Lana Gehring in 3rd. Garcia crashed during the 500m semi-finals. Results of the 1000m finals have Kimberly Derrick in 1st place, Reutter in 2nd, Allison Baver in 3rd, and Dudek in 4th place. Overall final standings put Reutter on top, Dudek in 2nd, and Derrick in 3rd.
Senior Men's final results for the 500m have Apolo Ohno in 1st, Jeffery Simon in 2nd, and Travis Jayner in 3rd place. Celski's blade cut his leg during the 500m semi-finals. He tied for 7th place with Simon Cho. Results for the 1000m finals have Ohno in 1st place, Anthony Lobello in 2nd, and Simon in 3rd. Jayner placed 5th. Overall final standings put Ohno in 1st, Celski in 2nd and Malone in 3rd.
Olympic Team Nominations on the Ladies side were awarded to Reutter, Dudek, Baver, Derrick, and Gehring. Men's Olympic Nominees are Ohno, Celski, Malone, Jayner, and Cho. Simon finished 4th overall, but did not receive a nomination.
The USA Olympic Short Track Speed Skating Teams will compete next February in the 2010 Winter Olympic Games hosted in Vancouver, Canada.