Speedskater: Race Was Fixed

Speedskater Tommy O’Hare wants the U.S. Olympic Committee to investigate his claims that an Olympic qualifying race was fixed.

O’Hare sent a letter to USOC chief executive Lloyd Ward demanding an investigation of the 1,000-meter short-track final Dec. 22 in Kearns, Utah.

USOC spokesman Mike Moran said the agency has asked U.S. Speedskating for results of its internal investigation and other information no later than Tuesday.

U.S. Speedskating has asked attorney Steve Smith to investigate the allegations.

Shani Davis won the race, holding off his close friend and World Cup champion Apolo Anton Ohno. Davis jumped from eighth to sixth in the standings to grab the last berth for the Salt Lake Games.

O’Hare, a 1998 Olympian, was knocked off the team.

After the race, national short-track coach Susan Ellis questioned whether Ohno tried to win and immediately asked him about his tactics.

“He says he was playing it safe. That’s what he says,” she explained after the race. “The talk and suspicion is kind of troubling.”

Ohno denied that he was more concerned about Davis getting on the team than winning. Davis agreed that nothing shady went on between the friends.

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Brady Canfield and Tristan Gale won qualifying races for the U.S. Olympic skeleton team at Park City, Utah.

Canfield won the men’s race with a combined two-heat time of 1 minute, 38.65 seconds. Gale won the women’s race in 1:41.63.

The men and women have one more qualifying race to determine the third and final Olympic spot for the men and the sole guaranteed spot for a woman.