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Wins duel with Japan's Shimizu in 500; U.S. also wins bronze

Wednesday, February 13, 2002

By Paul Newberry, The Associated Press

KEARNS, Utah -- As Casey FitzRandolph turned into the final curve, an orange cone suddenly ricocheted off his right clapskate. He wobbled a bit, his left hand dangling along the ice as he struggled to stay upright.

Dan Jansen revisited? No way. FitzRandolph had come too far to suffer another disappointment.

Erasing his agony from Nagano, FitzRandolph won the 500 meters yesterday in a stirring speed skating duel with defending Olympic gold medalist Hiroyasu Shimizu.

"There's too many things going through my head and they're not sticking around long enough to grasp any of them," FitzRandolph said. "I guess I realize that I just won the gold medal."

He gave the United States its first speed skating victory of the Salt Lake City Games, and it came with an unexpected bonus -- unheralded teammate Kip Carpenter took the bronze.

FitzRandolph persevered through a mistake-filled pairing with Carpenter, the most glaring glitch coming at the start of the last turn.

Carpenter cut the corner too tight as he switched to the outside lane, his left knee catching the small pylon that divides the lanes. It flew into FitzRandolph's right skate, nearly causing him to fall.

He managed to stay on his feet, though he swung wide out of the turn and sent another lane marker flying.

"I didn't have a great race," FitzRandolph said. "I knew I had to drop the hammer and just go for it."

FitzRandolph became America's first 500 champion since Eric Heiden won all five events in 1980. Jansen was favored in three consecutive Olympics, but a fall, a slip and a slushy track denied him a medal in his favorite event.

"I think D.J. should have gotten one," FitzRandolph said.

But enough of the bad memories. The Americans have three medals through the first three events at the Utah Olympic Oval, putting the home team in excellent position to reach its goal of 10 medals, including the short-track competition.

The speed skating squad, which has never won more than eight medals, leads traditional powers the Netherlands and Germany, which have two apiece.

FitzRandolph, a Wisconsin native, edged Shimizu by a mere 0.03 seconds -- about the length of a skate. He threw up his arms when he saw the final standings, breaking out in a smile that appeared more relief than jubilation.

FitzRandolph skated an Olympic-record 34.42 seconds and had a 0.19 advantage over Shimizu after the first round Monday. He needed the entire cushion to hold off the world-record holder, who had the second-best time of Day 2.

FitzRandolph crossed the line in 34.81 for a two-day total of 1 minute, 9.23 seconds, another Olympic record. Shimizu skated the 1 1/4 laps in 34.65, giving him a 1:09.26 total.

"I really could have done better. I feel a bit of regret," Shimizu said. "I was not able to give it my ultimate. I didn't even come close to my own world record."

FitzRandolph, 27, was inspired to take up speed skating by Heiden.

"I was playing hockey back in 1980 when Eric won his five golds," FitzRandolph said. "Apparently, he impressed me more than our men's hockey team did."

At his first Olympics in 1998, FitzRandolph's medal hopes were dashed by the introduction of the clapskate. He struggled to adjust to the equipment, settling for a sixth place.

"I thought it might happen in Nagano," FitzRandolph said. "Then the clapskate came out and really threw me for a loop. Now here I am, finally, 2002, I win my gold medal."