Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 22

SPORTS THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC C2 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010 SPEEDSKATING Vonn overcomes shin injury, seizes gold on tough course Davis wins 1,000 meters xV H. DARR BEISERUSA TODAY Shani Davis skates to the gold medal in the speedskating competition with a time of 1:08.94 on Wednesday. American grabs 2nd consecutive gold in the event By Paul Newberry Associated Press RICHMOND, British Columbia All that mattered this time was the color of the medal, not the color of his skin. With a furious kick on.the final lap Wednesday, Shani Davis stuck his skate across the line and won his second consecutive gold medal in Olympic speedskating. Four years ago in Turin, Italy, he became the first African-American athlete to win an individual gold at the Winter Games.

This time, he simply wanted to be known for his skating. Period. "When you're a world champion or an Olympic champion, you get this little thing on your back called a target," said Davis, the first male skater to win this event a second time at the Winter Games. "To go out there and win the 1,000 meters twice is truly amazing." The Americans broke their medal drought at the Richmond Olympic Oval with a flourish, claiming not just one but two spots on the podium. Chad He-drick, who won three medals at the 2006 games, took a surprising bronze after struggling to regain his motivation after Italy.

"I had to dig down deep and find my passion for speedskating again," the Texan said. on," she said. "Not great for that injury." As she reached the final stretch of her run, she sailed over the last jump and drew more air than any of her competitors. Her fans, many wearing "Vonncouver" ski hats, went crazy. Everybody knew.

Well, almost everybody. "I was thinking, 'I hope I did it. I hope it did if but I honestly wasn't sure," she said. She skied across the finish and collapsed on her back. Her collapse was intentional.

Others weren't so lucky. Romania's Edith Miklos had to be airlifted after a scary fall and Sweden's Anja Paerson, who won two medals in Turin, lost control near the end and crashed against the final gate. Switzerland's Dominique Gi-sin also wiped out, and France's Marion Rolland slipped just outside of the start gate. Others mastered the course. Mancuso finished second in 1:44.75 and Austria's Elisabeth Goergl was third at 1:44.65.

"The pressure for me is gone," Vonn said. "I came here and got exactly what I was supposed to get." How that will impact the rest of the Olympics remains to be seen. She has four more events to compete in: the slalom, giant slalom, super and super-combined. Wednesday's finish will secure endless marketing opportunities Gold medals and great looks are a much coveted combination on Madison Avenue. "Dreams come true," Vonn said over and over.

"Dreams come true." Reach Boivin at paola.boivin arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8956. Follow her on Twitter at Twitter.comPaolaBoivin. BOIVIN Continued from CI less skier who has endured a range of terrifying injuries, from the crash two days before the Turin Games that left her with bruises on her back and pelvis to the one two months ago in Austria that injured her wrist. She came into these Games with a bad shin that prompted much pre-race buzz. "It was a great course," Mancuso said.

"But you needed to be strong and fight all the way down." That" a tailor-made course for Vonn, 25. At 5 feet 10, 165 pounds, she's one of the stronger women on the circuit thanks in part to a strong fitness commitment that began seven years ago. That dedication, strangely enough, was triggered by a bike ride in the mountains she took with Mancuso and Mancuso's father, Ciro. Both left her in the dust that day. For the downhill and super this year, Vonn started wearing men's skis, which provide a stability advantage but also demand a lot of strength.

Not many elite women can handle them. They work for Vonn, although they didn't quell her nerves at the starting gate. She spoke with her husband and coach, Thomas Vonn, on the radio. "Julie just had a really great run," he told her. "Almost perfect.

You're going to have to have an exceptional run to win." "OK," Vonn said. "I got it." She pushed out of the gate as fans cheered. Even to the untrained eye, she looked faster. She attacked the mountain with confidence, her shin throbbing. "This was probably the bumpiest course I've ever been Then, as he coasted around near the finish line, Hedrick skated over to shake his hand firmly and pat him on the back several times.

Four years ago, their accomplishments in Italy Davis won a gold and silver; Hedrick a medal of each color were overshadowed "by a nasty feud stemming from the team pursuit. No hard feelings this time. The two stood together on the victory stand, each holding one end of an American flag. "Everything that Shani and I had in 2006 is behind us now," Hedrick said. "We're here.

We're proud to represent our country. We're proud to put a few more medals on the table of the Americans." Davis swung both arms twice on the final backstretch, knowing he needed a little more speed to catch South Korea's Mo Tae-bum. The American found just enough, posting a time of 1 minute, 8.94 seconds. Mo, who won gold in the 500 two days ago, settled for silver this time, 18-hundreths behind Davis. Hedrick was next in 1:09.32.

"Those last 200, 300 meters were very difficult," Davis said. "I was just trying to carry my speed. I could feel it leaving me. It doesn't matter what it looks like, just as long as you get across the line as quick as you could." Davis pumped his fist in the air and slapped hands with the U.S. coaches on the backstretch.

POSTCARD FROM VANCOUVER Pang talk Everybody seems happy to talk about the Coyotes these days. I ran into Darren Pang at Canada Hockey Place, where he was working as a TSNCTV studio analyst for the U.S. and Canada men's hockey games. Pang, you might remember, was the Coyotes' analyst until the team's bankruptcy issues left the organization with an uncertain TV contract. Pang was left in limbo and made the decision to take a similar job with Fox Sports Midwest providing commentary for the St.

Louis Blues. It's too'bad because Pang's colorful, high-energy style was a great fit for the organization. He's enjoyed watching the success of the Coyotes this season and said General Manager Don Maloney "has done an unbelievable job putting this team together." He also thinks people don't appreciate Wayne Gretzky's role. "Wayne put young players in prominent roles and probably put himself at risk for it," Pang said. "You can see how much it's paying off now though.

This team decided it had to take a step back to take a step forward." Pang also said coach Dave Tippett has been a nice fit for the organization. "He puts together great game plans," he said. "You talk to coaches around the league, they don't want to play him." Paola Boivin American skier Lindsey Vonn celebrates after winning the gold medal in the women's downhill on Wednesday in Whistler, British Columbia. Hiiifl li' I GERO BRELOER ASSOCIATED PRESS ARENA FOOTBALL NFL Network to broadcast Arena games Rattlers on TV Games on KAZT (check your cable or satellite provider for channel): April 17: Chicago Rush, 7:30 p.m. May 1: at Tampa Bay Storm, 4:30 p.m.

May 21: at Iowa Barnstormers, 5 p.m. (NFL Network) May 28: at Utah Blaze, 6 p.m. June 5: Milwaukee Iron, 7:30 p.m. June 19: Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings, 7:30 p.m. July 2: at Spokane Shock, 7:30 p.m.

July 31: Iowa Barnstormers, 7:30 p.m. A ninth game will be determined at a later date. need to be made for the league to survive. "I think 2009 may be the most single important year in Arena Football League history," White said. "It gave us a chance to take a step back.

The league is coming back after shifting gears with the same product and a better economic model." called it "a huge first step for the success of Arena football." There will be a game of the week each Friday, beginning April 2. The Rattlers will be on the NFL Network on May 21 at Iowa. Local affiliate KAZT-TV will broadcast eight Rattlers games. There will be 15 teams in the league this year, but Kurz said teams could be added in 2011 in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Denver and Southern California. With the new economic model, players are taking huge pay cuts.

Rattlers President Danny White, former head coach of the Rattlers, said sacrifices By Richard Obert The Arizona Republic The new Arena Football League, trying to correct an economic model that forced the league to fold in 2009, announced Wednesday a television partnership with the NFL Network. Commissioner Jerry Kurz Snowboarding, biathlon, 2 p.m., TD, Channel 12-HD Women's curling, hockey, men's curling, 3 p.m., TD, CNBC Women's hockey, 3:30 p.m., TD, MSNBC Figure skating, snowboarding, speedskating, 7 p.m., TD, Channel 12-HD Hockey, curling, 11 p.m., TD, CNBC Skeleton, biathlon, 11:35 p.m., TD, Channel 12-HD Women's curling (Friday), 1 a.m., TD, MSNBC TENNIS WTA Dubai Championships, 8 a.m., Tennis Channel WTA Dubai Championships (Friday), 3 a.m., Tennis Channel St. Mary's (Calif.) at San Diego, 9p.m.ESPN2 WOMEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL Michigan at Penn State, 4:30 p.m. Big Ten Network-HD Minnesota at Iowa, 6:30 p.m. Big Ten Network-HD GOLF WGC-Match Play Championship, noon, Golf Channel-HD PGA Mayakoba Classic, 4:30 p.m., TD, Golf Channel-HD OLYMPICS Women's curling, 7 a.m., TD, Universal-HD Men's hockey, men's curling, 10 a.m., TD, USA-HD BASKETBALL Nuggets at Cavaliers, 6 p.m., TNT-HD Celtics at Lakers, 8:30 p.m., TNT-HD MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL Auburn at Florida, 5 p.m.

ESPN-HD Syracuse at Georgetown, 5 p.m. ESPN2-HD UCLA at Washington State, 6:30 p.m.FSAZ-HD Wisconsin at Minnesota, 7 p.m. ESPN-HD Pittsburgh at Marquette, 7 p.m. ESPN2-HD California at Oregon State, 8:30 p.m. FSAZ-HD Friday: Sunday: Tuesday: Atlanta; 7 p.m.; Sacramento; Oklahoma City; FSAZ; 620 AM 6 p.m.; FSAZ; 6 p.m.; My 45; 620 AM 620 AM j0fl.

March 1 March 4: March 6: St. Louis; 7 p.m.; Colorado; 7 p.m.; Anaheim; 6 p.m.; FSAZ; 910 AM 910 AM 910 AM JX Sunday: Arizona; Feb. 25: Feb. 27: i 3:30 p.m.; FSAZ; Stanford; 8 p.m.; California; 'JW 860 AM 620 AM 1p.m.; FSAZ; 620 AM M. BASKETBALL CT3 Sunday: Feb.

25: Feb. 27: ASU; 3:30 p.m.; California; Stanford; 6 p.m.; fCjii2r FSAZ; 1100 AM 7 p.m.; ESPN; FSAZ; 1100 AM 1100 AM M. BASKETBALL JSl'Alll Today: Saturday: Feb. 26: Portland State; Eastern Sacramento ffiESSjTj 6:35 p.m. Washington; State; 8:05 p.m.

6:35 p.m. M. BASKETBALL Saturday: Feb. 25: Feb. 27: CvSviii Arizona; 4 p.m.; Stanford; 7 p.m.; California; 1060 AM FSAZ; 1060 AM 3 p.m.; 1060 AM W.

BASKETBALL AjN Friday: Saturday: Sunday: fvVfJ l' Northern Illinois; Northern Illinois; Northern Illinois; WW 6:30 p.m.; lp.m.(DH); 1 p.m.; 1060 AM 1060 AM 1440 AM (1st baseball game); 1060 AM (2nd game) TD, Golf Channel Champions Allianz Championship, 9:30 a.m., Golf Channel WGC-Match Play Championship, noon, Golf Channel-HD PGA Mayakoba Classic, 4:30 p.m., TD, Golf Channel-HD MOTORSPORTS Sprint Cup qualifying, 4:30 p.m., Speed-HD OLYMPICS Men's hockey, men's curling, continued from 4:30 a.m., TD, Universal-HD Women's curling, 10 a.m., TD, USA-HD Men's hockey, 1 p.m., TD, MSNBC Cross-country skiing, 2 p.m., TD, Channel 12-HD Men's curling, men's hockey, women's curling, 3 p.m., TD, CNBC Figure skating, skeleton, Alpine skiing, ski jumping, 7 p.m., TD, Channel 12-HD Men's hockey, 10 p.m., TD, MSNBC Medals Plaza Award Ceremonies, 11:05 p.m., Channel 12-HD Figure skating, skeleton, skiing, ski jumping (Saturday) 12:30 a.m., TD, Channel 12-HD Men's curling (Saturday), 1 a.m., MSNBC SOCCER English Premier Everton vs. Manchester United (Saturday), 5:30 a.m., ESPN2-HD TENNIS Dubai Championships, 8 a.m., Tennis Channel Listings are for TV and cable only. Satellite programming may vary. TD same-day tape-delayed. HD available in high definition.

Broadcasts are the decision of the networks and subject to change. BASKETBALL Mavericks at Magic, 6 p.m., ESPN-HD Hawks at Suns, 7 p.m., FSAZ-HD Celtics at Trail Blazers, 8:30 p.m., ESPN-HD BOXING Porter vs. Jordan light middleweight, 7 p.m., ESPN2 MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL Old Dominion at Northern Iowa, 5 p.m., ESPN2-HD MEN'S COLLEGE HOCKEY Colorado College at Minnesota, 5 p.m.. Big Ten Network-HD Nebraska-Omaha at Miami (Ohio), 5:30 p.m., NHL Network GOLF LPGA Honda PTT Thailand, 8 a.m., tbd to be determined. Qhome game..