Speedskating Olympians
to Compete in Midland!


(download a .pdf of this press release here)

MIDLAND, MI 5/17/07: The Midland Speed Skating Club, (MSSC), is proud to announce that it has been chosen by U.S. Speedskating, (USS), to host the prestigious American Cup 1 Short Track Speedskating Championship on September 29th and 30th, 2007 at the Midland Civic Arena.  The top six men and top six women finishers at the event will each earn a spot on the U.S. World Cup Short Track Team which will compete at World Cup events in China, Japan, the Netherlands, and Italy.

USS Treasurer, MSSC coach, and American Cup 1 Meet Director Beth Bedford commented, “USS has made it high priority to make the American Cup series a very important part of the season. It’s now a major component of the racing season. World Cup teams, prize money, and skater rankings will all be dependent on the outcome of the American Cup meets.” Skater rankings will determine who will train with the elite team in Salt Lake City and who will train at the U.S. Olympic Education Center (USOEC) in Marquette.

Among the skaters expected to compete in Midland will be Apolo Anton Ohno, Jordan Malone, Anthony Lobello, Travis Jayner, Ryan Bedford (Midland, Michigan), Alex Izykowski (Bay City, Michigan), and Barry Winslow (Midland, Michigan). MSSC is anticipating this meet to be Apolo Ohno's first speedskating competition since appearing on the popular television show Dancing With The Stars. The top women competitors may include Allison Baver, Kimberly Derrick (Caledonia, Michigan), Tina Koenig, Hyo-Jung (Halie) Kim, and Katherine Reutter. Kimberly Derrick, Katherine Reutter, and Anthony Lobello were all recent residents of the U.S. Olympic Education Center in Marquette, Michigan.

In conjunction with the American Cup 1 meet, MSSC will host the 2nd annual Midwest Mini Cup youth ability meet. In 2006, this meet attracted skaters from surrounding states and Canada. Mini Cup skaters will take to the ice in the morning, with the American Cup 1 races following. Bedford added, “It’s just a great learning experience for younger kids to share the ice, the arena and the entire event with the elite skaters. That just doesn’t happen in many sports. Some of the best skaters in the world are coming to this meet. This event shows the natural progression from young skaters all the way to elite skating.”

Further event information will be posted at www.MSSCevents.com as it becomes available. Inquiries can be emailed to information@midlandspeedskatingclub.com.

© S.DYKE & BDMC MSSCSITE 5.2006 All rights reserved.