U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Short Track Speedskating Set to Get Underway

Short Track Speedskaters vying for positions on the 2010 U.S. Olympic Team begin competition today at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Short Track Speedskating at the Berry Events Center in Marquette, Mich. 

Today at 4 p.m. (CT), 30 men and 25 ladies will be narrowed down to16 competitors of each gender who will continue to compete throughout the four-day event. Following the final race on Sept. 12, the five men and five women skaters who can qualify for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games will be determined. 

The ten skaters who qualify from the Trials will then compete for starting positions in the World Cup circuit this fall, culminating in the final event, Nov. 12-15 back in Marquette.

"Everything has been set up really great. We're going to have a very full crowd. It's going to be loud," said Coach Tony Goskowicz (Wauwatosa, Wis.), 1994 Olympian and coach to 2002 Olympian and 2006 Olympic bronze medalist JP Kepka (St. Louis, Mo.) as well as 2006 long track Olympian Ryan Leveille (Atlanta, Ga.).

J.R. Celski (Federal Way, Wash.) is one of the athletes vying for a spot on this team. At 19 years old, Celski was too young to qualify for the 2006 Games and is hoping to make his first Olympic team this year. Click here to view a Going for the Gold vodcast of this 2010 Olympic hopeful.

Celski will skate head-to-head with his childhood idol, two-time Olympian and five-time Olympic medalist Apolo Anton Ohno (Federal Way, Wash.) who remains one of the world's best skaters. 

Two-time Olympian Allison Baver (Reading, Pa.) will compete for the first time since breaking her leg in a World Cup in Sofia, Bulgaria during the 2008-2009 season. Prior to this injury, Baver earned three bronze medals in last season's World Cup circuit.

Stay up-to-date on all Olympic Trial action with twitter updates from @USSpeedskating and short track athletes Ohno, @ApoloOhno, and Kimberly Derrick (Blytheville, Ark.), @speedchic428.

The USOC will host a video teleconference with U.S. Short Track Speedskaters during this week's Media Summit in Chicago, Ill. The video conference is set for Thursday, Sept. 10 at 11:40 a.m. (CT).