Inline To Olympic Short Track Speed Skater

(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

Inline speed skaters were dominant at 2014 U.S. Olympic short-track speedskating trials, with former inline skaters grabbing seven of the eight possible spots on the team that will be heading to the Sochi Winter Olympics. Inline Speed Skater has put together a list of the former inline speed skaters who will represent the United States in the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

Female Olympic Short Track Speed Skaters From Inline

1. Jessica Smith

There is no denying that Jessica Smith is the best female short track speed skater in the United States. She simply dominated the 2014 Olympic Trials, and qualified to skate in all three distances this February in Sochi, Russia. Born in Dearborn, Michigan, the former inline speed skating champion began her skating career as a member of the Wolverines Inline Speed Skating Team. Roller skating since the age of one, Smith has spent many years honing her speed skating skills, and it is all paying off. As the US Olympic Teams best hope for a Gold medal in Sochi, there are plenty of inline speed skaters that will be cheering her on this February.

At the age of 12, Jessica Smith became the youngest inline speed skater to make the Junior World Team, earning a whopping 14 gold medal titles before reaching the age of 15. The next year she made the Senior World Team and went on to win 16 Senior Gold medal titles. She finished her inline skating career with a Pan American Gold Medal in 2007.

2. Emily Scott

Emily Scott of Springfield, Missouri skated extremely well at the 2014 Olympic Trials, earning the second spot on the US Short Track Team going to Sochi. Scott’s transition from inline to ice was not an easy one, and early on she found herself questioning the move. Finding inspiration from her father, she decided to stick with it, and the US Team is reaping the benefits. Emily has had some family issues that would hinder most athletes, but she has bravely continued to pursue her speed skating dreams, and many of her fellow skaters are hoping she brings home a medal for her efforts.

Emily Scott still holds the 5000 meter elimination race record at the Indoor Inline National Championships with a time of 8:45.049. Scott holds the record for the 2000 meter Sophomore two woman relay race with her partner Brittany Bowe, who will be representing the US in the long track events this February. Scott and her relay partner Kirsten Attipoe still hold the record for the 3000m Senior two woman relay with a time of 4:53.179. Emily also holds an outdoor banked track national championships record in the 1000 meter race with a time 1:35.435.

Male Olympic Short Track Speed Skaters From Inline

1. J.R. Celski

J.R. Celski has emerged as the top US medal contender in short track speed skating at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. This will be Celski’s second Winter Olympics, and he looks to improve on his double bronze medal performance in 2010. He skated to a third place finish in the 1500m, and earned a bronze medal as part of the 5000m relay team that included the infamous Apolo Ohno.

At the age of four, J.R. Celski began roller speed skating competitively with Team Extreme at Pattison’s West in Federal Way, Washington. He then began short track speed skating at Puget Sound Hockey Rink in the Tideflats of Tacoma, WA, when he turned twelve years old. In 2008, he put off a chance to attend The University of California, Berkeley, and moved to Salt Lake City, UT, to begin training for the US Short Track Team. At the 2009 Olympic Trials, he suffered a nasty crash on the ice, which resulted in a severed left quad by his own skate blade. Despite the injury happening just five months before the Olympics in Vancouver, Celski was able to persevere and earn two bronze medals.

2. Eduardo Alvarez

Former Inline Speed Skater Eduardo Alvarez will be heading to Sochi for the Winter Olympics after earning the second spot on the US Short Track Team with an impressive performance at the 2014 Olympic Trials. The former inline speed skater from Miami, Florida, finished second to Celski in both the 500m and 1,500m finals. Alvarez looked very strong at the 2014 Olympic Trials, and if he skates this well in February, he could find himself standing on the podium in Sochi.

Eddie Alvarez discovered his love for speed skating as child, and was persuaded to give inline speed skating a try when two women saw him in South Beach, Miami, skating on a pair of plastic roller skates. Skating for Super Wheels Speed Team of Miami, Alvarez would begin building his skills as an inline speed skater. He would eventually transition to the ice, and began working towards fulfilling his dream of making the US Olympic Team. The son of Cuban Immigrants, the twenty three year old speed skater has become the first Cuban-American to make an US Olympic Short Track Speedskating Team. Eddie has a lot of fans, which was made evident by his frenzied cheering section at the Olympic Trials, and should be one of the fan favorites in Sochi.

3. Chris Creveling

Chris Creveling survived a questionable disqualification in the second final, and took first in the 1,000 meter final, securing the third spot on the US Olympic Short Track Speed Skating Team heading to Sochi this February. His father owned and operated the Frenchtown Roller Rink in Frenchtown, NJ, so it’s no surprise that he spent a lot of time on skates. He has been roller skating since the day he could walk, and it wasn’t long before he was successfully competing at inline speed skating events.

In 2007, he made the transition from inline to ice, and has been working towards making it to the Winter Olympics ever since. Creveling competed for a spot on the US Olympic Short Track Team at the 2010 Olympic Trials in Marquette, MI, but fell short of his goal, finishing in 13th place. If the four time US inline speed skating world team member can skate through adversity like he did at the 2014 Olympic Trials, he might just be coming back from Sochi with some hard earned hardware.

4. Kyle Carr

Kyle Carr grabbed the fourth spot on the 2014 US Olympic Short Track Speed Skating Team, and will be skating in his first Winter Olympics next month. Carr started his skating career at the age of 3, inline skating at Body Zone in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. He transitioned from inline to ice upon entering high school, and a few years later he moved to Marquette, MI, to begin training at the United States Olympic Education Center. Kyle has made it onto the podium at the World Championships in the past, and with a decade of experience on the ice, he has a decent chance of earning a Olympic medal in Sochi.

5. Jordan Malone

Despite having to withdraw from the final rounds of the 1,000, after crashing in the quarterfinals at the 2014 Olympic Trials, Jordan Malone earned enough points to secure the final spot on the US Olympic Team going to Sochi. The 27 year old native of Denton, Texas, started inline speed skating at the age of 5, with his mother driving him over two hours from home to practice in Waco, Texas. He would spend many years as one of the top inline speed skaters, and made the US World Team in 2000. Malone went on to win many top inline speed skating events, including the Senior World Championships. He would leave inline speed skating after earning an impressive 8 Junior and 6 Senior World Championship titles on inline skates.

Malone has worked through more than one serious injury in his speed skating career, suffering a spiral fracture in his left foot at an inline event, and then shortly after returning from that injury, he tripped head first into a timing device. The fall resulted in a broken jaw that required four plates and sixteen screws in his head. His love for the sport was so great that he discarded any thoughts of giving up his dream during the long road to recovery, and his perseverance has paid off. Malone is one of the more experienced short track speed skaters heading to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, and he looks to add to the bronze relay medal he won at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Malone is well known in the inline world, and many of the sports athletes and fans are wishing him well this February.

2014 Olympic Short Track Speed Skating Trials Results

500-Meter Finals

Men’s Olympic Qualifiers
1. J.R. Celski
2. Eddy Alvarez

Women’s Olympic Qualifiers
1. Jessica Smith
2. Emily Scott

1,000-Meter Finals

Men’s Olympic Qualifiers
1. Chris Creveling
2. J.R. Celski

Women’s Olympic Qualifiers
1. Jessica Smith
2. Emily Scott

1,500-Meter Finals

Men’s Olympic Qualifiers
1. J.R. Celski
2. Eddy Alvarez

Women’s Olympic Qualifiers
1. Jessica Smith
2. Emily Scott

Overall Distance Standings

Men’s Rank Name Points
1. J.R. Celski – 6,800
2. Eduardo Alvarez – 4,704
3. Chris Chreveling – 3,674
4. Kyle Carr – 2,927
5. Jordan Malone – 2,917

Women’s Rank Name Points
1. Jessica Smith – 6,800
2. Emily Scott – 5,640
3. Alyson Dudek – 4,640
4. Sarah Chen – 3,128
5. Kimberly Goetz – 2,231