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Quote:

Originally posted by abaici
ROLAND S. MARTIN: Shani Davis disrespected in his moment of glory
by Roland S. Martin, Chicago Defender
February 20, 2006

For the last 17 years, all Shani Davis has dreamt of was having a gold medal hung around his neck for speed skating.

He has withstood the teasing of seeing a Black kid in tights glide around an ice rink, rather than the track or basketball court.

Yet in the aftermath of his historic win - he's the first African American to win an individual gold medal in the history of the Winter Olympics - Davis been barraged by questions as a result a little pissant who happens to be his teammate.

The war of words started when Davis opted not to participate in the speed skating team pursuit. Hedrick came into the Olympics with a stated desire to win five gold medals, equaling the record set by Eric Heiden in 1980. But with Davis choosing to concentrate on his race, the U.S. squad wasn't as strong, and they subsequently lost in the team pursuit quarterfinals.

That's when all hell broke loose. An angry Hedrick began to toss all kinds of barbs at Davis, and the media ran with the story, questioning whether Davis was a team player by using quotes from Heiden and other former athletes. As a result, U.S. fans bombarded Davisís website with personal attacks, including calling him a nigger.

Here is a man trying to win the one thing he has trained for nearly his entire life, but he has to deal with being called a nigger - and he's representing the United States!

But a tough young man who grew up in Hyde Park, later moving to Evanston to train, Davis shut all of that out and won the gold in the 1,000 meters, an event that he is the world record holder in.

Yet what happened? He continued to be attacked by a sour puss Hedrick, who wasn't even man enough to congratulate Davis, choosing to salute the guy who came in second place!

There are some crucial issues that need to be addressed to set the record straight.

Davis isn't a team player. That's the card Hedrick and others have been playing for some time. There is no denying that Davis and his mother have had a love-hate relationship with the United States Olympic Committee. But what you may not know is that two speed skaters were added to the Olympic team to specifically skate in the team pursuit. Davis, who was passed over at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympic Games, wanted those guys to get their shot at Olympic glory, so he passed on the team pursuit. That, ladies and gentleman, is a man who was thinking of his teammates.

Davis is selfish. He is the world record holder in the 1,000 meters. He was the prohibitive favorite to win. His win would make history. Instead of wanting to be tired when it came time for the race he has trained for, Davis opted to rest. But Hedrick was all about Hedrick. HE wanted to win five gold medals, and wanted HIS teammates to help HIM achieve HIS goal, regardless of THEIR individual goals. Since Davis didn't skate, Hedrick lost the chance to equal history. So now he turns on Davis. Talk about a prick. He deserves to be called out for his selfish behavior.

Davis wasn't more appreciative of his win. Talk about a joke. NBC's Melissa Stark wonders why he isn't smiling more after winning the gold. I guess she was looking for a modern day Sambo or Step N Fetch It. The man had been put through hell the last two days by the media, and now they wonder why he wasn't jumping for joy? Could it be that that simply isn't his personality? How about being called a nigger by people from the country you represented?

No one will ever be able to take away the history Davis made Saturday in Turin, Italy. But maybe his critics should check their own selfish interests and stop crucifying the guy. He represented America well, and did what media darlings Michelle Kwan and Bode Miller couldn't do - bring the gold home.

Roland S. Martin is executive editor of the Chicago Defender. His columns are syndicated nationally by Creators Syndicate, and is a commentator for TV One Cable Network. He can be heard daily on WVON-AM/1450 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. He can be reached at rmartin@chicagodefender.comor (312) 225-2400, ext. 130.

http://www.chicagodefender.com/page/...ArticleID=4092

The more things change the more they remain the same :( .