Apolo Ohno: Short Track Teaches You 'Nothing Is in Your Control'

Apolo Ohno, the short track legend who holds the record for most Winter Olympic medals (two gold, two silver, four bronze) by an American athlete, showed his enduring love for the sport while encouraging U.S. athletes competing at the Milano Cortina Games.

"Short track is by far the best Olympic sport," Ohno said in an interview published on the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics website on Wednesday. "But it's similar to life in that it's unpredictable and anything can happen."

Recalling Steven Bradbury of Australia, who won gold in the men's 1000m at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games after all other skaters fell, Ohno explained: "No matter how well you prepare and compete, short track is a sport where the universe knocks you down and reminds you that nothing is in your control."

Ohno is well known to Korean fans for his controversial role in the men's 1500m at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games, where Kim Dong-sung was disqualified in what became known as the "Hollywood action" incident. Ohno won one gold and one silver at the 2002 Games, one gold and two bronze at the 2006 Turin Games, and one silver and two bronze at the 2010 Vancouver Games, cementing his legacy as an American short track legend with eight career Olympic medals.

Ohno also addressed Corinne Stoddard, who has become a symbol of misfortune for the U.S. women's short track team after repeated falls at this year's Games.

"Stoddard must be going through an extremely difficult time psychologically," Ohno said. "The Olympics is a mental game. More than any other sport, the mental battle is at the core."

He added: "Stoddard's problem is subtle technical habits she repeats unconsciously. Looking at her skating style, she should be falling forward, but she always falls backward. I think it's because of her habit of swinging her right arm toward her body. I'd advise her that her hand should not go past her right ear."

Ohno also offered words of comfort to Ilia Malinin, the "Quad God" of figure skating who unexpectedly delivered his worst performance in the free skate and missed the medal podium.

"Malinin should have won, and he probably still can't make sense of it," Ohno said. "He must feel like the whole world is against him and that he can't escape the quicksand."

"He needs to move past this sense of defeat. That's the true meaning of the Olympics," Ohno said. "These experiences can become life lessons, but it usually takes a long time to realize that. I sent Malinin a private letter telling him that if he faces this trial head-on instead of avoiding it, he will emerge as a stronger person."