Sports

2006 Winter Olympics

Florida speedskater can't hide from Cosmo's eye

Compiled from staff and wire reports
Published February 5, 2006

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Miami's Jennifer Rodriguez may be the best-known speedskater from Florida heading to the Winter Games. But she isn't the only one.

North Florida also will be represented in Turin, courtesy of Tallahassee's Anthony Lobello.

While Rodriguez is an Olympic veteran and gold-medal contender in the long track, Lobello, 21, is a newcomer to the Games. He's also a long shot on the short-track squad featuring 2002 medalists Apolo Ohno (gold and silver) and Rusty Smith (bronze).

But Lobello, a top junior in 2004, boasts one claim to fame that sets him apart from the pack: He was named one of America's 50 hottest bachelors in 2005 by Cosmopolitan magazine, earning him appearances on the Today show and Live With Regis and Kelly.

"When the magazine called ... I thought it was a joke," he is quoted on the U.S. Olympic Web site. "It was completely out of the blue. But it's really cool."

At 8, according to his bio, Lobello told classmates he would one day compete in the Olympics.

U.S. TEAM ROLL CALL: While Florida sends two athletes - three if you count John Grahame of the Tampa Bay Lightning - which state is sending the most? It's California in a photo-finish with 24, follow by Minnesota (23) and Colorado (20). The team consists of 211 athletes: 122 men, 89 women.

OLYMPIC HOME IMPROVEMENT: Home Depot has enough employees competing in Turin that it might as well be a small nation. The company is sending 33, including Tony Benshoof (luge), Jeret Peterson (freestyle aerial skiing), Derek Parra (speed skating), Shauna Rohbock and Valerie Fleming (bobsled), Jenny Potter (ice hockey) and Jillian Vogtli (mogul skiing). The reason, of course, is that Home Depot allows Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls to work part-time in exchange for full-time compensation and benefits. Since 1992, the chain's employees have accounted for nearly 11 percent of all U.S. Olympic and Paralympic medals.

FLOWERS WAITS: Bobsledder Vonetta Flowers, a 2002 gold medalist, and her husband Johnny Flowers will have to wait longer before knowing whether one of their 3-year-old twin sons will be able to hear for the first time. Jorden, born without hearing, had pioneering brain surgery Dec.20 in Verona, Italy. His parents hoped he would be able to hear when a device was turned on Jan. 23. But doctors told them while signs are encouraging, it could take several months before it's known whether Jorden will be able to hear.

MISCELLANY: Skeleton medal contender Zach Lund's hair-raising brush with suspension from the Games may not be over. He was initially banned from competing when a prohibited substance found in his hair-growth product was discovered. Lund was cleared to rejoin the team by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency last week, but the World Anti-Doping Agency is appealing that ruling, seeking a harsher punishment. ... Beat writers at the Associated Press have predicted the medalists at Turin. Here are some of the U.S. athletes they think will win gold: Daron Rahlves (downhill), Bode Miller (combined), Ryan St. Onge (aerials), Todd Hays (four-man bobsled), Shaun White (snowboard halfpipe), Gretchen Bleiler (snowboard halfpipe), Lindsey Jacobellis (snowboardcross), Ohno (short track 1,500 meters), Joey Cheek (long track, 500 meters) and Chad Hedrick (long track, 1,500 meters, 5,000, 10,000). AP also predicts Miller will get silvers in the super-G and giant slalom, and long-tracker Shani Davis will get a silver in the 1,000 and bronze in the 5,000.

Compiled by Times staff writer Dave Scheiber, using information from Times wires, nbcolympics.com and usoc.org

[Last modified February 6, 2006, 11:13:04]

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