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With gold medal in hand, de Jong is ready to talk
By wire services
Published February 25, 2006
ON THE ICE: Bob de Jong of the Netherlands won the 10,000 meters Friday, building such a lead that on the third-to-last lap, American Chad Hedrick knew the day would yield a silver at best. So Hedrick said he "rested" and allowed Carl Verheijen to catch up to him in second place, then went into a dead sprint, finishing in 13:05.40, nearly four seconds behind de Jong but almost 31/2 seconds ahead of the Dutchman.
De Jong was not a prerace favorite, which he said helped: "In the summer, I had no interviews and when I qualified for the Olympics, I had maybe one interview. I told myself, "It's okay, let's talk after the Olympics.' "
Hedrick talked about how he had the biggest heart, which made de Jong smile: "He can say a lot. He can say America rules, but today, Dutch rules. His inline style is totally new to our sport and I'm happy to beat the new style with the old style. ... Hey, everyone has their own personality. He's a fighter. He's good for the sport."
UP NEXT: Men's 5,000 meter, 10:30 a.m. today.
QUOTABLE: "Sometimes (Hedrick) has an attitude in the media that we're not used to in our sport. He brings something, I don't know, American, to the sport, something new." - Verheijen
[Last modified February 25, 2006, 01:37:13]
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