01:16 PM PST on Monday, February 13, 2006

Associated Press

TORINO, Italy -- Apolo Anton Ohno stumbled out of a chance at gold in his first Olympic event, a shocking start to these Winter Games for the American short track star.

Ohno nearly fell with 1 1/2 laps to go in a semifinal heat of the 1,500 meters Sunday night, and wound up last across the line among those still skating. His mistake ruined any chance to defend his Olympic title in a much-anticipated showdown against South Korea's 1-2 punch -- Ahn Hyun-soo and Lee Ho-suk.

"You never know with this sport," Ohno said. "It just wasn't my day."

Ahn won the gold medal in the final race of the night, while Lee settled for silver. With Ohno relegated to the consolation final, there was no one to challenge the South Koreans, who finally got the win that was denied by a disputed ruling in Salt Lake City four years ago.

China's Li JiaJun won the bronze.

AP

Apolo Anton Ohno, of the United States, (254) stumbles in his semifinal heat in the 1500 meter event at Short Track Speedskating at the Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy Sunday, Feb. 12, 2006. At left is the winner of the heat Li Ye, of China, at 2:19.386.

"It really breaks my heart to watch that," said Allison Baver, Ohno's teammate and girlfriend. "I know he's the best skater in the world and he really didn't have a chance to show that. But the Olympics aren't over."

Indeed, Ohno still has three events left to match the gold and silver medals he won at the last Olympics. As they say in this wacky sport, "That's short track."

Consider what happened in 2002: Ohno crossed the line second in the 1,500 final but won gold when another Korean skater was disqualified for blocking the American on the last lap. The ruling thrilled U.S. fans but outraged South Koreans.

How different it was this time.

Ohno easily won his first heat and seemed likely to make it through to the final when, with three turns to go, he tucked in behind the leader, China's Li Ye. But Ohno got a little too close to the other skater, his left shoulder appearing to touch Li as they leaned into the corner at speeds better than 30 mph.

It was a horrible -- and uncharacteristic -- miscue by Ohno, who briefly lost his balance and desperately stuck down his left hand in an attempt to stay up, sending a black lane marker flying toward the padded walls. The 23-year-old American never went down, but the rest of the six-man field went on by.

Even though one of his competitors fell on the next turn, and another skater was disqualified for impeding, Ohno wound up finishing fourth. That wasn't good enough -- only the top two skaters moved on to the "A" final.

Ohno knew he was out of it coming off the final turn. He glided across the line with his hands on his knees, then grabbed at his helmet, a look of disgust on his soul-patched face.

While it took more than five minutes to post the official results, Ohno already had headed off to the cool-down area to unlace his skates. The only thing gold on this night was the color of his blades.

With his flowing hair, extensive collection of bandannas and -- of course -- that patch of hair beneath his lip, Ohno was one of the most popular American athletes in Salt Lake City.

His staying power was evident from the U.S. flags sprinkled around every part of the arena. One woman wore a fake soul patch on her chin. Another group held up a sign that said, "Aloha Apolo. Remember We Had Dinner With You?"

Ohno had no problem advancing from the opening round of heats and looked relaxed as he returned to the ice for the semifinals, having switched his bandanna from red to blue. He paused briefly to take a sip of water, then rested his head on the padding while waiting for the door to swing open.

Once the race started, Ohno bobbled briefly in the early going but quickly settled into a comfortable pace, fiddling with his helmet a couple of times but mostly hunched over with his hands locked behind his back.

In short track, though, the line between glory and failure is thinner than the skater's blades. Ohno learned that harsh lesson with less than two laps to go.

SMILEY N. POOL / Dallas Morning News staff photographer

Apolo Anton Ohno, of the United States, is held back by officials as he tries to go over the boards to take the ice for his B final in the 1500 meter Short Track Speedskating at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 12, 2006. Ohno in the semifinals of the event. He recovered from the slip, but failed to make the finals in the event when he finished in fourth place finish in the heat.

"He's such a great skater. He should be on the podium no matter what," said Alex Izykowski, the other U.S. skater who failed to advance past the 1,500 semifinals. "In these races, a lot of things can happen and usually do."

In the women's 500, Baver and the other American, Kim Hyo-jung, both advanced to Wednesday's quarterfinals.

Baver easily won her heat, but the 17-year-old Kim needed help from the officials to avoid getting knocked out. After the teenager finished third in her group, France's Stephanie Bouvier was disqualified for blocking the American heading into the final turn.

That ruling gave Kim a second-place finish -- good enough for a spot in the quarters.

Even so, there was more disappointment for the Americans on the opening night of short track. The women's 3,000 relay team -- featuring Baver and Kim -- failed to advance from the semifinals, finishing third in its heat behind China and Canada.

Also qualifying for the "A" final were South Korea and Italy.