Shani Davis: Icing Adversity

Good things come in three’s.

Darting around roller rinks in Chicago at just two years old, Shani Davis had the look of someone who was going to be special. At that time, no one could have possibly known just how incredible his career would become.

As the Olympics draw closer, Davis prepares for a shot at his third Olympic Gold in speed skating. His best event, the 1000-meter, is where he’s struck gold in the past. Davis is also one of the best in the 1500-meter. He earned silver medals in that event in both 2006 and 2010.

After Davis found himself bored on the inner city roller rinks in Chicago, he turned to the ice and never looked back. It’s safe to say Shani Davis is the Jackie Robinson of speed skating. He was the first Black speed skater to earn a spot on the United States Olympic team in 2002.

In a sport where African Americans are nowhere to be found, Davis has a chance at history. No man has ever won gold in the 1,000-meter in three straight Olympics. If Davis stands atop the podium in Sochi, he’ll be the first.

Davis has always been a bit unconventional and that continues today. Ice-skating wasn’t exactly the sport of choice for most boys on the south side of Chicago, but Davis liked to go fast. While his buddies practiced football and basketball, Davis went to the rink. He practices without a coach, drawing up his own workouts. He races by himself and trains alone as well.

Raised by a single mother, Davis’ fame enables him to give back. How fitting that the acronym for his skating-based development program for kids in Washington D.C. is ICE (inner city excellence).

You see excellence is all Shani Davis is accustomed, too. He just wins. Not only has he broken a color barrier in an Olympic sport, he’s risen to the top and still sits there today. At age 31, Davis took home the fastest time at the Olympic trials in December. He has the experience of a veteran, and the hardware to show for it; yet, Shani Davis still wants to be the best.

In his website biography, Davis is quoted as saying, “I did not want to be a Champion growing up, just a fast skater.” When you’re the fastest skater in the world, championships just come with the territory.

Shani Davis made history in 2006 in Torino when he became an Olympian. Eight years, two golds, and two silvers later Davis continues to write the story that started on the roller rinks in Chicago. Many years ago the rink supervisors were telling a young Shani Davis to slow down. Now the rest of the world is just trying to catch up.