Going for the Gold: Apolo Anton Ohno

by Thomas Lang

Part athlete, part rock star, Apolo Anton Ohno has won fans across the globe with his charisma, his movie-idol looks, and his edge-of-the-seat victories at the 2002 Winter Olympics. Going for the Apolo Anton Ohno tells the story of this skating hero, start to finish. Here's what you'll find out about America's

128 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2002

About the author

Thomas Lang, geboren 1956 in Stuttgart als braver Leute Sohn, begann ab seinem sechsten Lebensjahr als Autodidakt mit dem Lesen und Schreiben. Da eine 14-jährige Schullaufbahn (mit dem ungebrochenen Rekord für „nicht versetzt“ an höheren Schulen in Baden-Württemberg) keinen nennenswerten Zugewinn an Kenntnissen und Fähigkeiten erbrachte, traf er nach glanzvoll verkrachter Fachhochschulreife 1976 die folgenschwere Entscheidung, entgegen jeglichen weisen Ratschluss seines armen, alten, kranken Mütterleins, die Laufbahn als professioneller Schreiber einzuschlagen. Das funktioniert seitdem in mehreren Schritten: Vom Volontär einer lokalen Tageszeitung zum Lokalchef, zum leitenden Redakteur einer Automobilfachzeitschrift, zum Pressesprecher eines japanischen Autoherstellers bis 1995 zum selbstständigen Autor und freischaffenden Redakteur.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is good because Apolo Ohno has such an amazing story. If you are a diehard fan of his, nothing in this book will be new. However, it is a kids' book, so it will probably be new to them.

I wish it would go into detail as to who exactly funded Apolo's early training at Lake Placid. His dad, I presume? Did he have to go into debt for that?

It ends just after the 2002 Olympics and obviously there's a lot more story after that. (DWTS?)

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although this book is a bit dated because it was written after Ohno's performance in the Salt Lake City Olympics, it still was interesting to read about Apolo's early years, how he became interested in short track skating, and about the challenges he overcame to become the world's best short track skater. His attitude, demeanor, and work ethic serve as a role model for young people. He is a great yet humble competitor despite his huge success and following. I would recommend this book to middle schoolers.