spunkmaster

TURIN, Italy (Feb. 18) - Shani Davis knew what he was doing.

Davis became the first black to win an individual gold medal in Winter Olympic history Saturday, capturing the men's 1,000-meter speedskating race. Joey Cheek made it a 1-2 American finish, adding a silver to his victory in the 500.

Erben Wennemars of the Netherlands captured the bronze.

Chad Hedrick, skating the weakest of his individual events, put up an early time that stood until Davis bested it in the 19th of 21 pairs with a clocking of 1 minute, 8.89 seconds.

Four other skaters passed Hedrick as well, leaving the Texan in sixth place - still an impressive showing considering he was skating the 1,000 for only the seventh time in his career.

Davis came under scrutiny for skipping the team pursuit -especially when the Hedrick-led squad was knocked out in the quarterfinals, doomed by a slow skater who might not have been on the ice if Davis was available.

But Davis, world record holder in the 1,000, wanted to focus on his signature event. It certainly paid off.

After crossing the line and spotting his time, the first guy to break 1:09 on the slow Turin ice, Davis thrust his right fist in the air. As he coasted along the back straightaway, he raised both arms toward the roof of the Olympic oval, then put his hands on his head in obvious relief.

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