“There is no greater love on earth than that of a father for his son.” With those quotes, we’re talking about the sport’s most powerful father-son duo. Who hasn’t heard of Apolo Ohno, but who raised this seasoned short-track speed skater? From Olympic gold to induction into the United States Olympic Hall of Fame, Apolo Ohno has only one person to thank: his father, Yuki Ohno.
Originally from Tokyo, Japan
Yuki Ohno, who was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan, left the country at the age of 18 in the early 1970s. By profession, he was a hairdresser, and he traveled the world before settling in Seattle, Washington in 1980.
Ohno is thought to be in his mid-fifties because there is no exact date of his birth. He is an American citizen with a South Asian ethnic background.
In the United States, I Found Love
Yuki met an American lady, Jerrie Lee, after settling in the United States. The couple fell in love and eventually married. Apolo Yuki, the couple’s first and only child, was born in 1982. However, the couple divorced, with Yuki obtaining custody of his son.
Yuki, who frequently worked 12-hour shifts, had never considered expanding his family in the United States. He named his son Apolo after the Greek words apo, which means “avoid,” and lo, which means “be on the lookout; here he comes.”
Despite the fact that Yuki’s wife is no longer with him, he still has the love of his life, Apolo Yuki. Yuki struggled to raise his son as a single parent, but despite his best efforts, by the time Apolo reached his early teens, he was already in serious trouble.
At the same time, Apolo was into sports and was a skilled swimmer and inline skater. Yuki did everything he could to persuade his son to choose sports over crime, so when Apolo saw short-track speed skating on television during the Lillehammer Olympics in 1994 and wanted to try it, Yuki drove him to competitions all over the country.
Apolo Ohno Is America’s Most Decorated Olympian.
Apolo Ohno, born on May 22, 1982, began full-time training in 1996. He has been the face of short track in the United States since winning medals at the 2002 Winter Olympics. Furthermore, he was the youngest U.S. national champion when he was 14 years old in 1997, and he reigned as champion from 2001 to 2009, winning the title a total of 12 times.
Apolo won a World Cup event title in December 1999, making him the youngest skater to do so. He also became the first American to win a World Cup overall title in 2001, which he repeated in 2003 and 2005. He has eight Winter Olympics medals (two gold, two silver, and four bronze). In 2019, he was inducted into the United States Olympic Hall of Fame.
Quick facts:
- Birth Name: Yuki Ohno
- Birth Place: Tokyo, Japan
- Famous Name: Yuki Ohno
- Nationality: Japanese-American
- Ethnicity: South Asian
- Profession: Hairdresser
- Divorce: Yes
- Children: Apolo Ohno
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