"My focus on skating technically paid off well. Breaking the track record like I did was more than I expected," said Derek.
U.S. National Coach Bart Schouten reported that people were saying it was "one of the best 1,500-meters" they'd seen over the last number of years.
For Derek, it was a huge victory. A compact 5'4" and 140 pounds, Derek is the elder of the American team at 31 years old. In March 2001 he showed budding promise by winning his first World Championship medal, a silver in the 1,500 meters at the World Single Distance Championships in Salt Lake City.
Derek is an "endorsed" (spokesperson) athlete of the American Chiropractic Association (see "U.S. Speed Skating Champion to Be ACA Spokesperson" in the May 7, 2001 issue of DC, or at www.chiroweb.com/archives/19/10/12.html.)
Before he took to the ice with Olympic visions, Derek was the top inline skater in the world: a three-time national champion; twice overall world champion; world record-holder at 1,500M and 42M; and the most decorated athlete at the 1995 Pan-Am Games (five gold, two silver, and a bronze medal).
Transferring his skills from inline skating to the ice has taken Derek about four years, by his own estimation. In-line skating, as Derek describes it, is choppier and more physical-looking from the viewpoint of the spectator, while the proficient speed skater, working every bit as hard as the in-line skater, looks to be gliding along in a kind of graceful and effortless motion.
Speed skaters have great strength in the thighs and hips. You won't want to try this at home, but Derek does 20 or so squats with his coach on his back. The hips must be strong, for the skaters lean far forward to be aerodynamic, which puts undue strain on the hips and lower back. Enter chiropractic.
"I've always believed in chiropractic care. I've used a lot of other treatments for injuries and pain, but the problem doesn't get fixed until I go to a doctor of chiropractic," explained Derek.
Derek seeks to qualify for the U.S. Olympic team in the 1,500 meters, his best distance, but he may also try for the 500 and 1,000 meters.
As we go to press, Derek not only has the Olympics on his mind, but he and his wife Tiffany are expecting their first child in December. With his busy training schedule, Tiffany has decided to stay at home with her family in Orlando.
In the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, Derek was an alternate on the U.S. team. While he marched in the opening ceremonies, his alternate status and a technicality (a clerical error by the Kazakhstan team - protested to no avail) kept him from competing.
This year, and these Winter Olympic Games are a time of redemption for Derek. The pressure to perform well must be immense, but the intervening four years of competition and training, and his victory in the World Cup, bode well for him this time around. Whether or not Derek will stand atop the medal platform at these Games, chiropractic is proud to have this fine competitor as a spokesman. We wish him well, and our thoughts and hopes will be with him.
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