Shani Davis
American Shani Davis heads to Vancouver as the overwhelming favorite in the 1000m and 1500m. During the 2009-10 World Cup season, Davis won all four 1000m races.
Davis earned his place in the history books in Torino, becoming the first African-American to claim an individual gold medal at the Winter Olympics, when he won the 1000m ahead of teammate Joey Cheek. Davis also took silver in the 1500m in Torino. "I'm one of a kind,'' Davis said after winning the 1000m, acknowledging his athletic success in a sport with mostly white competitors. In fact, Davis was the first African-American to even qualify for the U.S. speed skating team. In 2002, he was the first to qualify for the U.S. short track team, selected as a relay alternate, but Davis did not compete in Salt Lake City.
Davis has performed consistently well on the international level since Torino. He defended his World Allround Championship title in 2006. "To me, this is bigger than the Olympics," Davis said of the win. "This medal is prestigious. Not only do you have to skate 500 meters, but you have to skate 10,000, you have to skate a 1500 and a 5000 and you only have two days to do it." In 2007, Davis won the world titles in the 1000m and 1500m. He then defended his 1000m title in 2008 and took bronze in the 1500m and finished third at the 2008 World Allround Championships. In 2009, Davis won the overall title at the World Sprint Championships and won the 1500m at World Single Distance Championships.
Davis' love of skating began when he was about 2 ½ years old, when his mother took him roller skating. Davis switched to the ice when he was 6 after his mother, who was working as a legal assistant at a law firm for longtime speed skating official Fred Benjamin, typed up the minutes of the Illinois Speed skating Association. After asking Benjamin about the sport, Shani's mother began shuttling Shani up to the Evanston Speedskating Club. When Shani was about 10, he and his mother moved to Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood to be closer to the rink.
At age 16, Davis was accepted into the development residency program in Lake Placid. It was then that he decided he wanted to one day make the Olympic team. He lived in Lake Placid for about one year, and the following year he moved to Marquette, Mich., for more development programs. In 1999, Davis earned berths on the short-track and long-track teams at the junior world championships and made national team status. Unable to train with the U.S. short-track team in Colorado Springs (because there isn't a long track there) Davis moved again in 2001, this time crossing the border to train in Calgary, where he skated under former world champion Derrick Campbell of Canada.
-
Sarah Hughes
One of the most consistent ladies figure skaters in the world over the past three seasons, Hughes continues ... -
Jonny Moseley
Jonny won the gold medal in the 1998 Winter Olympics in the freestyle mogul event. He revolutionized ... -
Tommy Moe
Not long after Tommy Moe became the second American man to win an Olympic downhill 10 years later, his ...
- News
- Videos
- Products
Fee Information: Booking Fees to hire speakers and celebrities are determined based on a number factors and often change without notice. Some factors include: speakers schedule, length of presentation, location of event, market conditions, availability and interest. Fee Ranges listed on this website are intended to serve only as a guideline. For the most current celebrity fees or to check availability, please contact a booking agent.
Please Note: All American Speakers Bureau acts only as an entertainment broker/producer for corporate functions, private engagements and special events. All American Speakers Bureau does not claim or represent itself as the exclusive booking agency, business manager, publicist, speakers bureau or management for Shani Davis or any artists or celebrities on this website.
All American Speakers is a "buyers agent" and exclusively represents talent buyers looking to secure celebrities and speakers for personal appearances, speaking engagements, corporate entertainment, private events, public relations campaigns, promotions, commercials and product endorsements.
Profiles listed on this website are provided as a resource to our clients, which are meeting and event planners and other buyers of talent in order to provide them with the widest variety and selection of available talent. For more information on how we work and what makes us unique, please read about the All American Speakers Bureau Advantage.
Due to the volume of emails and calls we receive, we can no longer respond to inquiries related to any of the following:
- Schedules of upcoming public appearances
- Contact info for artists or requests to forward messages.
- Artist's TV, stage or film projects or representation
- Requests for artists to donate items for auctions, etc.
- Media requests for print, radio or TV interviews.
- Non-paying or expenses only fundraisers.
- Any inquiry not related to hiring talent for paid engagements
Related Tags: Find More Information on booking Shani Davis for appearances, speaking engagements, endorsements/spokesperson, appearance fees, booking agency contact info, biography of Shani Davis, Contact an artist booking talent agent find a speakers bureau that can book Shani Davis, speaker booking agency for Shani Davis, list of similar speakers and celebrities for hire, what is the cost to book a top 10 motivational speaker, musician, comedian or famous athlete.
Copyright © 2012-2013All American Speakers LLC - All rights reserved.
