SOCHI, Russia, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- Russian Victor Ahn completed a dazzling Olympics Friday with two more wins in short-track speed skating, running his career total to eight medals.
Ahn won a medal in all four men's short-track events at the 2006 Games in Turin while representing his native South Korea and he did the same thing in Sochi to become the latest of the Russian sporting superstars.
He first captured the 500-meter race by making a stunning pass of China's Wu Daijing on the final lap and then anchored Russia's 5,000-meter relay team to another triumph with the United States coming in second. He also won gold in the 1,000-meter race in Sochi and settled for a bronze in the 1,500-meter contest.
The women's 1,000-meter event was also held Friday with Seung-Hi Park of South Korea coming away with the win.
Ahn slipped past Wu on the inside just as it appeared the Russian would have to settle for second place. He won the 500 race in 41.312 with Wu being timed in 41.516.
In the ladies race, Park outlasted Fan Kexin of China for the gold. American Jessica Parker made it through the hazards of the quarterfinals and semifinals to make the finals, but simply could not keep up in the finals and finished fourth.
The 5,000-meter relay turned wild instantly when skaters from China and the Netherlands took a spill on the first lap.
The Russian and American teams jumped into a huge lead, Kazakstan settled into a distant third place and the Chinese and Dutch fell almost a full lap behind.
As long as they stayed on their feet, the Russians and Americans were assured a medal and Ahn powered his way over the final two laps to a victory of 0.27 of a second.
