MILWAUKEE (AP) 鈥� Fun and goofy off-ice bonding is no guarantee of Olympic success, of course.
Still, the U.S. Speedskating team competing at the starting Saturday does see value in the odd-as-can-be plastic foot attached to a phone case and the schoolkid鈥檚 pink, heart-festooned backpack that is schlepping around town as punishment for .
鈥淚t keeps me humble. It keeps me grounded. It puts a smile on my face every time I see it. It鈥檚 kind of ridiculous, but it’s fun. It keeps everything fun and light-hearted,鈥� said Dawson, a 25-year-old from Park City, Utah, whose first event at this Winter Games comes Sunday in the men’s 5,000 meters.
鈥淯nfortunately, the timing is the Games,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o I have to carry it around for the biggest stage in the world.鈥�
Rest assured, the TV cameras capturing every athlete’s every move at the Speed Skating Stadium, , will zoom in on Dawson’s accessories at some point. Probably going to come up in interviews, too.
So how did he 鈥渆arn鈥� this honor?
By bringing up the rear during the NFL’s 2024-25 season in a 10-team league based on football players’ individual statistics, he was stuck with the loser’s gear for speedskating’s 2025-26 season.
鈥淧eople remember the losers,鈥� explained Ethan Cepuran, a 25-year-old from Glen Ellyn, Illinois, who is slated for , 鈥渁 lot more than the winners.鈥�
All of the fantasy squads in the competition are managed by speedskaters, most of whom, including Brittany Bowe, Mia Manganello, Sarah Warren and Zach Stoppelmoor, qualified for the Feb. 6-22 Olympics in Italy.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a good distraction (from) the stress of competing,鈥� Cepuran said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not just talking about speedskating all the time on the road or at practice.鈥�
The league 鈥� organized by skater Jon Tobon, this season’s champion 鈥� began five years ago with just a bit of money at stake.
But then …
鈥淎t the end of the season, we were just like: 鈥榃e鈥檝e got to have a punishment,鈥欌�� explained Cepuran, who will enter the mass start on Feb. 21 and join Dawson and Emery Lehman, a 29-year-old from Oak Park, Illinois, in the on Feb. 15 and 17. The United States holds the world record in team pursuit and took home bronze from the 2022 Beijing Olympics in that event.
With the goal of having more than cash at stake, someone 鈥� nobody seems to remember who 鈥� came up with the idea of the backpack, which has a small plush heart attached. Dawson, who clearly needs to get some pointers on how to succeed at fantasy football, and Lehman were in last place the first two seasons.
鈥淓mery wore it so well that nobody even noticed. Nobody even really cared,鈥� Cepuran said. 鈥淲e were like: 鈥榊ou鈥檝e got to make people care about what鈥檚 going on.鈥� We decided to add a phone case.鈥�
The winner picks two silly-looking phone cases, and the other folks involved vote on which one is used.
鈥淚t’s very democratic,鈥� Cepuran said. 鈥淜ind of.鈥�
Lehman again wound up last in the most recent NFL season, which .
He’ll be retiring after these Olympics, his fourth, and heading into the real world: Lehman has been studying financial planning in hopes of a job in that sector and plans to work with skaters at a Chicago rink he grew up going to.
鈥淲e鈥檙e always trying to one-up ourselves,鈥� Dawson said. 鈥淢aybe it鈥檒l be a roller suitcase next season.鈥�
Lehman offered another suggestion.
鈥淚 think my punishment is I鈥檝e got to come back … to skate a 1,500,鈥� Lehman said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 worse than carrying the pink backpack. I鈥檇 rather carry the pink backpack.鈥�
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