Olympic couple hopes to give speedskating a boost in Britain

By PAUL NEWBERRY
AP National Writer

BEIJING (AP) — Ellia Smeding and Cornelius Kersten are realistic about their medal chances at the Olympic speedskating oval. That’s not on their radar. The British couple has a higher goal of raising the popularity of the sport they love so much in a country that barely knows it exists. Smeding and Kersten have already made a bit of history for Britain just by earning spots at this year’s Winter Games. Kersten is the country’s first male speedskater at the Olympics since 1992. Smeding broke an even longer drought as the first British female speedskater at the Winter Games since 1980.