Olympedia – 1,000 metres, Men

The past three World Champions in this event had been Li Jiajun (China), An Hyeon-Su (South Korea) and Apolo Anton Ohno (United States). They had in fact all placed on the podium at the 2005 Worlds, when Ohno had beaten An and Li for the title. An, however, was slightly favored, as he had been the overall World Champion for the past three seasons, and he had already won the 1,500 m gold.

All three favorites made it through to the semi-finals, where they were all drawn in the same heat. An and Ohno did make it through, leaving Li out of contention. Both contenders had a team mate in the final, with Rusty Smith and Lee Ho-Seok also qualifying. Li Ye of China also raced, having been hindered in the semis. In the final, An followed his usual tactic of hanging in the back. With three laps to go, he sprinted forward, taking the lead. Ohno followed him, but was unable to pass the Korean. In the final lap, Lee then passed Ohno for second place. As in the 1,500 m, An and Lee again finished 1-2.