Sweden, here they come...

Much more often than not, an all-round championship was held over a two-day format, not three, as had been the case several times in the 1990's.

This past weekend, a blow for old-school was forged by the North America/Oceania (yes, there was, for the first time on this event, a men's skater from Australia who wound up disqualified after suffering an injury in his opening race) Regional Qualification for the world all-round championships in two weeks in the Salt Lake City, Utah suburb of Kearns.

When the smoke cleared, American Shani Davis and Canada's Cindy Klassen emerged as the winners of the men's and women's competitions.

With her win, Klassen served notice that she is right square in the middle of the world championship hunt (February 8-9, Gothenberg, Sweden) by setting a new all-round samalog points world record. By doing that, the 23-year old from Winnipeg, Manitoba, wrested away the lone remaining world record of the 20th century, which was owned by Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann of Germany.

Niemann's 161.479 point total reflected a 40.34 second 500m, a 3,000m of 4:02.01, a metric-mile time of 1:57.24 and a 6:57.24 then-world record 5,000m at the 1999 European Championships in Hamar, Norway.

Klassen not only went under the overall points standard with ease, she demolished it. Her times: 38.84 (500m), 4:02.37 (3,000m), 1.54.63 (metric mile) and 7:02.78 (5,000m), respectively. She won three of the four races in Kearns, with teammate Clara Hughes spoiling a sweep with her win on the 5,000m.

There were six women's spots available for North American speed skaters for the championships, and the Canadians flexed their all-round might by clinching the maximum of four -- Klassen, Hughes (the runner-up), Kristina Groves (completing a maple leaf sweep of the medal stand), and Tara Risling.

Catherine Raney was the lone American in the top 8, so she will join Jennifer Rodriguez, who opted not to skate this event due to her participation in the World Sprint Championships the prior weekend, but wound up getting a spot anyway.

Short-track star Davis completed a successful migration to the long track by finishing in the top four of every distance the men skated (in order: 500m, 5,000m, 1,500m and 10,000m). He won the 5,000m race, but with due respect, Derek Parra, the defending Olympic silver medallist on that distance also chose to sit this competition out.

Chris Callis of Sudlersville, MD, was on pace to break the men's samalog all-round points world record, which is currently in the possession of Jochem Uytdehaage of the Netherlands, but finished out of the money on the 10,000 meters.

Nevertheless, he was second to Davis overall, as KC Boutiette made it an American 1-2-3 for a change in a continental qualifier.

Canadians took the next four spots and qualified most of its entire team for Sweden in the process: Steve Elm (fourth), Kevin Marshall, (fifth), Dustin Molicki (sixth) and Mark Knoll (seventh).

Parra, despite not competing, clearly represents America's best men's all-round title hope, so he will be the third U.S. skater, effectively bumping Boutiette off the roster for Gothenberg.

However, the latter may indeed get a reprieve, since there is some question with the Asian Winter Games occurring in Japan the same weekend as the all-rounds, whether the Japanese will field a full team, men included.

If that's the case, then the next available men's spot will go to this continent, and Boutiette will indeed make it a foursome for the Americans.