Apolo Ohno delivers anti-drinking message at Bellevue school

It was supposed to be a surprise, but Apolo Anton Ohno gave away the secret when he posted his day's schedule on Twitter.

Hours before he arrived at Chinook Middle School in a limo (his driver, too, sported a soul patch), every student in the Bellevue school knew exactly who was coming to give them a pep talk about sidestepping the dangers of underage drinking.

And they were pumped. They pounded the bleachers, chanted "U-S-A, U-S-A" and shrieked in excitement when Ohno, accompanied by his dad, Yuki, entered the gym.

Joking that he isn't much taller than many of the students — the Olympic press packet says he's 5-foot-8 — the medal-winning short-track speed skater had the students jumping up and down in their seats, even if the program was all about underage drinking.

And if his message sounded like a string of vague clichés about teens and alcohol — Ohno talked about "facing challenges" and making "healthy and active lifestyle choices" — he seemed to speak from the heart, and appeared to be genuinely interested in making a connection with students.

He worked both sides of the packed bleachers, slapping hands, answering questions and staying behind long after the event was over to sign autographs and pose for photos.

"I got a high-five!" one student said.

"He answered my question!" another bragged.

"I love you, Apolo!" a girl gushed from the middle of the bleachers as Ohno walked by.

"The kids have to see me, they have to feel me, they have to touch me," Ohno said after the assembly.

"That makes a big difference. The schools where I actually can participate in, that I can go see, they have the biggest benefit."

Ohno was a 13-year-old Federal Way student with a penchant for trouble when his father intervened with a tough-love approach that eventually put him on the road to Olympic fame — not to mention "Dancing with the Stars" celebrity.

"When I was in school, and we would have people [who] would come in and speak to us about making the right decisions, most of the time they were much, much older, and I was like, 'Who was this guy, how can this guy relate to me?' " Ohno said.

"Because I'm younger [he's 27] — and the kids do recognize me, and they can see that I am like them, and I have lived what they've lived through — it's much, much easier," he said.

The Seattle-area visit was the last stop for Ohno in a five-city tour for The Century Council, a Virginia-based nonprofit funded by liquor distillers to fight drunken driving and underage drinking. Ohno has also launched the Apolo Ohno Foundation to promote his healthy lifestyle message.

The teen years are "the most fun, and also the hardest time in a kid's life," Ohno said after his appearance. "They're at that moldable age where, if you can kind of press and push and reiterate some of those good, valuable core messages, it will stick with kids for a long time."

Having a media star like Ohno delivering a no-drinking message makes a "huge difference" with kids because "he starts with a lot of credibility and fan interest," said Attorney General Rob McKenna, who has kids in the Bellevue schools and introduced Ohno.

Chinook teacher Karla Moreno said the timing of Ohno's visit was good because a former Chinook student was recently killed in a drunken-driving accident. When a star athlete delivers the message, it helps underscore the importance of staying away from alcohol, she said.

Tweeting away, an hour after he left Chinook, Ohno summed it up like this:

"Awesome speaking to the kids again today. Loved it."

Katherine Long: 206-464-2219 or klong@seattletimes.com