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-RSEC-
So I'm liking Apolo Anton Ohno. I like his moves on the inside curve of the speedskating oval. I like his refusal to whine for NBC about the realities of short-track racing. I like his back story. I like his looks. He is cute, really cute.
Except for one thing: that silly soul patch.
The soul patch is the little tuft of hair under his lower lip that looks sort of like a woolly bear caterpillar seeking a dimple to hole up in for the winter.
Ohno's fans are showing up for Olympic speedskating races wearing fake soul patches. It must look like an infestation.
It's easier to talk about what a soul patch isn't than about what it is. It's not a goatee, not a beard, not a mustache and not - despite a gut reaction - an oversight.
Soul patches are considered cool and edgy, even though they've been around for a while. But no one seems to know where the style came from. I called several barbershops. Some were utterly stumped, while others bluffed...