Shani Davis (Born 13th of August, 1982 - Chicago) is a speedskater specialised in both short track and long track speedskating. In short track he was part of the United States Olympic team in the 2002 Winter Olympics. In long track speedskating he became North American champion in 2003, thereby qualifying for the World Championship. At this championship Davis found out he wasn't yet able to compete with the topskaters from Europe. But one year later he did find himself among the very best. A few weeks after achieving his second North-American title he won the silver medal at the World Championship, only allowing Chad Hedrick before him. In March 2003 he convincingly won the 1500 metres distance World Championship in Seoul.
In January 2004 he became for the third time in a row North-American Champion. At this championship he broke the 1500 metres world record, setting it at 1.43,33. The record was previously held by teammate Derek Parra who skated 1.43,95 at the 2002 Winter Olympics in the same rink at Salt Lake City. In February 2005, he became the first black speedskater to become World Champion all-round, scoring 150,778 points and beating compatriot Chad Hedrick by 0,184 points.