Stephen Colbert announced this week his show, The Colbert Report, has become the main sponsor of the U.S. speed skating team.

Within one day, Colbert's TV viewers, who he calls the Colbert Nation, contributed $40,000 US to the cause.

So could Colbert land in Richmond in 2010 in support of his team? An e-mail to the show's producers went unreturned, but in an interview with Associated Press, Colbert said he's been considering taking his show to Vancouver for the Games.

Richmond will host U.S. speed skaters for long track medal events at the Richmond Olympic Oval.

In the meantime, Colbert, whose satirical talk show depicts him as a conservative commentator, is expected to give much exposure to U.S. speed skaters in the lead-up to 2010.

"It still tragically involves a lot of Canadians," the comedian told Associated Press. "It's kind of unseemly how many Canadians I'm going to have to be dealing with."

Colbert's sponsorship follows the bankruptcy of Dutch bank DSB, which previously offered $300,000 in sponsorship to the U.S. speed skating team.

The deal is said to give Colbert ad space on the speed suits worn by racers. Colbert's TV show logo could appear on the suits in upcoming World Cup competition, but it's unlikely to appear during the 2010 Olympics, which would require a more pricey arrangement to be an official Olympic sponsor.

On Thursday's show, Colbert attacked 2010 Games organizers for not allowing the U.S. team practice at the Richmond Olympic Oval before 2010.

U.S. speed skater Joey Cheek appeared on the show and said his team had ample practice time at the oval in Turin, Italy, prior to the 2006 Winter Games. Cheek said oval ice differs due to air pressure, altitude and rink setup.

"In speed skating the tracks are always similarly set up from course to course, so I think our guys can still bring home lots of medals, but at the end of the day, it's kind of a dick move," said Cheek.