He’s always been a charmer on the ice. | Photo: YouTube/WNEP-TV
Adam Rippon is already one of the stars of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
As the first openly gay US athlete to compete in the winter games, the figure skater earned his first Olympic medal on Sunday (11 February) night.
He’s even made Hollywood star Reese Witherspoon proud of him.
However, like every other Olympian, his path to stardom and success is made of hard work and lifelong dedication.
A news clip recently released from WNEP-TV, a news station in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Rippon’s hometown, shows a 13-year-old Rippon with his eyes already on the Olympics.
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‘You’re still so far away’
Rippon started skating when he was nine, going on 10.
At 13, he competed in the International Skating Union’s Spring Cup in Luxembourg — and won. He came in second in his short program, and won the long program.
‘The next day was the long, and I won that. I did a triple and two double-axels. It was the first time I did a triple in that kind of competition, so I was really excited as soon as I did that.’
His win came from hard work and listening to coaches.
‘All the little things your coach tells you, you always have to remember them. As long as you remember everything your coach tells you, you’ll be okay.’
Skating wasn’t the only highlight of the experience, though.
He adorably explains the trip also provided his first plane and train rides too.
After the competition, he and his mother enjoyed a European vacation, and already his eyes were set on the Olympics.
‘We went to the Olympic museum [in Lausanne, Switzerland] and when you see all these things about other people who have won the Olympics, you think you’ve done a great thing, but you’re still so far away.’
Well, he may have been far away then, but now he’s an Olympic medalist.
