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Outdoors<br />
28. Athlete | 30. Notes from the Adventure<br />
CRUISE CONTROL<br />
J.R. Celski glides toward another Olympic medal<br />
INTERVIEW BY CORINNE WHITING<br />
THREE-TIME OLYMPIC medalist J.R. Celski has a keen sense of balance—on and off the ice. A valued member<br />
of the U.S. Speedskating Team who recently qualified for PyeongChang <strong>2018</strong>, the good-hearted talent also takes<br />
time to mentor young students from underserved communities.<br />
Celski’s skating style summed up? “Efficient, relaxed, smooth.” He gets pumped listening to ’90s hip-hop and<br />
R&B playlists, counts Macklemore as a friend (after helping produce “The Otherside,” a documentary featuring the<br />
Seattle superstar), and lists chicken adobo, lumpia and rice as his favorite post-race meal.<br />
Do you remember your first time on skates?<br />
My parents put skates on my feet when I was 3 years<br />
old. I had a big smile on my face and loved it.<br />
How did you get into competitive skating?<br />
My dad, brothers and I joined the inline speed<br />
skating team at Pattison’s West [in Federal Way] in<br />
the early ’90s. From there, I went on to win a couple<br />
National Championships, transitioned to the ice in<br />
2002 and have been competing on blades ever since.<br />
What is your current schedule?<br />
I train on average seven hours a day, six days a week.<br />
A lot of these are three-workout days. Eight sessions<br />
on the ice with off-ice skating drills to follow, two<br />
bike workouts, two lifting sessions, video review and<br />
many hours spent warming up and cooling down. I<br />
spend just as much time at the Oval as I do at home,<br />
it seems. When I’m not training, I’m making sure I’m<br />
eating properly and getting my recovery in.<br />
What excites you most as you head to<br />
PyeongChang?<br />
I have been on a humbling journey throughout my<br />
career. Everything from success on the big stage all<br />
the way to life-threatening injury has shaped my<br />
mindset and played a part in the athlete I am today. I<br />
am most excited about bringing everything together<br />
and being my absolute best when the time is right.<br />
What does your involvement with Classroom<br />
Champions entail?<br />
It is a fulfilling opportunity to instill life lessons that I<br />
have learned throughout my career with [nationwide]<br />
classrooms. Building a relationship with students via<br />
Skype is one of the few ways I am able to see the effect<br />
I can have on kids hungry for information they can<br />
apply in their own lives. Uploading monthly lessons<br />
touching on subjects like perseverance, setting goals<br />
and fair play allows them to think outside of the box<br />
and hear valuable information from people who have<br />
experienced it firsthand. It’s an inspiring platform not<br />
only for the classrooms, but for the athletes as well.<br />
What’s your proudest accomplishment?<br />
Coming back from what I thought was a career-ending<br />
injury in 2009. The thought process that I had to go<br />
through from getting back on my feet, pushing through<br />
the physical and mental pain to even giving myself a<br />
chance to go for my goals was by far the most difficult<br />
thing I have endured. It showed me that anything is<br />
possible, even if the odds are stacked against you.<br />
What’s on your <strong>2018</strong> wish list?<br />
To live in the moment and savor the process of<br />
whatever it is that I am doing. I wish health and<br />
happiness for my family and friends, and that we can<br />
all find peace amongst the chaos.<br />
28 | WINTER <strong>2018</strong><br />
ontrakmag.com
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