PHOTOS BY US SPEEDSKATING / MELISSA MAJCHRZAK
As the son of a professional figure skating coach , John-Henry Krueger was no stranger to the ice rink . His mother , Heidi Krueger , taught him and his older brother Cole to skate at the Mt . Lebanon Ice Center when they were still very young . It wasn ’ t long before they were literally skating circles around her , racing each other to see who could go the fastest .
Neither son showed an interest in figure skating or hockey . Cole ’ s speed , however , soon caught the eye of a coach from the Pittsburgh Speedskating Club .
“ Cole was skating at a public session , when a coach approached him and asked if he ’ d ever thought of speedskating ,” says Heidi , a 1981 Mt . Lebanon High School graduate . “ He tried it , fell in love with it , and then shortly after , John-Henry joined him . He wanted to be like his big brother .”
The club quickly realized that the brothers had a unique talent on the ice .
A short-track speedskater , John-Henry soon outgrew Pittsburgh ’ s speedskating scene . He began training in Washington , D . C ., with his family making the commute back and forth from Peters Township several times a week . John-Henry then traveled to South Korea to train , and eventually to the Netherlands , where he currently resides . During competition season , he typically trains six days a week , six to eight hours a day . Cole is also living and training overseas and competing at the elite level , currently racing for the Hungarian team .
On his way to the Olympics , John- Henry fought his way to the top of the pack , eventually becoming one of the sport ’ s best athletes . He nearly competed at the 2014 Olympics but , in a heartbreaking twist of events , became ill with the swine flu and was unable to compete .
“ It was devastating ,” says Heidi . “ John- Henry was one of the top speedskaters in the world , and he couldn ’ t compete . It was a bitter pill to swallow .
“ But , we ’ re Christians ,” she adds , “ and we believe everything happens for a reason .”
Four years later , at age 22 , John-Henry would finally get to experience Olympic competition at the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang , South Korea . And he would return to his hometown with a silver medal
in the 1,000-meter short-track — the first American man to win a silver medal in that event since Apolo Ohno in 2010 .
John-Henry found himself in medal position throughout the race , firmly cementing that position after a wild crash took out half of the pack . “ Before the fall happened , I was in a good position . I knew I was going to get a medal ,” he says . “ The fall guaranteed it .”
As one can imagine , winning a medal at the Olympics is a surreal experience .
“ I experienced the full spectrum of emotions a person can have . But I was more nervous about getting on the podium than I was before the race ,” he says with a laugh . “ The ice is familiar for me . Standing on a podium in front of a large group of people was not .”
John-Henry ’ s parents , who accompanied him to South Korea for the Olympic Games , also felt a wide swath of emotions after the win .
“ Watching my son put that medal around his neck … I just can ’ t put it into words ,” says Heidi . “ At the medals ceremony , you ’ re standing in this pen with all of these other parents who might not speak the same language , but who are all feeling what you ’ re feeling . You ’ re all just so grateful that all of your child ’ s hard work has paid off . You just experience such joy that your child has done what he ’ s set out to do .”
Two days after the Olympics , John-Henry was back on a plane to the Netherlands and then on to Montreal in March , where he competed at the International Skating Union World Championships . He ranked 17th overall .
After a much-needed break this spring , John-Henry will determine his future in terms of training and competition . Many of those decisions , he explains , will be based on assessments made by US Speedskating .
John-Henry Krueger won the United States ’ first individual speedskating medal since 2010 .
For someone who likes to go fast , slowing down can be challenging . “ All I can do is relax and wait to see what happens . Overall , I had a great year with the Dutch team ,” he says . “ It wouldn ’ t be terrible to return to the Netherlands .”
John-Henry adds that the support he ’ s received from his hometown has been overwhelming . “ Pittsburgh is a loyal sports town , and it ’ s been great to see how much the city came together to support me and to recognize my sport .” As of press time , he was scheduled to appear at meet-and-greets around the area .
Unlike hockey and football , short-track speedskating isn ’ t a popular sport in the ‘ Burgh — or in the country , for that matter — but John-Henry actually enjoys the belowthe-radar aspect of it . “ It ’ s a relatively new sport . It ’ s still in its infancy , and watching it grow , evolve and change has been exciting ,” he says . “ I may be biased , but I think that short-track speedskating is an underrated but incredibly interesting sport .” n
On March 22 at a Peters Township Library celebration , trustees for the Washington County Community Foundation ( WCCF ) announced they will be providing a $ 2,500 grant to the Washington County charity of John-Henry ’ s choice in his honor .
Pictured L to R : Edward C . Morascyzk , Chairman , Dorothy F . Tecklenburg , John-Henry Krueger , Tammy L . Hardy and Thomas F . Hoffman .
PHOTO BY PRIMETIME SHOTS PHOTO BY AUSTIN CONTROULIS
MT . LEBANON ❘ SPRING 2018 21