The Pittsburgh Speedskating Club hosted a USA Junior Category 1 training camp last week - the top short-track skaters in the country between ages 15 and 19 to Pittsburgh were invited by USS to attend. National Team coach Jae Su Chun was one of the coaches:
Short-track speedskating making a name for itself in the 'Burgh'By Matt Grubba, SEWICKLEY HERALD
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Pittsburgh has long had a love affair with hockey.
But it's another sport on ice that may end up producing the city's next winter Olympian, possibly as soon as 2014.
Short-track speedskating has developed a small but dedicated following in the Pittsburgh area through the Pittsburgh Speedskating Club, and what the club lacks in size, it is making up for in prestige through its skaters' performances, rapidly rising to become one of the country's top clubs of its kind.
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With three members of this year's USA Junior National Team among its ranks and a man recently picked as a national junior developmental coach by the sport's national governing body, club officials hope to continue its growth in the upcoming years.
"We get new people all the time who are surprised, because they had no idea there was something like this in Pittsburgh," said Alan Burkholder, the club's president. "We have around 40 members now -- some as young as 6, and our oldest is 57."
One of the biggest signs of the club's rise in stature occurred last week, as it hosted a USA Junior Category 1 training camp, bringing the top short-track skaters in the country between ages 15 and 19 to Pittsburgh.
The camp, held on the ice at Robert Morris University's Island Sports Center and the Mt. Lebanon Ice Center, was led by club coach Kwang Jae Lee and U.S. National Team coach Jae Su Chun, and attracted nearly every member of this year's junior national team.
"This camp is the first camp like this, and it is part of our plan for the future," Chun said.
Most notable among the attendees at the camp was 19-year-old Simon Cho, the current world champion in the men's 500-meter and a bronze medalist last year in the 5,000-meter relay at the Vancouver Olympics, an event in which he skated alongside U.S. star Apolo Anton Ohno.
Robert Morris' role in the sport grabbing hold locally has been significant, much as it has for hockey and figure skating, because of its Island Sports Center facilities.
With an Olympic-size rink, measuring about 20 feet wider than an NHL rink and the standard rinks at most area facilities, it is one of the few local places where a regulation short-track course can be set up.
"The Olympic-size surface is very meaningful for short-track speedskating, because it leaves more room on the outside of the track," Burkholder said. "That makes it safer when skaters fall, and in short track, there are falls."
That led to the school becoming the first in the United States to establish a club speedskating team in 2009. Lee also coaches the club team, drawing top national talent to attend college while still training for most skaters' ultimate goal, making the U.S. National Team.
As nice as that facility is, the Pittsburgh Speedskating Club still faces challenges in getting ice time, as the ongoing growth of hockey and other ice sports often leave the club seeking a home and needing to take odd hours, such as 6 to 8 a.m. for the USA Junior Camp's morning sessions.
The club has used five rinks around the city, according to Burkholder, and it has regular slots at the Island Sports Center, in Mt. Lebanon and at BladeRunners in Warrendale.
"We're still kind of a small, niche sport in the area, so we can't just walk in and demand prime ice," Burkholder said. "We've been creative with some of the rinks to schedule time."
Leading the charge of short-track skaters from this area are the three who competed at the Junior World Championships last February in Courmayeur, Italy: Lexi Burkholder and brothers Cole and John-Henry Krueger, all of Peters.
While Cole Krueger, 19, now skates at Robert Morris as he moves into the senior ranks, John-Henry Krueger and Burkholder, Alan's daughter, were just 15 when they competed in Italy.
That means they have four years left in the junior ranks and have set the bar high for themselves after winning the overall crowns at U.S. Junior Nationals in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Although they are two of the top young skaters in the country, qualifying for the 2014 Winter Olympics is Sochi, Russia is quite a lofty dream, considering they will be only 18 when the Games are held. Still, reaching the Olympics is any competitive skater's goal, and their coach sees no reason not to strive for it.
"All of my skaters have an Olympic dream, and now, we have a ladies' junior champion and a men's junior champion here in the Pittsburgh club," Lee said. "We're working hard toward the next Olympics. I'm not going to say they will make it (in 2014), but we'll see."[/img]
Read More:
pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/s_743431.htmlHere’s a photo of the participants:
Back Row (L to R): Chris No; Coach Chae(?); Steven Meyer; Evan Opeka; Ian Quinn(?); Cole Krueger; Claude Gilbert; John-Henry Krueger; Brett Perry; James Rodowsky; Ryan Thumser(?); Coach Kwang Jae Lee; Coach Jae Su Chun; Front Row (L to R): Sally Chea; Lexi Burkholder; Alaina Fiorenza; Amanda Trimble(?); Rachel Stewart; Katy Ralston - not pictured: Simon Cho; Kendal Pumphrey. (Photo Credit: Paul Perry)
Tags: Lexi Burkholder / John-Henry Krueger / Cole Krueger / Simon Cho / Kendal Pumphrey / Christian No / Brett Perry / Katy Ralston / Evan Opeka / Ian Quinn / James Rodowsky / Short Track Speedskating
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