Utah Olympic Speedskater headed to Paris to cheer on Team USA summer athletes

KEARNS — A Utah Olympic medalist who competes in winter, will be trading the ice rink for a track in Paris. Speedskater Casey Dawson will get to see the games in a whole new way that will be dramatically different from his own Olympic experience.

Even in the middle of summer, the only focus for Dawson is ice.

He trains with the US Speedskating team twice a day, five days a week at the Olympic Oval in Kearns.

“It’s pretty intense,” Dawson said. “It’s a constant grind because we’re the long track distance team.”

Dawson estimates he skates about 50 to 60 laps per training session to build up endurance, as he works toward another Olympics.

But the Olympic Games he’s been preparing for lately, are the ones that just kicked off on Friday.

“I grew up watching the Summer Olympics, and I love that,” he said. “And I think I watched it probably more than the Winter Olympics, honestly.”

Dawson is flying with his mom to France next week to experience the 2024 Paris Olympics, but not as an athlete. He’ll be rooting for his summer athlete counterparts from the stands.

“Summer, winter, no matter what, I love cheering on fellow athletes,” he said.

When Dawson competed in Beijing in 2022, the arena was practically empty. He said he skated in a ‘silent Olympics’ with no one watching, aside from some local spectators.

“My Olympic journey was completely different than everyone else’s with COVID and everything,” he said.

The pandemic prevented family, friends, and fellow Americans from celebrating Dawson’s Bronze finish in Team Pursuit.

He explained how that in-person support is what gets athletes going when they compete. He credits fans for helping his team set a world record at the World Cup in Salt Lake City earlier this year.

“I think cheering people on makes the whole thing, you know, ten times better,” Dawson expressed.

So, he’s making sure Team USA has that support in Paris. Dawson joked that he’ll probably lose his voice by the time he leaves from all the cheering.

Plus, he’ll get a taste of what he couldn’t see in Beijing.

Dawson plans to check out the Team USA house, and of course, explore Paris.

“I want to see an Olympics without the whole COVID experience and see how it’s, you know, supposed to work and supposed to happen,” Dawson said. “And, I’m really excited to see what it looks like.”

Dawson talked about how, on top of that, he’s hoping to take home something of his own: Motivation, for when he returns to the ice.

“When somebody crosses the finish line, wins that gold medal, that’s an inspiration to me,” Dawson said. “Push further, push harder and, you know, try to achieve my gold medal hopefully in 2026.”