January 9, 2022
Gay, Non-binary Skater Timothy LeDuc Heading to Olympics
Dave Skreta READ TIME: 1 MIN.
Newly minted national champions Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDuc along with the pairs team of Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier will represent the United States at the Beijing Olympics next month.
U.S. Figure Skating announced what was a mere formality for Cain-Gribble and LeDuc on Sunday, one day after a stirring free skate gave them the title. But the selection of Knierim and Frazier brought a little bit of drama because he had tested positive for COVID-19 this week, forcing the pair to withdraw from the national championships.
Knierim and Frazier petitioned for one for one of the two spots on the team for Beijing based on their body of work, and the selection committee went with them over national runner-ups Jessica Calalang and Brian Johnson.
The women's team of U.S. champion Mariah Bell, silver medalist Karen Chen and Alysa Liu was announced Saturday, while the three dance teams and three men headed to Beijing will be announced later Sunday.
