One of the biggest stars of this year’s Winter Olympics has to be Adam Rippon. Not only has his sparkling personality been on full display, but he’s already made history as being the first openly gay American athlete to win a winter Olympic medal. Rippon has been skating since 2000 when he was ten years old, but it wasn’t until 2015 when he finally broke out in the world of figure skating. Now Rippon earned a spot on the United States figure skating team and immediately gained a strong fanbase because of his humor and voice for the LGBTQ+ community.
Recently, NBC offered Rippon a position as a correspondent for the remainder of the 2018 Olympics. This would mean that Rippon would give up his athlete status to be apart of the correspondent team. In a statement Rippon explained, “I worked so hard to be on this Olympic team, and my teammates and my friends were there for me during my events, and that meant so much to me, that I really feel like I need to be there for them during their events.”
While many athletes would jump at the chance to work for NBC (and no doubt make some pretty sweet money) Rippon demonstrated his dedication to his sport and placed value in his hard work instead of making career moves. Actions speak louder than words, and Rippon’s action to support his fellow American athletes speak volumes about the kind of person he is.
Adam continues to entertain his growing fan base and be an inspiration to the LGBTQ+ community and many others. Keep on being America’s Sweetheart!