Ask Amber Glenn what she’s most looking forward to at the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, and her response isn’t centered around the podium or winning gold. Instead, it’s all about her fellow athletes. “It’s just a celebration of people from all over the world coming together for this huge event, and there's something really special about that,” she told theSkimm.
No one would blame the 26-year-old Team USA figure skater if she had said she looked forward to medaling, especially given her track record. Glenn is a three-time US National Champion — the first since Michelle Kwan to consecutively win that many US Figure Skating championships. And her journey to the Olympics has been a long time coming, after missing out on the Beijing Games due to a positive COVID-19 test.
Glenn has also made headlines off the ice as well. She came out as bisexual and pansexual in 2019, making her the first out female figure skater on the national stage. Ahead of her debut, Glenn — a Team USA athlete ambassador for Delta — spoke with theSkimm about how she’s approaching the games, how she’s handling the pressure, and the importance of expanding representation in figure skating.
On handling the pressure to put Team USA on the podium
“I think it’s even better that we have three strong candidates for the podium. If we all go clean, at least one of us is going to be up there. At the end of the day, it's up to the judges, not us. We just got to do our jobs, and I think I feel less pressure because it's not just riding on my shoulders. It’s all three of us who have an equal opportunity to break this drought of women’s Olympic medals [in figure skating].”
On how she’s approaching the Olympics compared to previous competitions
“If anything, I’m trying to keep [the process] as similar as possible, and that’s kind of impossible to do because I don’t usually get to a competition a week before and stay in a village of just athletes. There are things that are very different [at the Olympics] that I cannot really prepare for, because there’s no simulating that. But … it’s just another sheet of ice that I need to go and do what I do best on.”
On the importance of representation in figure skating
“In a sport that is looked at as feminine, being an out queer woman can be looked at as not as [womanly] or not as graceful … There is a factor of personal bias that goes into judging, [and] that can be really scary when you’re being judged by someone and you don’t know what their views are and how that can impact you … I was a bit fearful of that and how I might be perceived by people at competitions. But the support outweighed any sort of hate that I’ve ever gotten, because people are always going to be hateful no matter what you do. So, might as well be you and live your truth than try and be something you’re not.
I'm not the first to do it. There’s so many people who came before me that cleared that path for me, and I’m so grateful for them. I’m just lucky that I have gotten to do it while still competing. So many of the people I look up to and have really guided the way for me had to, or felt like they had to, wait until their careers were over in order to really express themselves. You shouldn't have to fear the repercussions of being yourself.”
What rivalry? On the camaraderie she shares with Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito
“In the last couple of years, we’ve come to a point where we don’t stereotype female athletes as much. Unfortunately, there is still some stigma in figure skating, like the first thing that comes to mind is Tonya Harding, especially since the movie. So it’s just really nice to be able to communicate with someone that knows exactly what you’re going through, because they’re literally doing the same thing.
I’m quite a bit older than both Isabeau and Alysa. I’ve [made] so many mistakes and [learned] lessons … I can give them that wisdom, and not necessarily be like, ‘You need to do this.’ I see them do it for younger athletes now too … We want to see each other succeed, and when we do that, we all get better.”
On Heated Rivalry and the show she’d be on
“I haven’t watched Heated Rivalry yet. I’m saving it to watch while I’m [at the Olympics], because I have to watch a series while I’m at competitions … Aside from that, I would love to be on Dancing With the Stars. The costumes, the themes, the dancing, [I] eat it up.”
On her favorite pump-up song
“‘Guess’ by Billie Eilish and Charlie xcx.”
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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