Adam Rippon Talks About 'Walking Through Open Doors'

Ever since the Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, the world has belonged to Adam Rippon. The whirlwind that was winning a team medal, becoming "America's sweetheart" and being invited to compete on "Dancing with the Stars," has propelled the once small-town kid from Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, to the stratosphere of pop culture.

Rippon's life as a skater, free to go almost anywhere unrecognized, is now gone.

Since competing in the Games, he headlined a 22-city Stars on Ice U.S. tour. He won the Mirror Ball trophy — "Dancing with the Stars" version of the Olympic gold medal. He has participated in speaking engagements, made a guest appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" and graced the front page of The New York Times.

In a brief moment of downtime, while driving along a Los Angeles highway after his first weekend off from dancing, skating and media, Rippon reflected on how much his life has changed, his experience at the Olympics and what it was like to compete against Tonya Harding and to win on "Dancing with the Stars."
 

SKATING magazine: Where are you right now, and where will you be in the coming days?

Rippon: I know where I am today. I am in Los Angeles and it feels good to be home. I had my first weekend off but I got sick. Where will I be tomorrow? As far as tomorrow goes, not a clue. Right now, it's all about walking through open doors. I have waited so long to get here. I am just going to enjoy the experience.

SKATING: But you are home now. It must feel good to at least put some of your clothes away in drawers.

Rippon: (laughing) I think you're assuming that I put my things away in drawers. But I know what you mean. I wasn't expecting all of this, and I am trying to just take it all in stride. I wasn't expecting to be tweeted at by the vice president of the United States. Being tweeted at by Britney Spears and Reese Witherspoon was fun, but being heckled by the vice president … that I did not expect. It really changed everything for me.

SKATING: Prior to the Olympics, you probably did not get recognized in public too often. What is life for you like now?

Rippon: Wherever I go, usually one or two people will come up to me for something. It might be from the Olympics, or from being on "Ellen" or "Dancing with the Stars." It could be a little bit of everything. I was at the car wash and a lady asked, "Are you that dancer?"

SKATING: Contrast that to before.

Rippon: Before the Olympics, I was recognized like never. Well, maybe once or twice. I was recognized at a Whole Foods by a skater.

SKATING: Are you enjoying the recognition?

Rippon: I am having fun with it. Nine times out of 10, people just want to say hi and take a picture. Who doesn't like a good picture, right? I'm OK with that. 

SKATING: Did you ever imagine a world that would be so supportive of people being open about their sexuality? It took you a while to come out publicly (which you did in this magazine in October 2015). Now you are involved with organizations such as GLAAD and the Trevor Project, which provides suicide prevention services to people in the LBGTQ community.

Rippon: I know. Ten years ago, I would not have gotten this reaction. People have grown up. People's ideas have changed, and I know a lot of athletes have come before me to make the journey easier for me.

SKATING: When you think about it, the timing could not have been any better for you to emerge on the scene and to have this opportunity to be a voice in the LBGTQ community.

Rippon: I could not have planned it any better. And given the current political climate, that's encouraging.

SKATING: Do you think you might get involved in politics?

Rippon: I absolutely see myself getting involved in different charities and causes, whether it's with the LBGTQ community or not. I want to make sure the charities I choose to work with really speak to me so that I can represent them well. I enjoy politics so much, and I want to be more involved but I don't necessarily see myself as a politician.

SKATING: You have always enjoyed coaching and choreography, and even did a lot of that when you took some time off from competitive skating. Is that an avenue you still might pursue?

Rippon: I really love working with kids, and I love skating so much. I have been a skater for 20 years of my life, and I want to keep skating to stay in shape. No matter what I do next, I want to stay on the ice at least three times a week. Even with the craziness of doing Stars on Ice and "Dancing with the Stars," I still loved being on the ice. Just having the wind blow in my face when I was on the ice — it's just really magical. Mirai (Nagasu) and I would talk about that a lot. It's going to take me 20 years to have 20 years of experience in something else. Skating will always be a part of my life.

Read the full interview in the August/September issue of SKATING magazine, out now.