It's been one year since the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 and a lot has changed for
Adam Rippon.
On Feb. 12 2018, in PyeongChang, South Korea, Rippon stood next to his teammates, including then-training mate
Nathan Chen and soon-to-be fellow
Dancing with the Stars competitor
Mirai Nagasu, and received his Olympic Team Event bronze medal. A year later almost to the day, Feb. 7-10, 2019, Rippon
watched the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2019 from the sidelines as a spectator and co-host of the post-competition gala.
"I tried to be a cheerleader and a good teammate to my other teammates because when I was able to do that, that's when I felt like I was able to raise my teammates up, but also be my best as well," Rippon said of his last few years as a competitor on a bonus episode of
ice talk, recorded in Anaheim, California, during the men's free skate. "Now, sitting and watching, it feels very appropriate. It feels right and I'm really happy that I can be here and cheer everybody on."
While Rippon
officially retired from competition in November of last year, his passion for skating and his great sense of humor remains solidly in tact.
"I continue to skate because it's something that's unique," the four-time U.S. medalist said. "And when you're in this skating family, you're connected forever."
This season, Rippon remained close to the sport through former training mate
Mariah Bell:
he choreographed her 2018-19 short program set to "To Love You More" by Celine Dion.
"Getting to work with Mariah was so fun because we got to train together for a few seasons," he shared. "I felt like I knew the direction that I wanted her to take... she's improving so much and I think she's really well on her way to believing that she's as good as everybody thinks she is."
Sure enough, Bell won the ISU short program small bronze medal for her performance of Rippon's choreography at the HONDA Center, which tied for her personal best of 70.02 points.
Even if he spends less time on the ice these days, Rippon remains just as much of a fan of the sport and uses his ever-growing social media platforms to continue to draw attention to figure skating.
"I've always loved skating and I think it's something that's fun and it's different," the 2016 U.S. champion said. "In a way, I'm able to share skating with them and I'm able to introduce them to skating and why I love it."
Also on the podcast, Rippon, whose schedule hasn't slowed down since last February, shared a couple new projects that are in the works: "I signed a deal with YouTube, so I'm starting a channel, which is going to be really fun. I'm working with a really great production team, so we're gonna have a lot of fun with that."
"I'm writing a book, which I'm so naive because I just thought it was going to be so much easier than it is," he continued, adding with his usual dry humor, "I have to, like, write it. Wish someone had told me that."
He also teased
ice talk listeners with a big announcement, only revealing that he has "a really big project coming up, but it's still sort of in the works."
Although Rippon has left competition, his figure skating career will only continue to shape the course of his life: "February 2018 was a wild month and it definitely, completely changed everything. It changed my whole entire life, and I'm so grateful for it."
Listen to ice talk's full chat with Rippon on
Apple or
Spotify.
