Published 10 hours ago • loading... • Updated 10 hours ago

Speed skater Casey Dawson takes advantage of Utah's Olympic pipeline

Training at the Utah Olympic Oval, Dawson prepares for the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics scheduled Feb. 7-21, as he trains in his hometown. Dawson is a two-time Olympian and will compete for the U.S. long-track speedskating team.
Growing up in Salt Lake City, Dawson was immersed in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics legacy and joined an after-school intro to speedskating at age 10, advancing to the national team within seven years.
Dawson's quick ascent—national team within seven years—led to a 2022 Olympic medal after being coached by Olympians as a child, winning bronze in the team pursuit at Beijing 2022.
Repurposed Olympic venues like Utah Olympic Oval serve as after-school hubs and elite training sites, feeding a local talent pipeline that produced many of this year's Olympic athletes from Utah and helped secure a 2034 Games bid.
Updated Jan 27, 2026: U.S. Speedskating remains based at the Utah Olympic Oval, where Dawson trains at altitude with mentors like Derek Parra before heading to Milan Cortina next month for the Olympics.

Insights by Ground AI