HUNTLEY – Illinois native and pairs figure skater Alexa Knierim is headed to the Olympics again, this time performing with a new partner and encountering new protocols.
Knierim, of Addison, competed with her husband, Chris, in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Seoul. After Chris’s retirement, Knierim continued to skate with a new partner, Brandon Frazier.
The two managed to team up in the middle of the pandemic, ultimately qualifying for the 2022 Olympics in Beijing.
Knierim is thrilled to attend her second Olympics, and is the first U.S. pairs skater in twenty years to qualify for two consecutive Olympic teams.
“It’s an advantage to be going a second time, because you’ve been there once, so you can go off of experience,” she said.
However, Knierim said that due to Covid restrictions, this year’s experience will look very different. Knierim and the other Olympians will live in a quarantined environment, be tested daily, and will not be allowed to have family attend.
“This Olympics will be like no other,” Knierim said.
Not only is Knierim from Illinois, but her grandmother, Clare Schellerer hails from Huntley.
“[Knierim] lives and breathes the ice,” said Schellerer, (known to Knierim as Nona). “She is on cloud nine. This has always been her goal.”
Schellerer and her husband have been supportive grandparents since the beginning, helping take Knierim to practices and cheering her on at local competitions.
“My Nona and Poppa always supported me since I was a little girl. When I was 14, my Nona said if I won regionals, she would give me a year’s supply of Fudgsicles,” said Knierim. In true champion style, Knierim left the event with the gold medal and the frozen goodies.
While Schellerer can’t attend the Beijing games, she and her husband and neighbors plan to host a watch party to cheer on Alexa.
Schellerer not only praises her granddaughter’s skills on the ice, but also her heart of gold.
“She’s the most sweet, lovable person. She listens, she doesn’t judge, and if she can give a helping hand, she’s the first one out to do that,” Schellerer said.
True to form, Knierim offered words of wisdom to young skaters hoping to go to the Olympics. She advised skaters to be patient and to show up every day.
“It’s never too early to start dreaming,” she said.
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