WARRINGTON, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Olympic speed skater Andrew Heo was back on the track in Beijing. His family cheered him on from home in Warrington Wednesday morning.
A dozen of his family members and friends were up early to crowd around the TV. They applauded and screamed as their 20-year-old Olympic hero circled the rink for the men’s 1,500-meter quarterfinals.
Heo came in fifth but didn’t qualify for the next round, and this was his last event. However, his dad, Pete, couldn’t be more proud.
“Just making it this far is super unbelievable,” said Pete Heo. “We’re extremely proud of my son. This whole experience, just making it to the Olympics, I can’t ask for anything more.”
Andrew Heo has been working toward this Olympic dream for much of his life. It’s a family sacrifice as well. He trained in Salt Lake City with his brother. His mother lived with them while their father ran his auto body shop back in Bucks County.
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Pete Heo wasn’t sure when Andrew would make his way back to the states. He said this experience was extremely valuable for his son, and they’ll discuss his future and possible plans for the next winter games in four years.
“I’m pretty sure he’s gonna want to go for four more years,” he said of his son. “He’ll be more mature by then, more experienced. Hopefully that will be his second Olympics that he’ll be going into, so he’ll be more comfortable, maybe less nervous at the same time. I think he’ll definitely do better.”