Cedar Rapids native Timothy LeDuc living an Olympic dream

It turns out dreams sometimes really do come true.

Just ask Timothy LeDuc.

Watching the Winter Olympics in 2002 as a 12-year-old living in Cedar Rapids, LeDuc dreamed of competing on the World’s biggest stage one day.

That day is about here.

With pairs partner Ashley Cain-Gribble, LeDuc will compete in the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing after winning their second national title in the past four years.

Opening ceremonies for the Winter Olympics are Friday, but competition kicks off today in curling and luge. The pairs figuring skating competition is Feb. 18-19.

“Exactly the way we dreamed,” LeDuc said during a phone interview from their training facility in Euless, Texas.

“Right now we’re living a dream,” Cain-Gribble said.

This has not been an easy journey for LeDuc or Cain-Gribble. Both have faced backlash along the way.

LeDuc, 31, came out as gay at 18 years old, but it really wasn’t part of their figure skating conversation until 2018. Last year, LeDuc started identifying as nonbinary and began using they/them pronouns.

They are proud to be one of the first — and one of the few — openly gay competitors and now the first openly nonbinary Winter Olympian.

“It’s been a very challenging journey,” they said. “We just haven’t been able to be open ...”

They are hopeful “when people hear my story” they see it for what it is — inspiring and authentic.

“I have been told I don’t belong,” LeDuc said. “Both of us have really had to flight to be accepted.”

Cain-Gribble’s “issues” have been about her size. At 5-foot-7, she is considered too tall to be an elite pairs figure skater. She said she’s been “body-shamed” to her face, as well as on social media.

“Ashley and I have had an up and down journey,” LeDuc said. “Nothing has ever deterred us.”

The competition road also has been bumpy at times. After winning their first national title in 2019, the duo placed ninth at the World Championships.

The next year started with a gold at the CS U.S. Classic. They finished fourth at the national championships and made the World Championships team, but that event was canceled by COVID-19.

They also placed fourth at the 2021 U.S. Championships and, again, finished ninth at the World Championships.

This season has been less of a roller-coaster, culminating with the U.S. title and the Olympics berth.

“It’s definitely been a journey,” LeDuc said. “To see all the hard work pay off is pretty amazing.

“We have literally left no stone unturned.”

While they are open and proud of their journey and story, what they want most is to be seen as a pairs team with a shot and an Olympic medal.

“It means everything to us,” Cain-Gribble said of making the U.S. team. “We were really focused and determined.”

LeDuc said the two are peaking this season and are ready for whatever lies ahead.

“Ashley and my story is one of perseverance ... I’m hopeful that’s the legacy we can leave behind,” LeDuc said.

Noting the Olympic berth hadn’t sunk in yet, they said one moment so far has been “so cool.”

The two did a spot for NBC where LeDuc says “Timothy LeDuc from Cedar Rapids, Iowa.”

“That was such an awesome moment for me,” they said.

Not bad for a kid who started skating at the ImOn Ice Arena in a “Learn to Skate” program 20 years ago, then “retired” in 2012 and started skating on cruise ships with their sister, Leah.

“I’ve seen myself skating at the Olympics ...” all those years, LeDuc said. “It’s such a surreal experience.

“I’m really fortunate.”

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