By Claire Daly

For Benjamin Oh, there wasn’t a single moment when he realized that speed skating was something he wanted to pursue seriously. But, as he started improving, he loved the adrenaline rush that came with achieving faster and faster speeds.

The University of Pennsylvania sophomore grew up ice-skating and playing ice hockey. He always thought that speed skating was a cool sport, and, after watching the 2010 Winter Olympics, he decided to try it.

Now he is a nationally ranked competitive short-track speed skater

There are two forms of speed skating, short track and long track. Short track takes place on an Olympic-sized hockey rink, with a 111-meter track. Long track is on special a 400-meter track. Oh chose short track for its accessibility and fast pace.

To improve in speed skating, it is a combination of working on technique on the ice and getting stronger off the ice, he says, and form comes with practice. Oh says it is a lot about figuring out what technique works best for the individual skater. He also says that it takes a while to get used to the speed and skating on blades the width of toothpicks.

After high school, according to Oh, who hails from Burtonsville, Md., most high level short track skaters move to Salt Lake City, the headquarters of U.S. Speedskating, to train full time. For Oh, that was never an option since he wanted to pursue higher education, and Penn was his dream school.

At Penn, Oh plays for the men’s club ice hockey team. As a student-athlete, Oh says that it can be difficult to keep a balance between speed skating, academics and extracurricular activities. Although currently undeclared, he is planning on majoring in philosophy, politics and economics.

Oh is also involved in cultural groups including the Penn Taiwanese Society and Korean Students Association and in community service groups focusing on college access and readiness, as well as participating in the Robert F. Kennedy Young Leaders program.

As an athlete outside of the Penn varsity system, Oh sets his own workout schedule and decides what he does, and he says that his professors have been very supportive.

The official short-track speed skating season begins in August and ends in March, but Oh trains year-round. For on-ice practice, he uses rinks near his hometown. For off-ice conditioning, he works out twice a day, for two-and-a-half to three hours per workout, making it a time commitment comparable to that of a varsity athlete.

Oh has had a successful speed skating career thus far. Earlier this year, he was selected by U.S. Speedskating to represent the United States at the 27th Winter Universiade, a multi-sport event in Granada, Spain, that took place in February. There were 12 skaters on the U.S. team and Oh was the only one who was selected from outside the national training facility in Salt Lake City and the only full-time college student.

He also placed seventh out of 30 at the U.S. Short Track Junior Championships in Salt Lake City in January.

Oh is now focusing his efforts on preparing for the Junior Nationals competition in Midland, Mich., Dec. 18 -20. It will be his last year in the Junior division, which is for skaters younger that 19. As the reigning National Champion in his age group, Oh hopes to go out with a strong ending and make the U.S. team again.

He says he hopes more people become involved in the sport.

“I would love to see it get more national recognition. If we could get collegiate speed skating that would be amazing,” Oh says, although he acknowledges that it might be a while before the sport officially makes its way onto college campuses.

He says speed skating has taught him the value of hard work and perseverance.

“Seeing the progression of where I started to where I am now is really motivating.”

He says he wouldn’t be here without the support of his parents and his coach.

Oh says, “A lot of my success is thanks to other people.”

On days when he is tired and looses motivation, he remembers his dream.

“My goal ultimately is to make the Olympic team,” he says, and it’s something that he keeps in the back of his mind when training.