Chad Hedrick

Chad Hedrick

Hedrick at a world cup speedskating event in Heerenveen, the Netherlands
Personal information
Nationality	American
Born	(1977-04-17) April 17, 1977 (age 40) Spring, Texas
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	78.02 kg (172.0 lb; 12.286 st)
Website	Official site
World Cup wins	1500 m – Netherlands 5000 m – Italy 1500 m – USA 5000 m – Canada
World championship wins	2004 overall
Sport
Country	United States
Sport	Speed skating
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	500 m: 35.52 (2009) 1000 m: 1:07.33 (2009) 1500 m: 1:42.14 (2009) 3000 m: 3:39.02 (2005) 5000 m: 6:09.68 (2005) 10 000 m: 12:55.11 (2005)
Medal record Men's speed skating Representing the  United States Olympic Games 2006 Turin 5000 m 2006 Turin 10000 m 2010 Vancouver Team pursuit 2006 Turin 1500 m 2010 Vancouver 1000 m World Championships 2004 Hamar Allround 2004 Seoul 5000 m 2005 Inzell 5000 m 2005 Moscow Allround 2004 Seoul 10000 m 2005 Inzell 10000 m

Chad Hedrick (born April 17, 1977) is an American inline speed skater and ice speed skater. He was born in Spring, Texas.

Hedrick revolutionized the inline speed skating world with his unique technique, called the double push, or DP. During his career he won 93 national championships and 50 world championships, as well as having a brand of inline skating wheels named after him.

After winning his 50th World Championship, in Oostende, Belgium, in 2002, he switched to ice speed skating after watching, on a television in a Las Vegas casino in 2002, fellow inline skater Derek Parra win a medal at the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. In February 2004, a year and a half after he made his switch, Hedrick won the 2004 World Allround Speed Skating Championships, knocking more than a point off the world record points, reducing it to 150.478. On March 12, 2004, Hedrick won the gold medal in the 5,000 meters during the 2004 World Single Distance Championships, which were held Seoul, South Korea. In 2005 he successfully defended his 5,000 m world title in Inzell, Germany. At the 2005 World Allround Speed Skating Championships he lost his title to Shani Davis. Hedrick has set six world records in speed skating, but these have later been broken by others. He is currently 3rd in the unofficial world ranking, the Adelskalender after having led the rankings from November 2005-7. Hedrick is also one of only six men to have broken the 13 minute barrier on the 10,000 m more than once (the others being Jochem Uytdehaage, Sven Kramer, Lasse Sætre, Eskil Ervik and Carl Verheijen).