Julian Macaraeg

instagram.com/julian.macaraeg

Club / Team	Flushing Meadows Speed Skating Club: New York, NY, USA
Reason for choosing this sport	He played ice hockey when he was younger. "Someone said I was very fast and that I should try speed skating."
Name of coach	Valentyn Danilovskye, UKR
When and where did you begin this sport?	He took up short track in 2010 in New York, NY, United States of America.

Hero / Idol	US short track skaters JR Celski and Apolo Anton Ohno. (isu.org, 28 Oct 2021; Athlete, 05 Nov 2018)
Injuries	He sustained an injury to his left foot during competition at the 2021 World Championships in Dordrecht, Netherlands. (mb.com.ph, 07 Mar 2021) In 2018 he sustained a cut to his ankle that kept him out of action for six weeks. (Athlete, 05 Nov 2018)
Memorable sporting achievement	Making his World Cup debut in 2018 in Calgary, AB, Canada. (Athlete, 05 Nov 2018; SportsDeskOnline, 05 Nov 2018)
Sporting philosophy / motto	"Work hard, push your limits and do what you love." (Athlete, 05 Nov 2018)
Ambitions	To compete at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. (insidethegames.biz, 20 Jul 2021)
Milestones	He became the first short track skater from the Philippines to compete at the world championships when he took to the ice at the 2021 Championships in Dordrecht, the Netherlands. (SportsDeskOnline, 23 Sep 2021; businessmirror.com.ph, 16 Sep 2021)
Other information	REPRESENTING THE PHILIPPINES Born in New York, NY, United States of America, both his parents are from the Philippines. (isu.org, 28 Oct 2021) US TRAINING In 2021, with his usual ice rink closed in New York, NY, United States of America, he trained with the US short track team in Salt Lake City, Utah. "Stephen Gough [US head coach] used to be my coach at my club in New York so I asked him whether I could train with them. He was willing enough to accept me in the team, which has been amazing. I had to be with a bigger and stronger team as I was lacking the training." (isu.org, 28 Oct 2021)