CHU, Sidney

Sidney Chu, born and raised in Hong Kong, was the flag-bearer for the 2022 Winter Olympics Games opening ceremony in Beijing, China. Sidney took up Ice Hockey alongside his Canadian schoolmates in local ice rinks in Hong Kong while in elementary school. Sidney then made the transition to Short Track Speed Skating at the age of 12, after trying out an interest class in Hong Kong. As there were no international-standard ice rinks in the city, During his schooling in Hong Kong, Sidney often travelled to different cities in mainland China and South Korea to conduct training during the weekends, holidays and semester-long leaves. In 2015, Sidney joined the Hong Kong Youth team and joined the Hong Kong team after competing in his first World Championships in 2016. 

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Despite suffering from a bimalleolar ankle fracture just two months prior to the 2018 Olympic qualifying competitions, Sidney competed at the 2018 Olympic qualifying World Cup competitions. While Sidney was unable to secure an Olympic quota for Hong Kong in Short Track Speed Skating in the 2018 Winter Olympics, he set his sights on qualifying for the 2022 Winter Olympics. While training with the U.S. national team, Sidney continued to juggle his studies and graduated from the George Washington University with a degree in molecular biology and public health. 

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After competing in the 2022 Winter Olympics in the 500m event for Short Track Speed Skating and placing 24th/32, Sidney went on to become the founding director of the Hong Kong Speed Skating Academy. The Hong Kong Speed Skating Academy utilized the public interest and momentum from the 2022 Winter Olympics to popularize Short Track Speed Skating in Hong Kong –– providing experiential classes and regular professional training to over 300 individuals and counting. While maintaining his own training and leadership responsibilities with the Academy, Sidney is currently pursuing his Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School.