Wheaton Olympian hopes her success inspires others

The memorabilia and pictures on display inside Wheaton's Hawthorne Elementary School on Saturday told a story of mother-daughter success.

The most recent items revolved around Olympic speedskater Nancy Swider-Peltz Jr., a 24-year-old Wheaton resident who competed in the recent Winter Games in Vancouver. Swider-Peltz appeared at the school to sign autographs and chat with fans.

The older pieces chronicled the accomplishments of Swider-Peltz's coach and mother, who was an Olympic speed skater herself in the 1970s and 1980s.

"Aren't those pictures great?" Swider-Peltz said, nodding toward photos of her mom's Olympic days. "They were a big inspiration to me growing up."

Swider-Peltz, who attended Hawthorne, finished ninth in the ladies' 3,000-meter speedskating race and fourth in the ladies' team pursuit competition during the Winter Olympics in February.

The Wheaton North High School grad has taken a little bit more than a month off from her training, but she said she's about ready to start it up again. Swider-Peltz hopes to compete in two more Olympics before she's done.

"Skating is a part of me now. I'm not ready to stop," she said.

It wasn't always that way. Swider-Peltz originally hoped to become an Olympic swimmer. Her mother said that changed roughly 10 years ago.

"She used to say that she didn't like skating, the skates didn't feel right on her, that kind of thing," Nancy Swider-Peltz Sr. said. "Then she tried on a pair of skates that belonged to someone I was coaching, and she said 'Mom, I want to do this.'"

Swider-Peltz Sr. said it was tough watching her daughter skate in Vancouver, because she felt torn by her reactions as a mother and her duties as a coach.

"Ultimately, I had to stay calm and objective," she said. "That was hard."

Swider-Peltz Jr., who plans to resume her studies at Wheaton College in the fall, said she hopes her experiences can inspire young people in Wheaton and beyond.

"I've tried to do some speaking inside elementary schools, to show children that they can reach their goals," she said. "I got that message from my mom growing up, and I want to pass it on."