By Marty Gordon
Ian Ho, a member of the Virginia Tech swim and dive team from 2015-2019, has qualified for next month’s Tokyo Olympics in the 50-meter freestyle event as a representative on the Hong Kong National Team.
While at Tech, Ho qualified for the ACC championships all four years and competed in high level collegiate meets including the NCAA championships and the Toyota U.S. Open. As a Hokie, he was a member of several team relays and competed in his own sprint events at the top collegiate level.
In the summer after his freshman year, Ho competed in the U.S. Olympic Trials and finished 36th overall in the 50-meter freestyle. After graduation, he continued his training within the states and internationally in pursuit of his Olympic dream, which has now come to be a reality.
The 2020 Olympic Games will begin July 23.
Ho grew up in Blacksburg, started swimming at the Blacksburg Aquatic Center, and swam competitively for Blacksburg’s club team, the H20kies. He also spent time in the summers at Virginia Tech’s Maroon and Orange Camp where college swimmers counsel and coach high schoolers.
From there, Ho started swimming at Virginia Tech in what is called the sprint freestyle in the 50- and 100-meter events.
Ho was named to the All-ACC Academic Team and the ACC Academic Honor Roll as a mechanical engineering major and took his training to the pool at the Christiansburg Aquatics Center.
Racing by himself at the Hong Kong LC Swimming Time Trial IV, Ho became the first man from his nation ever to get under the 22-second threshold in the 50m freestyle. In the final heat, he set a 21.97 mark, making him just the sixth Asian man in history to break the 22-second mark.
