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Sport & Hobbies

Amber Glenn: The Olympian Who Loves Magic: The Gathering

Source: Polygon

Published on: Feb 09, 2026

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Age Group: year-4

Reading Level: advanced

Amber Glenn is a famous figure skater who skates for Team USA. She has won a gold medal at a big competition, and she trains very hard to be ready for the Olympic Games. Many people know her for her beautiful jumps and spins on the ice. But there is something surprising about Amber that not everyone knows.

When Amber is not training or performing, she loves to play a card game called Magic: The Gathering. This game is a type of strategy card game. Players use special cards with creatures, spells, and powers. They have to think carefully, plan their moves, and try to outsmart their opponent. Amber is not just a casual player. She is a superfan of the game.

Being an Olympian can be very stressful. There is a lot of pressure to do well. Amber has to practise for many hours, travel to competitions, and perform in front of huge crowds. People watch her on television and expect her to be almost perfect. This can make any athlete feel nervous or worried.

Magic: The Gathering helps Amber stay calm and grounded. In this article, grounded means feeling steady, balanced, and like your feet are firmly on the ground, even when life is busy or scary. When Amber sits down to play, she can focus on the cards instead of her worries. She has to think about which card to play next, how to protect her life points, and how to build a strong deck. This kind of thinking takes her mind away from the pressure of the ice rink.

The game also gives Amber a way to relax with friends. She can laugh, talk, and share her love of the game with other players. Instead of people only seeing her as a serious athlete, they can see her as a person who enjoys games and stories. Magic: The Gathering has many different worlds and characters, so it can feel like going on an adventure without leaving the table.

Playing Magic can even help Amber with her skating. The game teaches her to plan ahead, stay patient, and make smart choices under pressure. These are the same skills she needs when she is skating in a big competition. If she makes a mistake in the game, she learns from it and tries a new plan. If she makes a mistake on the ice, she uses that same calm thinking to fix her routine.

Amber Glenn shows that even top athletes need hobbies that help them rest their minds. Her love for Magic: The Gathering reminds us that it is healthy to have something fun to do outside of school, work, or sport. A good hobby can help us feel more balanced, more focused, and more like ourselves.

Comprehension Quiz

Choose the best answer for each question. You need to answer all questions before submitting.

1. What is the main idea of this article about Amber Glenn?

2. According to the article, how does Magic: The Gathering help Amber when she feels Olympic pressure?

3. What can you infer about Amber from the way she plays Magic: The Gathering?

4. In the article, what does the word "grounded" most nearly mean?

5. Why does playing Magic: The Gathering help Amber in her skating performances?

New Vocabulary

4 words

🌟 Expand your vocabulary and boost your reading skills!

strategy

A careful plan for winning or solving a problem; in this article, it means how Amber thinks ahead to choose the best cards in the game.

pressure

A strong feeling of stress or worry to do well; here it means how Amber feels when many people expect her to skate almost perfectly.

grounded

Feeling calm, steady, and in control; in this article, it means Amber feels balanced and not overwhelmed when she plays the game.

balanced

Having things in the right amounts so nothing is too much; here it means Amber keeps both her sport and her hobby in a healthy, steady way.