An 87 year old grandpa traveled to Italy to cheer on his grandson’s girlfriend at the Winter Olympics and ended up becoming an internet sensation when his granddaughter caught the heartwarming moment on video. Conrad Andringa was bundled in a hand knit hat his grandson Jesse made himself, stitched with U.S. mogul skier Tess Johnson’s name across the front and designed to triple as a hat, scarf, and mittens, as he enthusiastically cheered from the stands in Milan. His granddaughter Heidi posted the clip to TikTok where it quickly racked up more than 646,000 views and hundreds of comments crowning him the Grandpa of the Olympics, with the official Olympics account even chiming in with praise.
For those who know Conrad best, the viral moment was nothing new as he has practiced as a pediatrician for 55 years, attended every hockey and soccer game for all 12 grandchildren, and traveled to Utah for eight years to watch World Cup mogul events even after his own grandkids retired from competition. The family has known Johnson for nearly 20 years since she competed against Heidi in moguls and began dating Jesse seven years ago, with Heidi saying they love Tess so much and think of her as family. Sixteen relatives traveled to Italy for the Olympics and Jesse bought tulips in Milan that all 15 family members took turns carrying across Italy for 24 hours before presenting them to Johnson, another sweet gesture that also went viral on social media. Conrad drinks three to five Coca Colas a day and is known as the healthiest 87 year old anyone knows, with the family jokingly hoping his newfound fame might land him a sponsorship deal while he remains modest about the attention and proud it brought awareness to Heidi’s nonprofit that sends American Girl dolls to kids with cancer.
Source: https://www.aol.com/articles/she-competing-olympics-her-boyfriend-163040939.html
