Winter Olympics: Nathan Chen has Yuzuru Hanyu in his sights as he jumps into the hunt for figure skating gold in Beijing
- Japan’s golden boy is all that stands between 22-year-old American and dominance of sport
- Olympic gold is the only major medal to allude Chen, the son of Chinese immigrants
Three-time world men’s figure skating champion Nathan Chen strapped on his first pair of skates at age three after watching his two older brothers playing ice hockey.
His parents, Chinese immigrants Hetty Wang and Chen Zhidong, got him figure skates instead – and changed the course of the sport in the process.
Chen’s route to China, where he still has relatives, has been one where he has drawn motivation from his few setbacks.
“Even if a great skate happens or a bad skate happens, I don’t think wholesale changes should occur,” Chen said. “Stick to your strengths, stick to what you know how to do, keep pushing forward.”
Chen became the first skater to hit five different quadruple-spin jumps in competition, landing a quad toe loop, Salchow, flip, loop and Lutz.
The number and variety of quad jumps Chen can work into a routine brings a dynamic few rivals can match, provided Chen performs them with his typical near-flawless precision.