Nathan Chen
Olympic and world champion figure skater known as the Quad King.
Last updated
He holds the highest winning percentage in the modern era, with a winning streak from 2018 to 2021.[1] Various news outlets have described Nathan Chen as among the greatest male figure skaters ever.[1]
Key facts and history
Chen started skating at age three after his mother gave him figure skates instead of hockey skates.[2] At age 10, Chen became the youngest U.S. novice men's champion in history.[3] At the 2018 Winter Olympics, Chen placed 17th in the short program but rebounded to finish fifth overall.[4][5] Chen won the Olympic gold medal in men's figure skating at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.[6]
Nathan Wei Chen came into the world in Salt Lake City, Utah; his father Zhidong Chen and mother Hetty Wang are immigrants from China.[2] Alice, Tony, Colin, and Janice Chen are his four older siblings.[2] Gymnastics and ballet lessons were arranged by his mother to boost his skating abilities.[7] For over six years, he took training at Ballet West Academy and also reached the state level in gymnastics.[7]
What the cited sources add
An ABC News article from 2010 notes that Chen's coach Genia Chernyshova said, "He is that young, he is that good"[8] The ABC News article also states that Chen still attended public school rather than being home-schooled.[8] An ESPN article describes Chen's biomechanics and perfectionist mindset as making him a revolutionary figure.[9] The ESPN article also notes that Chen likens the exertion of a quadruple jump to weightlifting.[9]
References
- Wikipedia, "Nathan Chen" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Longman, "How Nathan Chen Won Gold in Men's Figure Skating", The New York Times, February 10, 2022; Ford, "One Giant Leap: Nathan Chen, the Quad King, has figure skating's most daring move down cold. Will he take the sport to new heights at the Olympics?", ESPN.com, 2018-02-08 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Nathan Chen" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "What do skating star Nathan Chen and Utah's richest man have in common? Both will shape the 2034 Olympics.", The Salt Lake Tribune; Walker, "How gold medalist Nathan Chen hopes to inspire future Olympians with SLC 2030 bid", www.ksl.com; Pham, "Nathan Chen Is the 'Baby' of 5 Kids—Meet the Olympian's Parents & Siblings", Yahoo!, February 5, 2022; Jag, "A mother's sacrifice, 'Rocket Man' and a little fun: How Nathan Chen earned gold and redemption in Beijing", The Salt Lake Tribune, February 9, 2022; Pham, "Nathan Chen Is the 'Baby' of 5 Kid en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Nathan Chen" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Rutherford, "Nathan Chen's Attempt For Fifth Straight Title Headlines Figure Skating Nationals", Team USA, January 14, 2021; Walker, "Nathan Chen makes history in Greensboro", Golden Skate, January 24, 2011; Walker, "Chen nabs junior men's title at U.S. Nationals", Golden Skate, January 25, 2012; Zinsmeister, "Long, Kaugars, Chen top podiums at Gardena", IceNetwork.com, April 14, 2012 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Nathan Chen" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lutz, "Nathan Chen stumbles during team event short program", NBC Sports, February 9, 2018; Brennan, "Adam Rippon, Mirai Nagasu lead USA to team figure skating medal at 2018 Winter Olympics", USA Today, February 11, 2018 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Nathan Chen" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Graham, "'Honestly, it was bad': Nathan Chen bombs in Olympic short program as Hanyu shines", The Guardian, February 16, 2018; Lee, "Nathan Chen was in 17th place when he began to skate. Then he made history.", NBC News, February 17, 2018; "Winter Olympics: Nathan Chen Rebounds With 6 Quads in Free Skate", people.com, March 17, 2023; Rogers, "Olympics figure skating: Adam Rippon, Mirai Nagasu snubbed for gala", USA Today, February 24, 2018 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Jag, "A mother's sacrifice, 'Rocket Man' and a little fun: How Nathan Chen earned gold and redemption in Beijing", The Salt Lake Tribune, February 9, 2022. facts only, no text reused. sltrib.com
- Wikipedia, "Nathan Chen" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hersh, "A look back at Nathan Chen's ballet beginnings", KSHB, February 12, 2022; Berman, "Person of the Week: Nathan Chen – ABC News", ABC News, February 19, 2010; Chen, "One Jump At a Time", HarperCollins, 2022, p. 22–23; Walker, "Chen focuses on improvement", Golden Skate, August 15, 2010; Beheshti, "Why Nathan Chen Didn't Bring His Phone To The Olympics: A Lesson In Creativity And Focus", Forbes, February 16, 2022; Fannin, "The 30-year-old female founder at the forefront of a billion-dollar bet on CRISPR gene editing", CNBC, March 12, 2 en.wikipedia.org
- Berman, "Person of the Week: Nathan Chen – ABC News", ABC News, February 19, 2010. facts only, no text reused. abcnews.go.com
- Ford, "One Giant Leap: Nathan Chen, the Quad King, has figure skating's most daring move down cold. Will he take the sport to new heights at the Olympics?", ESPN.com, 2018-02-08. facts only, no text reused. espn.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Nathan Chen (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
Career statistics and honours
Awards and honours
Chronological list of world record scores in the +5/-5 GOE system
| Date | Segment | Score | Event | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 20, 2018 | Free skate | 189.99 | 2018 Skate America | Chen broke Mikhail Kolyada's record from September 2018. |
| Combined total | 280.57 | Chen broke Shoma Uno's record from September 2018. | ||
| March 23, 2019 | Free skate | 216.02 | 2019 World Championships | Chen broke Yuzuru Hanyu's record from November 2018. |
| Combined total | 323.42 | Chen broke Hanyu's record from November 2018. | ||
| December 7, 2019 | Free skate | 224.92 | 2019–20 Grand Prix Final | Chen broke his own record from March 2019. |
| Combined total | 335.30 | Chen broke his own record from March 2019. | ||
| February 8, 2022 | Short program | 113.97 | 2022 Winter Olympics | Chen broke Hanyu's record from February 2020. |
Tables copied from the source article, totals included as the source gives them: Wikipedia: Nathan Chen (CC BY-SA 4.0). Wide tables scroll sideways.
More in Olympic Champions
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Nathan Chen (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Statistics, medals and awards: the tables of the source article.
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