Elliott: Nathan Chen’s quest for gold motivated by fulfillment and joy, not redemption

Nathan Chen wasn’t fairly 3 years previous when the 2002 Olympics befell in his hometown of Salt Lake Metropolis however he remembers being fascinated by the determine skaters who have been hovering and spinning throughout the TV display. Later, at a rink close to his dwelling, he’d faux to be competing on the Olympics, growing the inventive instincts and extraordinary leaping capability that may make his dream come true.

He didn’t have lengthy to attend: He was nominated to the 2018 Pyeongchang group after he gained his second straight U.S. males’s title. His ever-supportive dad and mom and siblings have been ecstatic.

He wasn’t.

“I didn’t really feel any pleasure,” Chen stated. “I used to be with my sisters, with my household, and so they have been like, ‘Are you excited? Are you wanting ahead to this?’ I used to be like, ‘Oh yeah, completely.’ However deep down I used to be like, ‘Oh, man, I’m simply dreading this expertise. I’m not wanting ahead to this. That is terrifying.’”

His worry was apparent in Pyeongchang, the place he staggered by his brief program within the group competitors. Within the males’s singles occasion, the place he was anticipated to problem defending gold medalist Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan, he outright imploded within the brief program.

Chen fell and failed to finish his required mixture soar, stepped out of a quadruple toe-loop soar, and put his arms down on the ice in touchdown a triple-axel soar. He ranked a stunning seventeenth, effectively out of medal competition. “He simply appeared so tentative, nervous,” NBC commentator and 1998 ladies’s Olympic champion Tara Lipinski stated. “You might see it in his eyes.”

Chen let free in a dynamic free-skate finale, freed of strain by realizing the worst had already occurred. He cleanly landed 5 of his six quadruple jumps and compiled the highest rating for the free skate, however he had put himself in such a deep gap that he rose solely to fifth. He obtained some comfort when he gained his first world title a month later, however Hanyu missed that occasion so it wasn’t a head-to-head victory. Chen, it appeared, had missed his golden Olympic second.

His reminiscence has mercifully deleted the gory particulars of his Olympic misadventure, and he hasn’t watched it on video. Why relive a nightmare? Chen salvaged what he may, classes that turned out to be extra useful for his psychological method than for his soar approach.

Nathan Chen skates within the males’s brief program on the U.S. determine skating championships in Nashville on Jan. 8.

(Matthew Stockman / Getty Pictures)

“I don’t actually bear in mind how that program went and felt,” he stated. “I don’t actually really feel the necessity to return and take a look at that. What I did, what I discovered, what I skilled — that’s stuff that I’m carrying already, and all that stuff has already helped me.

“I’ve already discovered an enormous lesson when it comes to methods to tackle competitions with pleasure, with happiness, with simply general pleasure, and I feel having the ability to preserve that’s crucial factor for me.”

Since Pyeongchang, he has been pushed by a quest for success, not a single-minded hunt for redemption. Now 22, with three world titles and 6 straight U.S. titles on his resume, Chen has developed a peaceful and optimistic outlook as the inspiration for his return to the Olympics and anticipated rematch with two-time gold medalist Hanyu. With out the nervousness and nerves that made his legs wobble in Pyeongchang, Chen will be his dynamic self in Beijing. That ought to be wondrous.

“This time round I’m tremendous excited. That is superior,” stated Chen, who trains with coach Rafael Arutyunyan and different elite skaters at Nice Park Ice in Irvine.

“I’ve already been there so I form of know what to anticipate, and it’s thrilling. Not typically do I get to have a chance to go to the Olympics. Two, maybe, in my complete lifetime. Trying ahead and searching again, I need to have the ability to take pleasure in this expertise.”

Chen overcame a persistent groin drawback to simply repeat as U.S. champion in early January, incomes a U.S.-record 115.39 factors for his brief program to “La Boheme.” He fell on a triple flip and obtained his legs tangled in a choreography sequence throughout his free skate to an Elton John medley however he smiled after that second misstep as a result of it was inconsequential and didn’t break his expertise. “That one I can completely snigger off, it in hindsight,” he stated. “I had a good time at nationals and actually loved myself.”

Nathan Chen competes within the males’s brief program on the U.S. determine skating championships on Jan .8.

(Mark Zaleski / Related Press)

With 328.01 factors, he completed greater than 25 forward of 17-year-old runnerup Ilia Malinin (who was not chosen for the Olympic group), almost 38 forward of third-place finisher Vincent Zhou and nearly 39 factors forward of fourth-place finisher Jason Brown. Zhou, who was sixth at Pyeongchang, and Brown, who positioned ninth on the 2014 Sochi Video games, additionally have been nominated to compete in Beijing.

Zhou is able to brilliance however is erratic; Brown is a mesmerizing artist however can’t land the quadruple jumps that increase scores within the point-based judging system. Chen is the one practical medal hope in that trio, although he insisted in any other case. “I feel this group is unimaginable, simply the quantity of expertise all of us have, the quantity of labor that we’ve put in,” Chen stated. “I feel no matter something we’re going to have the ability to have nice skates there.”

The People’ finest efforts nonetheless won’t critically push Hanyu, who has been attempting to turn out to be the primary skater to land a 4½-revolution quadruple axel soar. Hanyu almost pulled it off on the Japanese championships however two-footed the touchdown. “Lengthy earlier than I even competed towards him he was type of that benchmark for what an distinctive determine skater ought to be,” stated Chen, who defeated Hanyu by greater than 31 factors for the 2021 world title.

Chen, who paused his research at Yale to arrange for the Olympics, hasn’t determined if he’ll compete past this season. His efficiency at Beijing would possibly affect his choice, he stated, “If I’m not notably happy with the skate.” As of some weeks in the past, he was nonetheless deciding whether or not to stick with the packages he carried out on the U.S. championships or deliver again his Nemesis/Eternity brief program and Mozart-based free-skate packages from early this season. “It’s all about connection and emotion relating to deciding on these packages and doing these packages,” he stated.

What’s most necessary is that he has achieved all he can to place his dread behind him and have a joyful Olympic expertise. “I’ve definitely grown quite a bit and gained plenty of expertise over the previous 4 years,” he stated. “The Olympics are such a unprecedented competitors. Nothing prefer it. To have the ability to have 4 years in between that to proceed rising is, I feel, a very good thing.”

❤️ Support Independent Journalism

Your contribution keeps our reporting free, fearless, and accessible to everyone.

Secure via Razorpay • 12 monthly payments • Cancel anytime before next cycle