PROFILE | Nathan Chen, Olympic gold medalist: “My next big thing is going back to school.”

This past February, Nathan Chen ’24 won the gold medal in men's singles figure skating at the 2022 Winter Olympics. He set the world record in the men’s short program after having setting the free skating world record in the 2019-20 Grand Prix Final. Now the world champion plans to leave the limelight and return to school at Yale, reminding us that Chen is more than a celebrity. Ethan Dodd ’22 reports.
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[@lohimenokawa7312]

Nathan is a young man growing up right in front of our eyes and what a pleasure and honor it is to watch him grow, so inspirational.

[@thulekovish8188]

My first impression at the end of this video is a sense of relief and happiness for Nathan Chen that for the next two years he can rest from sport and competitions and go back to his Uni life with studies and friends like any normal young person his age. The sport will miss him, I will miss him greatly but I'm totally okay with his decision. For some athletes, sport is their life; for others, sport is only a part of their life because there are other meaningful things to pursue than medals and fame. Nathan Chen belongs to the latter ones. I never see him as a celebrity but an A+ athlete, intelligent and innovative in his approach (thanks to a great coach!). He has changed this sport in two ways: technically, he pushes the boundaries of what an athlete's body can do; artistically, he keeps it simply true to himself without much artifice. He has accomplished his goals brilliantly, it's time to take a breathing.

[@cjraul7890]

Nathan is not only a celebrity! He is the 2022 Olympic Champion, a versatile and pleasant personality. Clever Nathan studies statistics and pre-med, wow, what his brain. Wish his achievements more than those champion titles, wish him the best!

[@akira4ever850409]

So glad to see he will come back to Yale to continue his studies but he is the best figure skater in this universe, I do hope to see him to compete championship and do more miracle on ice.

[@e.m.m.5626]

I will miss Nathan so much if he decides not to compete next two years but wish him all the best with his studies. Hope he will still do shows in the summer and also come to Japan for ice shows. He has a lot of fans in Japan, too.

[@tolingling]

Japanese has good taste👍

[@brendajordan764]

I want him to come back. We need him. I know he wants to continue to his studies, but we need him to not forget about us his fans who are rooting for him to succeed. Please don't leave us! 😢

[@chinamelia5566]

Nathan is such an incredible person and a high achiever that is absolutely inspirational in and out of the sport. I believe that though most of his fans got to know him because of his amazing performances on ice, we’d still love to see that he is able to live a life that he really enjoys and take a little step away from sport and competition. He deserves to enjoy his Uni life just like any ordinary person at his age. I bet people will definitely miss him, and so will I. Still, wish him all the best!

[@onetexan1058]

"You gotta know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away...". Nathan has achieved all the biggest accolades in figure skating. It's time for him to resume his studies and do bigger and better things for himself, society, and the world. Coming from such a talented family i don't doubt he will achieve great things in the future.

[@gabrielesantos5636]

So happy there are people like him on earth

[@celinegarcia4158]

Thank you so much for doing this video. Yes I'm awfully proud of Nathan not just because he is a generational super athlete who changed his sport but more so because his attitude, his humility, his work ethic, his love for his fàmily is just so crazy amazing and so inspiring. I would love to see Nathan skate forever because he is just so beautiful in his element but Nathan deserves to do what he wants to do. I wish him all the success, all the contentment & fulfillment in everything he does. Nathan Chen is a gift to us all. He is a super athlete & a super human. Best of luck to him.

[@celinegarcia4158]

Is it true that Nathan has COVID? Is he on the mend? Happy birthday to Nathan. Best wishes & true or not about the COVID rumor please be well.

[@rositalopez8036]

Ahhh! This is by far my favorite interview of Nathan!! He’s so genuine and looks super happy to get back to school🥹Love!!

[@sudowns5728]

Nathan is an outstanding young man. I wish i had a son like him. Congratulation Olympic Champion . You are a very determined person and will go far. I hadn't followed any figure skating until Olympics 22. I will miss you on the ice, at least I could watch the old videos. My husband birthday is May 5 too. With all the best wishes from St. George UT

[@user-oi3wf6up1j]

謝謝投稿，非常的喜歡💕

[@user-oi3wf6up1j]

N.athan㊗️你心想事成㊗️ 現實，不會辜負努力的人 祝你好運㊗️🎊㊗️

[@maggieli7036]

we love you Nathan❤️❤️❤️ feeling very sad we won’t see you in the competitions until you finish the school😭… always wishing you all the best!!❤️❤️❤️🙏 Thank you so much for your wonderful,beautiful skating💖💖💖🙌

[@user-oi3wf6up1j]

一直非常喜歡你的投稿。 祝福他順利完學業。

[@AMAskating]

I'll miss him as a skater, but he is smart to focus on college now. Seems like a very grounded, decent guy!

[@noran7809]

"artistic component in itself is very athletic" Exactly !

[@Sprinting72]

I’m always impressed by how well-adjusted Nathan seems in a sport which creates an atmosphere that is so, so insular for athletes. One of the best to take the ice, and he really has ensured that he has fulfillment outside of the sport, which is not an easy thing to do. I will miss him in competitive ice, but am happy that he continues to maintain such a healthy outlook on life and pursue all his goals. If he decides to return to competition after he graduates, we will know it’s because he wants to.

[@kayxiong4204]

I'm going to miss him and his skating!

[@RobertSJHu]

Glad to hear that you want to pursue your college education at Yale !!!!! You are a phenomenal inspiration to everybody !!!! I wish you only the best and want you to continue to enjoy life !!!!!!!! A grateful fan who is age 80 . Robert S.J. Hu May 7, 2022.

[@zhang1553]

I love him forever 🥺❤️

[@user-oi3wf6up1j]

🈵✊✊✊🈵

[@tolingling]

Me too

[@patdavidson7659]

What a talented, well rounded and good person. I am so proud to be from Salt Lake City, now living in Cleveland Ohio. Saw his Stars on Ice show May 6 along side of my daughter, Melynda Byrnes, who was his 1st Grade teacher in Salt Lake City, who now lives in Ohio. We are so proud of him...he is amazing!

[@7girl]

Thank you for this very cool video, Ethan!!!

[@judylee7458]

Nathan you will excel whatever your heart is set for. Of course , a lot of dedications & passion & planning. All the Best Nathan👍👍👍

[@queeniebee7736]

Best of luck, Nathan Chen! Enjoy! Bravo to a wonderful skating career!

[@jeanholley5820]

Top notch athlete and human.

[@Unfiltered494]

What a great profile on our Olympic Champion and the side of his life that we don't normally get to see. I hope he has the best time at Yale for the next 2 years, but as a fan it's sad to hear he's not planning to compete at all until graduation, especially since the past 3 seasons were covid seasons and many comps got cancelled, so we only got to see him a limited number of times. I feel like he definitely has much more to offer to the sport and hope he will be back on competitive ice in 2024.

[@divinearia1601]

Agreed. As a fan, I'm so sad he'll be stepping away from competitions, especially because he is in the prime of his skating career. As a fellow human being, I'm really glad he has so much going for him outside of skating that he doesn't need to rely on it to be successful in life. I hope to see him competing again in a few years but if he decides to hang up his skates for good then at least he has had one of the most amazing and dominating careers ever.

[@Jude74]

I agree. He definitely didn’t put as much mileage on his body so it might mean he has even more in the tank.

[@fitgraphisva]

Really good video. Personally and selfishly, I think he need not return to ISU competition. He has already changed the sport. As we do with skaters like Dick Button from the 1950s, Peggy Fleming from 60s, Janet Lynn from the 70s, etc., he will be spoken of fondly for generations to come. He has nothing to prove to anyone. On to new challenges!

[@Jude74]

Great job, this video was very good👍. As for Nathan, he deserves way more credit then he gets. If you check out the nonsense this guy had to go through, in particular at the 2019 GPF you’ll understand just how remarkable he is as an athlete and specifically as a competitor. He took his main competitor’s crazy fans reaction and turned it into a lemon to lemonade moment. Rather than freaking out he used the extra time that they created by throwing all sorts of stuff (mostly Winnie the Poo bears) on the ice to warm up and calm down. He ended up giving one of the best performances of his career and setting a world record. There is a learning moment in there that a lot of people have missed.

[@gracepei2115]

It is good to know what Nathan is going to do next! What ever he does, he will be good at it! That is Nathan!

[@kaubxaivmedia1578]

So great

[@linglingto1954]

I want to cry! so sad

[@miguelg.riverajr1155]

Way to go on earning and getting that GOLD MEDAL. Congratulations!! I think you're doing the right thing in going after your education. God bless. Have fun in all that you do.

[@shrutirraman3191]

I just hope he's able to make real friends. People who love him for who he is and not for his medal😅 All the best for everything Nathan! We'll wait for you to come back when you're ready :-)

[@treyes5177]

This is great! But on selfish side, I’m sad that we are not going to see him on the ice anymore. I think he is done with skating. Enjoy the next two years at Yale. Have the time of your life!

[@tolingling]

I’m so sad, too

[@kaiz7619]

No, he’s not done with skating, he just wants a break! 😢

[@lilingo8752]

磁性的声音，酷⚘⚘⚘❤

[@ccmcduck9669]

He has beautiful masculine artistry, such a rare joy to watch

[@meimatuno4886]

We love nathan ❤️❤️❤️ 2度と現れないだろう理想のスケーター

[@Gemini530]

There’s going to be a big void in US figure skating if Nathan retires early. I hope he sticks around for a couple more years.

[@marlo5487]

Buena decisión Natan 👍

[@madisonxaphakdy444]

I mean what more could you look up to 🤩

[@geoffreywon1706]

👍

[@pilarsoto3784]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ El patinaje artístico de Nathan me cautivó, masculino,alegre, apasionado, poderoso, sólo puedo disfrutar y ver videos pasados, Que Dios Todopoderoso guíe tus pasos querido muchachito hermoso,desde Chile con muchísimo cariño.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@andrewkuz246]

Nathan is a champion.

[@TheApang18]

Of course Andrew. Why does Nathan like skating?

[@zulthor8453]

Sports have a limited time while you can study at any time in your life... guess he c0nsidered it...

[@tolingling]

He so smart

[@lorrainejones427]

Yuma kagayama ,