BEFORE YOU READ:
Nathan Chen was named Most Valuable Skater at the 2023 International Skating Union (ISU) Awards on Sunday.
The recognition came a year after the 23-year-old Utah native became the first Asian American male figure skater to win gold at the Winter Olympics. Previously, he had won three consecutive World titles.
The ISU spoke on Chen’s accomplishment on Sunday:
The 2022 Olympic and three-time ISU World Champion Nathan Chen has promoted Figure Skating in the USA and worldwide with his unique achievements and engages hundred thousands of people online. The university student reaches an audience beyond the usual skating fans and recently has published his autobiography telling the story of his success.
Chen was up against fellow nominees Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France and Anna Shcherbakova of Russia for the award.
The French couple has collected five World titles, six consecutive European titles and an Olympic gold (2022) and silver (2018) in Ice Dance, while Shcherbakova has received one World title, two European silvers, four golds at ISU Grand Prix events, a silver at the ISU Grand Prix Final and a gold at the last Winter Olympics.
Chen is currently studying statistics and data science at Yale.
He reportedly has a year and a half remaining until he completes his degree.
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He recently collaborated on a fiction picture book titled “Wei Skates On,” which is expected to be published later this month. It tells the story of a Chinese American boy who discovers a love for skating with the help of his mother — drawing inspiration from Chen’s own life.
Twitter users congratulated Chen on his latest recognition:
