Biography

Nathan Chen, three-time World Champion, Olympic Bronze Medalist, and five-time U.S. Champion, is one of the most dominant names in men’s figure skating.

Nathan, 22, was born in Salt Lake City – the home of the 2002 Winter Olympics. He started skating because of the Olympic movement in his hometown, and he quickly became a multiple winner in the novice and junior ranks. At the 2017 U.S. Championships, Nathan ignited the crowd with a record five quadruple jumps in the free skate. His record-breaking score allowed him to become the youngest U.S. men’s champion in more than five decades.

At the 2018 U.S. Championships, Nathan followed up with another U.S. title, and earned a spot on the 2018 Olympic team. He was honored to be named to the PyeongChang team. Nathan was able to earn an Olympic Bronze medal in the team event. In the individual event, he started off the competition by faltering in the short program, placing 17th. However, Nathan did not give up. In the free skate, Nathan made Olympic history by becoming the first man to attempt six quads and land five cleanly. He placed first in the free skate with a score of 215.08, the highest in Olympic history, finishing 5th place overall. More importantly, Nathan learned valuable lessons from his first Olympic experience that he will remember throughout his competitive career. Three weeks later, Nathan competed at the 2018 World Championships in Milan. He placed first in both the short and free programs. He landed six quads in the free program, winning the 2018 world champion title.

At the 2019 World Figure Skating Championships, Nathan broke ISU world records in both the free skate (216.02) and total points (323.42), beating out two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan. At the 2019 Grand Prix Finals, Nathan defeated Yuzuru Hanyu once again, setting up one of the biggest rivalries in skating.

Nathan won the 2021 U.S. Figure Skating Championships for a fifth consecutive year. He became the first American man to accomplish the feat since two-time Olympic champion Dick Button more than 60 years ago.

At the 2021 World Figure Skating Championships, Nathan surpassed the Japanese megastar, Yuzuru Hanyu, with a masterful five-quadruple jump free skate for his third straight Worlds title. With his breathtaking performance, Nathan became the first Asian American figure skater to win three consecutive men's titles and first American man since Scott Hamilton to win at least three straight (1981-1984). “This is one I’m going to remember forever,” Nathan said. “It’s amazing — the fact that we’re able to be at this worlds after this unprecedented year. I’m very elated, I’m very happy.”

Nathan is most at home in an ice rink, and it makes sense given his family’s passion for anything on ice. Not only has he become a talented figure skater but he also loved playing hockey with his brothers. Nathan, the youngest of five children, started skating at the age of three. Nathan trained in ballet at renowned Ballet West Academy. Ultimately, he decided to focus on figure skating, and he relocated to Southern California to train with Rafael Arutunian.