Phenom Chen soars to men’s title
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Nathan Chen dazzled again with his remarkable athleticism to pull off breathtaking quadruple jumps, skating the final routine to a commanding U.S. national championship Saturday night.
Chen, 18, all but secured his spot for next month’s Pyeongchang Olympics.
With improved poise and style, not to mention his new Vera Wang costumes, Chen completed five quads to beat second-place Ross Miner with a total score of 315.23 — a startling 40.72-point lead that set him completely apart.
And Chen is considered the Americans’ best medal hopeful if he is chosen for the team. Now, the U.S. Figure Skating selection committee will consider body of work to decide on the three skaters to represent next month in South Korea.
Vincent Zhou, another prodigious jumper, was third.
“I’m very happy with tonight. I laid out a five-quad program, which I haven’t been able to do all season,” Chen said. “Obviously, I made a mistake on the axel, and I’ll have to address that at some point back home. Ultimately, I’m very happy with tonight and I think I really did my job here.”
The crowd-pleasing Miner skated a near-flawless routine to a Queen medley and had SAP Center rocking and clapping along. He pumped his right fist after a double axel that made for a clean, lighthearted program in which he fully got into his music for all to appreciate. The 26-year-old Miner earned a standing ovation and beamed while putting his hand to his heart in appreciation. He scored 185.60 for a 274.51 total.
Zhou, a 17-year-old rising star skating in his hometown dancing to “Moulin Rouge,” attempted five quads and completed four in his technically difficult program — one quad was in combination with a triple — for a score of 273.83.
Chen is the only undefeated male skater in the world this season. The 18-year-old phenom from Salt Lake City showed why with another brilliant program. Sporting all black, Chen singled his planned triple axel as his only flaw.
After he finished sixth at last year’s world championship, his jumps were perfect this time.