Nathan Chen | Page 1010 | Golden Skate

Nathan Chen

Goodness, the WAG Team Final in Tokyo and Simone pulling out (sorry about the spoiler) gave me flashbacks to what happened to Nathan back in 2018! The pressure these athletes are under!
Yeah, the pressure is just insane. I think it's worse for her because it's such a team event too. She hasn't been the same the last few events. I think Nathan has a good head on his shoulders for 2022. Still makes me laugh when he says he has to make the OG team first. Like he could go and stand in the middle of the rink and not do a jump and still make the team. He doesn't seem to view himself too much as the favorite going into any event. He still says things like anyone could win and still views himself as the underdog vs Yuzu imo.
 
Goodness, the WAG Team Final in Tokyo and Simone pulling out (sorry about the spoiler) gave me flashbacks to what happened to Nathan back in 2018! The pressure these athletes are under!
I heard about Simone, and yes, I immediately thought of Nathan and the pressure he had to endure in 2018 too. I truly feel sorry for these athletes(and all other top athletes of their respective countries, of course). Things are so complicated for them. I mean, everything they do or say is scrutinized, and not only that, but having to deal with the pressures of performing at their very best. As excited as I am for Nathan for the upcoming Olympic season, I'm already feeling sorry he's going to have to be going through all of this again. I believe in his mental toughness, but I hope he's doing some mental prep work too alongside all his physical training.
 
Nathan already went through the worst of it when it comes to the dealing with pressure thing so I’m not much worried about him as that tension has already been released and he survived so he knows if the worst scenario occurs, that it’s not the end of the world. Simone is opposite in that she’s been essentially flawless and unbeatable from the start so that tension has been building up for a long time and is just now being released when she’s at the tail end of her career after she’s spent so much time being expected (successfully) to be perfect whereas Nathan was at the start of his career. Neither situation is better or worse and like I said, neither athletes have anything to prove but I do think the scenarios are a bit different so don’t worry too much. Nathan’s got it.

I’m willing to bet he was more nervous than excited last time and that this time will be the reverse :)
 
Nathan already went through the worst of it when it comes to the dealing with pressure thing so I’m not much worried about him as that tension has already been released and he survived so he knows if the worst scenario occurs, that it’s not the end of the world. Simone is opposite in that she’s been essentially flawless and unbeatable from the start so that tension has been building up for a long time and is just now being released when she’s at the tail end of her career after she’s spent so much time being expected (successfully) to be perfect whereas Nathan was at the start of his career. Neither situation is better or worse and like I said, neither athletes have anything to prove but I do think the scenarios are a bit different so don’t worry too much. Nathan’s got it.

I’m willing to bet he was more nervous than excited last time and that this time will be the reverse :)

I admire your optimism. Thank goodness you have taken to posting more often :clap:
 
The Hanyu fans are a mixed bag. Many are kind and supportive fans who offer their support to Yuzuru, but admire other skaters and are lovely, positive people. Others tear down other skaters, either in terms of their abilities or over mistakes like this. While Nathan's comment wasn't worded well and could be interpreted poorly, that doesn't make him a bad person. I think the same thing happened with Shoma a few years back. He made a couple of tasteless comments, and he was branded a misogynist. Was what he said great? No. Does it make him a bad person? No. I watched the whole interview with Nathan prior to this controversy, and I was not shocked or offended. I rather went "ooh, he could've said that better" and forgot about it. But I have seen posts that cherry-pick what Nathan said to make it seem worse. His apology was nice, and I do think he's legitimately educating himself and trying to avoid future controversies like this. And TSL did point out the stereotypes in the US over male skaters, which I'm sure affect Nathan and how he wants to be perceived. I have seen Hanyu fans who, after Nathan's apology, said that he seems genuinely sorry and accept that it was just a poor choice of words. There will also be skating fans (and not necessarily Hanyu fans) who hang onto this for years to come. Unfortunately, I think this will continue to happen over social media. A skater who is not Yuzuru messes up, and everyone hops on the bandwagon to beat them up. And I think most people disregard these comments, but sometimes they do blow up. The saddest part is that I'm sure all of the skaters dislike these fans. If you look at any interaction between any skater (especially in mens), they are all so respectful and kind. And some of the fans respect and emulate that, but others don't. One tasteless comment does not make you misogynistic or homophobic, and I'm glad that Nathan is educating himself further and a lot of the anger is dying down. He did not deserve all of the pure hate, and I have a feeling he was responding to the fans who reached out and told him "hey, this is why what you said isn't great". It's another pointless mess fueled by social media that will unfortunately continue to happen. Hopefully, this will continue to blow over and Nathan isn't too terribly affected by one comment that has been blown out of proportion.

Anyway, as much as I hate to go back to the horrors of hip-hop Mozart, hopefully that's what happens over these next few days.
 
Hello Nathan Chen fans!

This thread is your place to celebrate three time World Champion and five time US national Champion Nathan Chen

Please abide by Fan Fest rules:

Fan Fests
The Fan Fest (FF) is a place for fans to celebrate and praise their favorite skaters—not a place to pick apart their technique, skills, etc. As always, be respectful to each other's threads when posting. Keep discussions in the respective threads and do not bring up other skaters with the intent to bash, debate, critique, and/or compare. Keep in mind that even fans of the same skater may hold a diverse array of viewpoints and thoughts.

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Posts that violate Fan Fest guidelines may be warned or deleted.

Please continue to praise and celebrate Nathan Chen :cheer:
 
Whatever. Not sure why it's not discussable if it 1) is serious enough that it should qualify as a social issue, and 2) personally pertains to the well-being of the very skater this fan thread concerns with. Clearly some people don't understand how to differentiate between pure petty fan wars and actual social issues. And talk about policing the thread. Some people clearly also have way too much time on their hands.
I don’t understand how the discussion was remotely related to using FF as a combat zone for fan wars but I promise I will not probe into other FFs to combat back:)
 
Guess Nathan fans aren't "cool" enough to have a proper name?
How about... Nafans? And fans of both him and Yuzuru could be nafanyus 🙈

He doesn't seem to view himself too much as the favorite going into any event. He still says things like anyone could win and still views himself as the underdog vs Yuzu imo.
This is probably a good strategy, conscious or not. Hope he keeps it up!

according to some of those people, he is just on probation and will be scrutinized over his future action including his program and costume choices :ROFLMAO:
Would it work if he just asked Shae-Lynn for another shirt that isn't black, or is her wardrobe too manly for their tastes?

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I always saw Nathan's skating as genderless - if a girl skated to Caravan or Nemesis it would be cool too! (And anyhow it was choreographed by a woman). Refinement and emotion might be considered 'feminine', and power and athleticism 'masculine' in traditional quarters. But don't the best skaters, regardless of gender, combine all these qualities?

In my wildest dreams I skate like Nathan (minus jumps :LOL:) This doesn't make me question my own identity as a girl. Nice lines, neat feet, great expression, speed and attack are for all genders!
 
I don’t understand how the discussion was remotely related to using FF as a combat zone for fan wars but I promise I will not probe into other FFs to combat back:)
Yeah seriously. Not sure about others in this thread, but I personally wouldn’t even know what’s going on in the other FF of the supposed combat and whether people there are using it as a combat zone. I’m guessing they are, since a lot of these accusations smell strongly of projection. 🤣
 
Not sure why it's not discussable if it 1) is serious enough that it should qualify as a social issue, and 2) personally pertains to the well-being of the very skater this fan thread concerns with.

The internet bullying, which has gone for some time, long before this incident, makes me sad as well as angry, but we can't look after his well-being. We can't out-shout. And sending messages of support during a time when he probably would be better served if he just avoided social media in the first place, how effective is that? shrug.

I feel concerned, but nothing I say comes across right, because it could be seen as patronizing, and it is truly not my business. Even another Nathan fan reading this ff, someone who also wished him well, could see my expression of concern as my not having enough confidence in him and his team to somehow miraculously elude the avalanche of pressure this time around. I am sure their eyes (Nathan and his team) are wide open and what is going in Tokyo now can't escape their notice.

All that's gone down recently has swayed me toward his just choosing what works for him, whatever else. Even if he gives us hip hop Mozart and probably ruins some beloved Mozart piece for me for some time, hopefully not forever, lol. Even if he repeats my least favorite SP and FS.

So many things can go awry. He was injured going into the last Olympics and with that ambitious technical content, that will be a risk again, even without the world health crisis causing athletes to miss out on their lifelong dream at the very cusp of competing. Even Simone Biles, with all her success, who has already conquered Olympic pressure, found it a challenge this time around. So he might as well have it his way, whether the Beijing crowd gets behind him or not, whether US fed prefers to put their political support behind a lady, any lady, who might turn out for them to be the combination of Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill and Michelle Kwan, or an ice dance team who caught fire with the public, whatever. It's his chance to do what Patrick Chan advised him to do: remember why you love skating. Patrick said Nathan loves to jump. And if it means he will do 7 quads in his FS, or skate to himself playing piano and guitar version of (name your least favorite music), well... :rock:Go for it, Nathan. He's already given me more beautiful skating than I ever thought I'd see.

Now, don't hold me to this in case I come back to whine about costume or music later. I said that's how I feel *right now*. :wink:
 
How about... Nafans? And fans of both him and Yuzuru could be nafanyus 🙈


This is probably a good strategy, conscious or not. Hope he keeps it up!


Would it work if he just asked Shae-Lynn for another shirt that isn't black, or is her wardrobe too manly for their tastes?

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I always saw Nathan's skating as genderless - if a girl skated to Caravan or Nemesis it would be cool too! (And anyhow it was choreographed by a woman). Refinement and emotion might be considered 'feminine', and power and athleticism 'masculine' in traditional quarters. But don't the best skaters, regardless of gender, combine all these qualities?

In my wildest dreams I skate like Nathan (minus jumps :LOL:) This doesn't make me question my own identity as a girl. Nice lines, neat feet, great expression, speed and attack are for all genders!

OMG. I have no words. :laugh2: Nafanyus.

I sure hope Shae-lynn can come through with a costume this season, but since this is the Olympic season, I'm afraid Vera won't be sharing the spotlight. :eek2:

You said it perfectly. Yes, refinement and emotion and power and athleticism are present in the best programs, regardless of gender. And if we're lucky, also matched with interesting and beautiful music. And yeah, if I could skate I would also like to move like Nathan, the same effortless ease, same neat feet, beautiful arms and hands. Spot on emotional expression, never too much. 😍
 
Whatever. Not sure why it's not discussable if it 1) is serious enough that it should qualify as a social issue, and 2) personally pertains to the well-being of the very skater this fan thread concerns with. Clearly some people don't understand how to differentiate between pure petty fan wars and actual social issues. And talk about policing the thread. Some people clearly also have way too much time on their hands.
I'm not sure if there's some confusion here since some of you might not have seen the latest posts before they were deleted but, just in case there is, the warning was for bringing up the subject of the fanbase of another skater. It wasn't for the discussion on Nathan's statements. I think they're okay with the discussion on that. I understand why talking about other fanbases would be a problem since lots of people, even those not fans of Nathan, lurk around. Just thought I'd clarify.
 
How about... Nafans? And fans of both him and Yuzuru could be nafanyus

You know, I actually really appreciate the fact that Nathan's fans aren't associated with any kind of an official name. It's quite funny to see what people can come up with though :giggle:

Popular suggestions include: Nathanators, Chenthusiats, Nathan Nation and I think I forgot another one.

Oh, wow, most of those are actually pretty creative. I didn't realize the fans had actually been brainstorming ideas. Very amusing. Nathanators makes it sound like we're bullies and Chenthusiats makes it sound like we all attend Yale. :ROFLMAO:
 
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I think there are people, especially fans truly felt hurt by what he said for reasons that I might not be able to fully understand.
I'm genuinely confused and do not understand what's offensive about his words or what anyone could be hurt by, can anyone please explain this to me?? 🙄

Other than using the forbidden word “homosexual,” which is offensive to LGBTQ, he has nothing to apologize about.
Is that it? Since when is "homosexual" offensive or "forbidden"? I certainly wasn't aware of this. WTH you seriously can't use any words anymore nowadays, it is getting so ridiculous. (I'm so happy I'm surrounded by level-headed, reasonable real life people in my everyday life, who know how to recognise the true intentions of people and don't get hung up on regularly used words)

Also note, Nathan did immediately ameliorate his wording to LGBT in that same sentence, so not sure why it would be such a big offence.

...without centering around his own experience.
He was the person being interviewed about his life and experiences as an athlete, he was put into the center of attention by virtue of being the interviewee. It's pretty silly to expect him to not mention his own experiences... this is certainly different from a person expressing their unsolicited opinion on their social media platform regarding social issues etc.
 
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A little history:
Fan Fests were created so fans could discuss their favorites in safe spaces, at a time when fan wars were particularly bitter.

Fan fest rules are a little different than General Golden Skate Rules. What GS Forum Staff posted in italics are the general fan fest rules. They apply to all fan Fests, not just Nathan's.

They may be read here:


Please continue discussing and celebrating Nathan. He is awesome!
 
I'm genuinely confused and do not understand what's offensive about his words or what anyone could be hurt by, can anyone please explain this to me?? 🙄


Is that it? Since when is "homosexual" offensive or "forbidden"? I certainly wasn't aware of this. WTH you seriously can't use any words anymore nowadays, it is getting so ridiculous. (I'm so happy I'm surrounded by level-headed, reasonable real life people in my everyday life, who know how to recognise the true intentions of people and don't get hung up on regularly used words)

Also note, Nathan did immediately ameliorate his wording to LGBT in that same sentence, so not sure why it would be such a big offence.

“Homosexual” is as the N-word to blacks. Mainstream publications have banned its use. As you noted Nathan seemed to know his slipping and immediately corrected himself in the same sentence. I don’t think he intentionally use the term to offend gay skaters.

I also don’t see anything else being so offensive for him to offer an apology. I wish he had stood up for the little boys been taunted and called gays.

I wonder nowadays who are being bullied more and often - boys doing/trying figure skating or actual gay skaters.
 
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