Chan trapped between two worlds

[Sugar]

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/071220...ed-worlds.html
"Several years ago I felt more Canadian but I'm slowly feeling more Chinese and feel I should be more proud of being Chinese and appreciate where I've come from. (This is because) of the support I get from the Chinese community in Canada," Chan, who is fluent in English, French and Cantonese, said as he took a break from his intensive training schedule.

"I do (wish I could have represented both China and Canada when I compete). That would be the ideal situation... in a perfect world."

[agalisgv]

"If you look at all the sports in China, the government is extremely involved and they are extremely proud of their athletes. People understand better what we do as skaters," Chan told Reuters in a telephone interview ahead of this week's Grand Prix Final in Quebec.

"Sometimes I feel we are not appreciated for how much work we put in. If my parents hadn't emigrated from China and say I had skated for China, things would have been very different. My parents wouldn't have had to make as much sacrifices as they have and there would be a lot more respect for what we do as figure skaters.

"I'm extremely well recognised in Korea just because of what I do on the ice and there is a lack of that in Canada because hockey is our sport and it will be for eternity. Figure skating has lost the draw and the attention (it used to have before)."

It sounds like he wants more fame. He goes on to say:

"I skate just to satisfy my own desire and not care about other people's desire for me to do well. I barely have any interest any more in how well I do in competitions. I want to skate well but my main concern is to satisfy myself and make myself enjoy what I do on the ice and hopefully the audience can feel the same thing.

So all he cares about is making himself happy, but he wants lots of fame and adulation for doing that.

I find Chan so much easier to like when he keeps his mouth shut

[casken]

I find Chan so much easier to like when he keeps his mouth shut

I'm pretty sure you don't like Chan at all.

[agalisgv]

He used to be my favorite male skater. But then he started talking, and it's been a challenge ever since.

[casken]

He used to be my favorite male skater. But then he started talking, and it's been a challenge ever since.

Even though he's not saying anything in those comments you posted that any reasonable person would find negative in the way you do.

You can't blame Chan for your unreasonableness.

[BigB08822]

It must be easy for Chan to skate without worrying about his results with the way he gets judged.

[agalisgv]

Even though he's not saying anything in those comments you posted that any reasonable person would find negative in the way you do.

Wanting fame may not be considered a negative, depending on your values. Hard to read that quote as him not desiring that though.

"I'm extremely well recognised in Korea just because of what I do on the ice and there is a lack of that in Canada"

[reese]

This kid just can't stop saying dumb shit.

I just wish Canada loved skating!

[WildRose]

Globe and Mail article with response from Skate Canada:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sport...rticle2264092/

Patrick Chan feeling underappreciated in Canada
Globe and Mail
He was disappointed that he has not received the attention that Elvis Stojko and Kurt Browning did in the 1980s and 1990s. ...

[aftershocks]

The comment that strikes me as sad is,

Chan: "I barely have any interest any more in how well I do in competitions."

Well, why should he??? This is why I happen to think the judges are absolutely doing him no favors by continuing to score him high marks when he makes many mistakes in his programs. How can you have any frame of reference for improving when you pretty much realize that no matter if you skate clean or wobble on footwork and fall on 2 or 3 jumps, you still have the competition in the bag.

I don't think Chan needs to keep his mouth shut. He has every right to speak his mind. I think it was his relative immaturity which got him into trouble in interviews on a few occasions, but he's not a bad person -- we all have egos, and he is very competitive, as he should be. It is just too bad that the judges decided he should be the poster boy for the sport and can do no wrong on the ice. And some of the hype re Chan north of the border is just a little bit over the top -- albeit understandable since Canadians love figure skating and are overjoyed to have such a talented skater like Chan representing them.

It is just setting Chan so far above his competitors no matter how he performs which has IMHO wounded him and the sport. That's how I feel, whether or not my feelings are characterized as "hate" or whatever. Chan ubers can continue the love fest all the way to Sochi and beyond. Enjoy.

OTOH, I don't think there's anything wrong with Chan saying that he wants to "skate to satisfy his desire." Lots of skaters, athletes and performers probably feel the same way. Also, the underlined passage "... satisfy myself and make myself enjoy what I do on the ice," is IMO a completely normal way to feel. Nothing to bash him about there.

I thought the thread title, "trapped..." meant Chan is caught between the judges, the skating world, and a hard place resembling the plot of the movie Groundhog Day, in which the deadpan actor/comedian, Bill Murray, finds himself living the same day, over and over again (i.e., not progressing, not getting anywhere).

[agalisgv]

From the above link:

“I find it hard to believe he would make those comments,” Barton said Wednesday in an interview. “The fans love him and he is a hero in the skating business. He is on television with big numbers and everybody knows his name. I do not know what else you would want, other than being the most popular figure skater in Canada. That’s pretty big.”

[aftershocks]

Chan: "I'm extremely well recognised in Korea just because of what I do on the ice and there is a lack of that in Canada."

This kid just can't stop saying dumb shit.

I just wish Canada loved skating!

Well now, that does seem to be a pretty dumb statement by Chan, especially in view of how well loved he is in Canada, or is it just the Canadian media who love him, and not fans . Does he want people to come up to him on the street and clamor for his autograph wherever he goes in Canada???

In any case, Chan lives and trains in the U.S. now anyway. I think the judges scores have gone to his head in a bad way -- not in terms of ego, but in terms of making him more confused than he already is as a young adult growing up and trying to find his identity on and off the ice. Good luck, Patrick.

[flowerpower]

This kid just can't stop saying dumb shit.

I just wish Canada loved skating!

Relative to most countries, Canada does love skating, but the level of enthusiasm is never going to be like that of the Korean crowds at Yu-na's All That Skate shows.That phenomenon is driven completely by Yu-na's star status.

Patrick does say some things that could be criticized, but OTOH there seems to be a double standard at work. Other skaters are applauded for their "honesty".

[Sylvia]

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/071220...ed-worlds.html

FYI, here's the article as published on the Reuters site -- it's by a female sports journalist named Pritha Sarkar: http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/1...dChannel=11709

As I posted in the Chan thread in the Trash Can, this is what initially caught my eye:
"... Chan, who plans to introduce a quadruple-Salchow to his free skate by next month."

[aftershocks]

Relative to most countries, Canada does love skating, but the level of enthusiasm is never going to be like that of the Korean crowds at Yu-na's All That Skate shows.That phenomenon is driven completely by Yu-na's star status.

Patrick does say some things that could be criticized, but OTOH there seems to be a double standard at work. Other skaters are applauded for their "honesty".

Oh but flowerpower, I think any skater who happened to say that Korean crowds were more appreciative than fans in their country of origin, would indeed be criticized. Regarding other skaters' "honesty": e.g., Johnny Weir has said how much he appreciates the love he receives from fans in other countries, including Russia and Japan, but he also acknowledges the love he receives from fans in the U.S. -- it is just the U.S. fed that has been stingy in their love for Johnny. Not the same for Patrick (he is quite loved by his fed), and Patrick's "honesty" in some respects seems once again to be a bit of immaturity, or at the least raises questions about what exactly he means.

True, there is more of a focus on Chan's comments because he has exhibited foot-in-mouth disease on other occasions. No biggy (as I said plenty of what Chan's quoted as saying in this interview is quite normal and nothing to get too excited about). He's young and perhaps reflecting on his Asian roots, etc. Still, the way he has phrased some of his comments is kind of odd, but great fodder for discussion, which will I'm sure, continue to ensue.


ETA: In any case, why is Chan comparing himself at this stage to Elvis and Kurt, or even Brian Orser for that matter?

[IceAlisa]

The comment about China is ridiculous. It would have been so much easier for his parents in China? Really, Patrick? You'd think they'd immigrated for a reason.

[Proustable]

With that comment, I read Chan as saying: "Due to the way China's sports system works, financial hardship is not shifted to the parents. The sacrifices my parents made, such as my mother having to move with me to Florida and subsequently Colorado, would not be required there."

[Sylvia]

I interpreted Chan's comment that his "parents wouldn't have had to make as much sacrifices as they have" to mean that they would have sacrificed less financially because China's elite sports programs fund their athletes (all expenses paid for the most part?). But I'm not sure if Chan is fully aware of the "down side" of being a part of the Chinese sports machine...

[WildRose]

It's too bad Patrick has never performed in any of the Canadian shows or tours as Canada's other top eligible skaters have always done. He might be pleasantly surprised at the response he'd receive if he did.

[flowerpower]

I wasn't actually thinking of Johnny. But I get what you mean, aftershocks.

I do agree that he puts his foot in his mouth. And frankly, as a Canadian, I'd say that if he doesn't like something about our country, he's welcome to move elsewhere and skate for whichever country he wishes (if he really thinks that would be better ).

I was just commenting on the fact that N.A. skaters are criticized for being politically correct, yet also criticized when they're not politically correct. Skaters from some other countries are applauded for being blunt.