Nam Nguyen VS Nathan Chen

[johndockley92]

This showdown is set for next year's JGP circuit and Nam just landed a clean 3A at the Jr worlds Prelim Round

Nam's triple triple combos were under-rotated, however they aren't always.

This is an interesting matchup and I wonder who will end up ahead in the small-asian-phenom-North American showdown. Thoughts?

[merrywidow]

Your poll won't let me post?

[nlyoung]

Seems broken to me as well...

[falling_dance]

I voted and a thread from seven years ago came up. I tried to vote a second time and got the "You have already voted in this poll" message, so I'm guessing that the first one went through.

[Jenna]

I think it's going to be pretty close. Nam is a year older, so he has the 3A. But overall, Nathan is a much more consistent competitor.

[skatesindreams]

I'm looking forward to Nathan being old enough to compete internationally.
We won't be able to answer the question until he can.

[alilou]

Nam is a phenom, extraordinarily talented and a born performer. Unfortunately he is coached by Joanne McLeod. Sigh. If he doesn't get away from her, and soon, he may never have good jump technique, so the jumps will only get harder and harder as he grows. I hate to say it, but because of that alone I am dubious about his chances of success as he ages. Sigh.

Joanne McLeod

[shine]

I don't think Nam really stands out amongst all the junior phenoms we are seeing recently. Are these two being compared particularly because they are similar in age?

[Skittl1321]

I have little/no doubt that by the time Nathan is eligible for junior competition internationally he will have a 3A.

I don't know this other kid- but it sounds like there are some good competitions in our future!

[sk9tingfan]

Not to unnecessarily drop a monkey wrench into things, but I am always worrying about what might happen to these two when they grow.....

One can only hope that this factor will be only a speed bump.

[Proustable]

I don't think Nam really stands out amongst all the junior phenoms we are seeing recently. Are these two being compared particularly because they are similar in age?

Yes. And presumably because they're both of Asian descent. And have first names beginning with N.

[mag]

Nam's parents are both really short. I think Nam will grow, but he is unlikely to hit 5'5" ( of course I think he is only about 4'5" now lol!)

[sk9tingfan]

Nam's parents are both really short. I think Nam will grow, but he is unlikely to hit 5'5" ( of course I think he is only about 4'5" now lol!)

Nathan is currently listed as 4'7" in his Ice Network Profile but who knows when it was updated. He"s still a "micro-person" as well. I actually saw Nathan's parents in the next section at Nationals but they were sitting, so I couldn't figure out his potential growth.

[pinky166]

Nathan is currently listed as 4'7" in his Ice Network Profile but who knows when it was updated. He"s still a "micro-person" as well. I actually saw Nathan's parents in the next section at Nationals but they were sitting, so I couldn't figure out his potential growth.

Most of the male Asian skaters seem to be in the 5'4"-5'7" range, so pretty small for adult men. Of course some are taller, like Nan Song. Puberty doesn't seem to be as much of an issue for male skaters though. Of course adjusting can be hard, but as boys grow up, they also become much stronger and gain upper body strength which can actually help with jumps like 3a and quads.

Anyways I believe Nathan said he is already training the 3a, and is planning to move to LA full time this coming summer so Rafael Artunian can be his full-time coach. I am not worried about Nathan getting 3a and his development in general if he's going to be under the tutledge of Artunian from now on. McLeod on the other hand....makes me worry about Nam in the long run. But for now they are both super impressive!

I bet Chen does 3a in his programs next season though, I can just see it happening, his other jumps and everything else is so solid. And even if it did take him a couple more years to get, he's still 12 so it wouldn't be a big concern.

[jl22aries]

I think a lot hinges on whether Nam gains more height and speed as he grows. To my amateur eye, it looks as though Nathan has better basics. And in that light, the system favors him.

[pinky166]

Nam's parents are both really short. I think Nam will grow, but he is unlikely to hit 5'5" ( of course I think he is only about 4'5" now lol!)

According to his ISU bio he is actually 4'11" (150 cm), so he's tiny but not nearly as small as you thought. I'm pretty sure Chen is smaller at this point, he is probably around 4'9" if I had to guess, but he is also a year younger than Nam. I hope Nam does better in the FS at JW, he had 2 mistakes in the SP which caused him to be a bit buried in the standings. But, the points are close, so he definitely has room to pull up into the top 10!

[Sylvia]

And even though he's not from North America, Shoma Uno is another "small" one (listed as 142 cm tall in his ISU bio) to watch!

[Zemgirl]

I doubt Nathan Chen is much taller than 4'7'' at the moment - looking at the podium pic from US Nationals, he is much shorter than everyone else. For comparison, Dolensky is listed at 1.70m on his ISU bio.

I think they are both very young and anything can happen, but if I had to call it - Chen seems to me more likely to succeed. It helps that he will not be called upon to be the next Patrick Chan after Sochi; I think Nguyen may face more pressure, and there's the coaching situation...

[Triple Butz]

Nguyen has landed a 3A which is a major accomplishment, but Chen is still a lot further along overall if you ask me. Nguyen's jumps are prone to under-rotation calls, most notably his 3toe in combination which is a full on toe-axel. He is young and hopefully can correct these technical issues as he grows. Chen, on the other hand has much better technique and air positions on the jumps he is able to do at this point, though he will want to be on the lookout for lip calls in the future IMO.

[pinky166]

And even though he's not from North America, Shoma Uno is another "small" one (listed as 142 cm tall in his ISU bio) to watch!

Just watched his SP! He is so adorable! Looks even smaller than Chen. Pizazz in spades. Those 3 are cutie patooties.