Nathan Chen (#Slaythan Fans) thread

[Frida80]

Those practice reports made me nervous. But I forgot that Nathan's strength is his mental game. He really did a fantastic job this weekend. Now he can take a long stretch to focus on SA.

 

[kittysk8ts]

I can't believe the work he has done in the off season to develop such a unique personal style and programs, choreo etc. Well done to this entire team and to Nathan for pulling it off so convincingly

 

[Jammers]

Now Nathan work on that 3axel it could be what decides the Olympics not the quads.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

He's so cool and calm that he gets those jumps done.

I love that there are no nerves showing from him... Like Kristi Yamaguchi seems to be nerves of steel!!!!

And his artistry is getting much better and I adore his music choices for him...

 

[Fiero425]

He's so cool and calm that he gets those jumps done.

I love that there are no nerves showing from him... Like Kristi Yamaguchi seems to be nerves of steel!!!!

And his artistry is getting much better and I adore his music choices for him...

He won, but do we really think he's better than Hanyu? This is sorta like Yagudin/Plushenko; one with heart and soul behind his performances while the other is more a "jumping machine!" Don't get me wrong; ended up preferring Evgeni over Alexei for many reasons, but I know he was much better and proved it in the '02 Olympic season after being owned the year before! I worry if the jumps are off, Nathan has little to fall back on!

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

He won, but do we really think he's better than Hanyu? This is sorta like Yagudin/Plushenko; one with heart and soul behind his performances while the other is more a "jumping machine!" Don't get me wrong; ended up preferring Evgeni over Alexei for many reasons, but I know he was much better and proved it in the '02 Olympic season after being owned the year before! I worry if the jumps are off, Nathan has little to fall back on!

Refresh my drink.... where in the heck did I even bring up Hanyu?

I spoke about his nerves.

 

[muffinplus]

He won, but do we really think he's better than Hanyu? This is sorta like Yagudin/Plushenko; one with heart and soul behind his performances while the other is more a "jumping machine!" Don't get me wrong; ended up preferring Evgeni over Alexei for many reasons, but I know he was much better and proved it in the '02 Olympic season after being owned the year before! I worry if the jumps are off, Nathan has little to fall back on!

I don't like Hanyu's style personally. It's pretty, but I don't "get" him. I don't like Nathan's FS but the SP is very enjoyable and expressive , not just a jumping machine(I think the choreo can be even better in some spots).

 

[Fiero425]

Refresh my drink.... where in the heck did I even bring up Hanyu?

I spoke about his nerves.

That's me just going off on a tangent! I like Nathan enough, but I'm more impressed by Hanyu who's blown it in the SP!

 

[aftershocks]

Cross-posting from Shibs thread:

Watching the actual NBC replay it's interesting because you can see the party line. Of course it was 50% Nathan Chen, but they showed the Shibutani's FD. Johnny and Tara loooved it. They gave a lot of compliments to them. I know they don't know much about dance, but it's nice to see them pushing them in their non-Chen time.

The party line to me seemed more about being sure to pump up Olympic faves Hanyu and Medvedeva. Sure there was a lot about Nathan, as they showed Nathan's winning sp which deserved to be shown. However, Johnny made a lot of critical comments about Nathan as part of the 'must nitpick Nathan' contingent. It's fine, as nothing about the figure skating competitive process and rampant politics seems to faze Nathan. People forget that even despite his young age, Nathan has loads of experience skating and winning against competitors much older than him at every level of the sport over the years.

IMO, NBC is apparently making sure not to over-hype Nathan too much, as they learned their lesson from the boot snafu Nathan faced at Worlds 2017 which led to his having trouble prevailing for at least a podium spot. And yet Nathan still set records at Worlds too. In fact, Johnny had some overly critical things to say about Nathan, as did Ryan Bradley on the Olympic channel coverage. I'm fine with them tempering the over-hype of Nathan, but they are not exactly correct about the specifics of what Nathan needs to work on, nor are they giving him enough credit for his clear growth and improvements since 2015. Probably they are as usual trying to show they are not being partisan to U.S. skaters.

 

[Sylvia]

Lori Nichol is quoted (in Beverley Smith's new article about Carolina Kostner, posted both in her fan thread and in a separate thread GSD) about Nathan:

Nichol also created the free program of Nathan Chen. “I absolutely adored working with him,” she said. “He’s one of the most intelligent skaters I’ve ever met. And the moment where we broke through that intelligence and went into the realm of living in movement and through movement was a very rewarding experience.“

ETA link to a British Eurosport video of his Rostelecom Cup FS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwfNeIrcaBk

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

Here's my takeaway with Nathan thus far.

1. I SOOOO ADMIRE his Kristi-Yamaguchi-nerves-of-steel

2. When factoring BOTH programs I think he has the best COMPREHENSIVE music this season. Caro too. (There are some where I like one but not the other... ex: Shibs, Gilles & Poirier, etc.)

 

[olympic]

I’m beginning to think Nathan’s jump layout for the LP will be

4Z-3T
4F
4L
—
4T-2T-2L
4T
4S
3A
3A-2T

Since he seems to have a program that is more backloaded from last year, I don’t think he will attempt to repeat the 4Z or 4F. He might chuck the loop and go for a 2nd 4Z, but he would have to do a 3Z at the end

 

[Firedancer]

He planned to do the loop but had a hard time with it in practice during the week so he took it out. He planned:
4Lo
4F-3T
4S
-
4Lz
4T-3T
3A
3A-2T-2Lo
3Lz
I do believe we will see a program with all 5 quads at some point this season because he would be the first. I think it would be better if he repeated something other than 3A. If this is his layout, perhaps 4T.

 

[Fiero425]

He planned to do the loop but had a hard time with it in practice during the week so he took it out. He planned:
4Lo
4F-3T
4S
-
4Lz
4T-3T
3A
3A-2T-2Lo
3Lz
I do believe we will see a program with all 5 quads at some point this season because he would be the first. I think it would be better if he repeated something other than 3A. If this is his layout, perhaps 4T.

Are they using bionic parts so these guy's hips and knees can deal with all this extra torque? Yagudin's career was cut short due to those quads along with a congenital problem I think I heard he had! If not for Plushenko pushing him to do 2 quads per performance, he would have set records that would never be broken; he really was that good! I wasn't as much a fan after his treatment of Plushenko, but he definitely was elite and the best!

 

[olympic]

He planned to do the loop but had a hard time with it in practice during the week so he took it out. He planned:
4Lo
4F-3T
4S
-
4Lz
4T-3T
3A
3A-2T-2Lo
3Lz
I do believe we will see a program with all 5 quads at some point this season because he would be the first. I think it would be better if he repeated something other than 3A. If this is his layout, perhaps 4T.

Thank you @Firedancer for the clarification. Interesting to see that he indeed planned a 4Z for the 2nd half. Shoots down my theory.

I agree that he should just do a 4T instead of a 3A: Easier jump for him and more points

 

[DreamSkates]

On another note, that was a very special moment In KnC (Rostelecom Cup free skate) when Raf actually smiled plus hugged Nathan hard and close, saying "we won! we won!" Raf seemed more elated than Nathan!

 

[chapis]

Nathan and Kellogg´s https://www.instagram.com/p/Ba4AyQVFwpK/?taken-by=icenetwork
his picture in the box https://www.instagram.com/p/Ba38mM6ljQJ/?taken-by=icenetwork

 

[Interludes]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueP7EEYsEGQ

Here's a link to the commercial featuring Nathan and the other athletes that were chosen for the campaign.

 

[Meoima]

He planned to do the loop but had a hard time with it in practice during the week so he took it out. He planned:
4Lo
4F-3T
4S
-
4Lz
4T-3T
3A
3A-2T-2Lo
3Lz
I do believe we will see a program with all 5 quads at some point this season because he would be the first. I think it would be better if he repeated something other than 3A. If this is his layout, perhaps 4T.

I was there at CoR and I did not remember a clean 4Lo from Nathan in practice. Maybe it is not that good for his hip and he should take it out. Of course, I am not Nathan himself or his doctor. But if he does not do 4Lo anymore, I can see why.

 

[Fiero425]

I was there at CoR and I did not remember a clean 4Lo from Nathan in practice. Maybe it is not that good for his hip and he should take it out. Of course, I am not Nathan himself or his doctor. But if he does not do 4Lo anymore, I can see why.

These guys are going to be in wheelchairs before 30 if they don't pull back some! We saw what happened to Yagudin, but of course he had a congenital problem already! He was only putting in 2 4T's compared to today's skaters adding all the quads into their programs! I know it's more entertaining with all the quads, but I don't need them personally! A great program can be just as enjoyable to watch with no jumps if done right and the skater puts in the effort to make it so!

 

[Meoima]

These guys are going to be in wheelchairs before 30 if they don't pull back some! We saw what happened to Yagudin, but of course he had a congenital problem already! He was only putting in 2 4T's compared to today's skaters adding all the quads into their programs! I know it's more entertaining with all the quads, but I don't need them personally! A great program can be just as enjoyable to watch with no jumps if done right and the skater puts in the effort to make it so!

Well if they think their bodies can handle all these quads, it's their choices. I am worried for their bodies, but it is not my calls. It's their choices (and maybe their coaches too).

 

[Sylvia]

Nathan was interviewed by Nick Zaccardi at the Kellogg's promo event earlier today: http://olympics.nbcsports.com/2017/10/30/nathan-chen/

(@olympic should like his last answer. )

 

[olympic]

Nathan was interviewed by Nick Zaccardi at the Kellogg's promo event earlier today: http://olympics.nbcsports.com/2017/10/30/nathan-chen/

(@olympic should like his last answer. )

Yes! Thank you! Four more years!

I wonder if he will top off at 5 quads. His answer kind of kept the door open for more.

ETA - He did say something to the effect of no 4L at the beginning of the season, yet there it was ....

 

[mollymgr]

Congrats to Nathan for landing on the Kellogg's box.
I wish him all the health and luck for success in this Olympic season! It is always refreshing to see athletes as calm and collected as he is! It makes it easy to be a fan.

 

[Firedancer]

Nathan was interviewed by Nick Zaccardi at the Kellogg's promo event earlier today: http://olympics.nbcsports.com/2017/10/30/nathan-chen/

(@olympic should like his last answer. )

Great interview! Excited to hear four more years! I agree he is just getting started and has not yet accomplished enough. Also congrats on continuing to add sponsors.

 

[Firedancer]

Nathan was interviewed by CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2017/10/31/nathan-chen-thomas-intvw.cnn

Right now it sounds like he is sticking with the five quads and focusing on being clean and consistent.

 

[AxelAnnie]

Nathan was interviewed by CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2017/10/31/nathan-chen-thomas-intvw.cnn

Right now it sounds like he is sticking with the five quads and focusing on being clean and consistent.

Thanks for that. It was fun to watch.

 

[Sylvia]

Barry Wilner spoke to Nathan while he was doing his promotional work in New York (check out his Times Square billboard photo: https://twitter.com/nathanwchen/status/925842613088927744 ) and wrote this article for the Associated Press: https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/olympics/skater-nathan-chen-is-rare-us-quad-king/2017/11/01/e1078100-bf4c-11e7-9294-705f80164f6e_story.html

 

[Jun Y]

Perhaps the US media are a little more desperate to find a potential Olympic medalist to cover in 2018 than in 2010. (They can always turn to ice dancing but it's harder to explain to the public how it works.) In addition, Nathan's quad fest provides a comfortable narrative of machismo to discuss male figure skating for some reporters.

I do still wonder if all this publicity will affect Nathan's training and competition ...

 

[aftershocks]

Vote for Nathan Chen for Team USA's male athlete of the month! And the Shibs are up for team of the month.

https://awards.teamusa.org/