American ice skater Nathan Chen has won his first Olympic Gold medal in Beijing, with a flawless performance that set him well above the competition in the men’s single skating competition.
Chen, who had been the favorite going into Thursday’s event at the Beijing Winter Games, pulled off his win with a long program packed with moves to show off the technical prowess that has earned the 22-year-old the nickname of the “quad king.”
He also became the first American since Evan Lysacek in 2010 to win a men’s figure skating gold medal.
“It means the world. I’m just so happy,” Chen said following the win, adding there were “too many emotions to process”.
“It’s a whirlwind right now. I had a blast out there.”
Chen’s long program at Beijing’s Capital Indoor Stadium opened with a quadruple flip, followed by a triple toe loop. He nailed every jump and move, with a total of five quad jumps, including a quadruple lutz.
“Of course, there are certainly many things I could have done better, but overall I was very happy I was able to do the program that I put dow