Hey PChiddy Fans!
Patrick is offering one signed box of Cheerios to the fan who sends in the most unique and interesting question. He also answers some questions in this youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq1qPIuKMxk
Check it out and send in your questions here! We will be monitoring them over the next couple weeks.
Aivory
We recently had breakfast with a great Canadian sporting family, Lewis and Karen Chan, parents of Canadian figure skater Patrick Chan. As we sat and talked, we had a great discussion with a very knowledgeable, friendly and supportive Olympic family.
All In The Family
It shouldn’t be a surprise that Patrick has had the kind of success that he’s experienced when you talk to his parents and learn about their sporting lineage. His father Lewis, who grew up in Montreal, played table tennis competitively at a high level, winning the Junior Championship in Quebec and representing that province on the national stage. After retiring from Table Tennis, Lewis moved on to new pursuits such as weight lifting, tennis and skiing.
Patrick’s mother, Karen, has her own strong sporting background. Karen won the city championship in both Singles and Mixed-Doubles Tennis when she was younger. While telling us about her tennis background, she corrected Lewis when he mistakenly said ‘doubles’ as he was describing her sports experience.
Patrick made the National Post’s Worthy 30 of Toronto:
Patrick Chan Age 19. Sign Capricorn. Gig Olympic figure skater. Drink of choice Ginger ale. Celebrity twin Keanu Reeves. Dream date Taylor Swift. Guilty pleasure “Video games.” Fun fact “I can be a goof ball.” Words to live by “Be a good person.” Why Shinan picked me “I am a fresh face in figure skating.”
Lewis Chan has sat in the stands watching his son’s figure-skating practices for 13 years, but this morning’s practice might just be the most memorable.
Patrick, 19, will take to the ice to warm up for the men’s figure-skating short program in which he will be representing Canada this afternoon.
Patrick will have to wait a while before he gets to show off his stuff. The medal hopeful from Toronto drew the 24th spot in the 30-man field for Tuesday’s short program.
Reigning Olympic gold medallist Evgeni Plushenko of Russia will get a much earlier start after drawing 10th spot. Plushenko is trying to become the first man in 58 years to repeat as Olympic champion and will be the first of the top men to skate.
Turin runner-up Stephane Lambiel of Switzerland skates 19th, followed by Japan’s Nobunari Oda and 2007 world champion Brian Joubert of France. World champion Evan Lysacek of the United States is one of the few skaters to follow Chan, skating 28th.
For Vancouver-bound figure skater Patrick Chan, the support of his teachers at École Secondaire Étienne-Brûlé helped him train for the big show.
“They had experience with Olympic athletes already so they really helped me when I was travelling,” he said during a conference call from Colorado Springs, Colorado. “They gave me extra time for certain projects and certain tests.”
One of Canada’s hopefuls to medal after picking up gold for three consecutive years at the Canadian Championships, North Yorker Chan is happy to be competing in the Great White North.
Patrick Chan has a typical teenager’s appetite for burgers and fries, a love compounded by his sponsorship by McDonald’s, and by a belief that, as he told Maclean’s this summer, “I don’t have to watch my diet.” But in recent months, the 19-year-old three-time national skating champion and world silver medallist made some major life changes. Not only did he switch coaches barely a month before the Olympics, but the ex-nighthawk is going to bed at a reasonable hour—and he’s eating his veggies.
“I used to eat poor and go to bed late, and the practice days were inconsistent,” Chan said in a conference call last week from his new high-altitude training base in Colorado Springs, Colo. “Now I’m doing everything almost like a robot: eat at the same time, sleep at the same time, over and over. Repetition.” Trusting the plan, he says, “that’s key to overcoming your fears at the Olympics.”
Rod Black, who will call the play-by-play for Olympic figure skating on CTV in Vancouver beginning with the pairs event on Sunday, says he believes Toronto’sPatrick Chan has what it takes to become the greatest Canadian male skater of all time.
“I always thought that Kurt Browning, he was the best skater I’ve ever seen,” Black told CTVOlympics.ca, “Elvis Stojko was the best competitor. But I see Patrick Chan, I see a hybrid. A Browning/Stojko. He has the possibility to be the greatest Canadian men’s skater ever, and he’s only 19.”
Canadian gold medal figure skating hopeful Patrick Chan spoke to the international media Wednesday for the first time since arriving in Vancouver for the Winter Games and maintained he’s less nervous now that he’s here.
The 19-year-old Chan of Toronto was a world silver medallist last year and is considered among the favourites for the men’s singles gold along with 2006 Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko of Russia, 2009 world champion Evan Lysacek and teammate Jeremy Abbott, both of the U.S.; former world champion Brian Joubert of France; Stephane Lambiel of Switzerland and Daisuke Takahashi of Japan.
“I was actually feeling more pressure before coming here,” said Chan. “Now that I’m here I’m feeling a new wave [of confidence]. I’m having an awesome time. I feel lucky to be here.”
VANCOUVER–The irrepressible and blithely un-circumspect Patrick Chan is never short on entertainment zing on or off the ice.
This is the Canadian men’s figure skating champion making a casual observation on so banal a subject as how he enjoyed recent high altitude training in Colorado Springs.
“I love it. Every day is blue skies and sunshine, whereas Toronto is cloudy and depressing.”