Nathan Chen’s Sister Receives His Trailblazer Award as Golden Boy Contracts COVID-19 on His Birthday

Published 05/07/2022, 11:15 AM EDT

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The Beijing Olympics marked a milestone in Nathan Chen’s skating career as he took home gold. Chen is the first Asian-American to win gold in the singles skating event. To honor this victory, the Committee of 100 has presented Chen with the ‘Trailblazer Award for Commitment to Excellence’.

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However, it seems that the award was received by Chen’s sister Alice Chen on his behalf. According to Shirley Wang of the Committee of 100, Nathan Chen has caught the Covid-19 virus and could not attend the Conference and Gala in person.

Committee of 100 Conference and Gala

In light of the AAPI Heritage Month, the Committee of 100 held a ‘Conference and Gala’ on the theme of ‘Chinese Americans in the New Millennium’. They held the event in Washington D.C. and the gala awards ceremony took place on May 5th.

Coincidentally, on the same day as Nathan Chen’s birthday, the Committee of 100 nominated the US skater for the ‘Trailblazer Award for Commitment to Excellence’. When we hoped to see Chen at the gala to receive his award, it was instead confirmed that Chen had tested positive for the Covid-19 virus.

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“Today is Nathan’s birthday & he so wanted to be here… but he got Covid,” said Shirley Wang of Committee of 100. In his stead, Nathan’s sister, Alice Chen, was there to receive the award.

“I Just Wanted to Go Home”- Nathan Chen Revealed How Overwhelming Pressure Ruined His Olympic Dream at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics

Chen has won many awards throughout his skating career. It is thanks to his wondrous, practically undefeated track record, bagging titles left and right in international competitions. His win at the Olympics was not merely a personal victory but a step forward for many Asian-Americans as well.

Where is Nathan Chen?

Nathan Chen is currently on the Stars On Ice tour along with most of the US Winter Olympic team. However, it worried the fans worried as Chen missed some activities and events. A few days ago, Chen also missed the White House where President of the United States Joe Biden recognized around 600 athletes from the Olympic and Paralympic teams.

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This confirmation has answered a lot of the fans’ questions regarding his whereabouts. However, it had done little to ease the fans’ worries, as they all wished him a quick and healthy recovery. Fortunately, a recent post by the Stars On Ice Twitter account has confirmed Nathan’s presence at the Cleveland show on the evening of May 6th.

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WATCH THIS STORY: Unearthed Video Shows Arch-Rivals Yuzuru Hanyu and Nathan Chen Practicing Together

It is safe to assume that the skater has recovered and felt fit enough to perform.

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Written by:

Mansi Jain

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Mansi Jain is a US Sports author for EssentiallySports. She has a Bachelor's degree in Multimedia and Mass Communication from the University of Delhi and has also previously interned for HT Media. She is always one mention of Yuzuru Hanyu away from delivering an hour-long speech about the athlete's legacy.
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Edited by:

Deepakshi Chaudhary