Patrick Chan

Setting multiple world records in his illustrious career, champion figure skater Patrick Chan made his mark on the sport starting from his early days. Chan was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and began skating at the age of 5. At first he was only interested in hockey, but upon changing his focus to figure skating, he began studying under Coach Osborne Colson, once a champion skater himself. Chan would come to attribute his success to Colson's dedicated tutelage. He won his first medal, a bronze, at the 2001 Canadian Junior Figure Skating Championships. After winning the gold in the same competition in 2005, he became the youngest person to enter the World Junior Championships, being 14 at the time. His star continued to rise as he broke into the senior level. He won a gold medal in every Canadian Figure Skating Championships between 2008 and 2017, except for 2015 when he declined to attend. He competed in the 2010 Winter Olympics and finished fifth despite tearing a calf muscle only a few months before the games. He set three world-record scores at the 2011 World Championships: one for the men's short program, one for free skating and one for overall score. His speed and ability to master complex footwork won him international fame. After his silver-medal performance at the 2014 Winter Olympics, he took a season off from competition, but returned a year later in his usual stellar form to win the gold in the 2015 Skate Canada International. He qualified for his third Winter Olympics appearance representing Canada in the 2018 games in PyeongChang, South Korea.