Vera Wang, Elton John hail figure skater Nathan Chen for Olympic win
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Nathan Chen is the first Asian-American to win an Olympic gold medal in figure skating.
PHOTO: AFP
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BEIJING - Asian-American figure skater Nathan Chen won the gold medal at the men's individual event at the Winter Olympics on Thursday (Feb 10), with two big names in fashion and music saluting his record-breaking feat.
Designer Vera Wang, who was his stylist, wrote: "When you get the chance to dress an Olympian in a sport you so adore... it's an honour and a privilege."
Wang, 72, a former figure skater, is best known as a wedding gown designer, but has also dressed Olympic figure skaters for the past 20 years.
She shared photos of Chen, 22, on the ice in the orange and black outfit she had designed, which was adorned with stars in a nod to his song choices for the free skating segment of the competition.
He had skated to a medley of classic rock, pop, hip-hop and rap which included Elton John's Rocket Man (1972).
The 74-year-old British superstar saluted Chen in a tweet after his win: "Congratulations @nathanwchen for winning Gold skating to Rocket Man in the free skate finals in Beijing."
Chen is the first Asian-American to win an Olympic gold medal in figure skating, which consists of the short programme and free skating. In the short programme on Tuesday (Feb 8), he had come in first with a score of 113.97, the highest ever in the event.
