Jan 5, 2018
Karen Chen, 18, first caught the world's eye three years ago after winning bronze at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in 2015. She's continued that momentum ever since, earning a gold medal and a record-breaking short program score of 72.82 at the 2017 U.S. Championships. Despite skating to a disappointing 12th place during the 2017 Four Continents Championships, Chen helped qualify Team USA three spots for the 2018 Olympics when she earned fourth place at the 2017 World Figure Skating Championship. Read on to learn more about the talented figure skater, who's hoping to get the chance to snag one of those three spots, and represent the U.S. in PyeongChang, South Korea.
1. Karen began skating at 4 years old, but she didn't get serious about the sport until she was 6. (You know, while the rest of us were still coloring outside of the lines.) She has a younger brother named Jeffrey, and he's also a competitive skater. "Figure skating really helped me find out who I am," she told NBC. "It was a way to express myself."