Korean-American snowboard prodigy aims for gold

By Kim Hyun-bin

Chloe Kim hits the half-pipe at full speed and conducts an incredibly difficult 1080 maneuver in mid-air, (1080s are three full circle turns in the air) at the Dew tour Women’s Superpipe Finals in Breckenridge, Colorado, on Dec. 15.

The judges were left speechless, and Kim secured her spot on the 2018 U.S. Olympic snowboarding team.

The snowboard prodigy is currently in the land of her parents South Korea to represent the United States in the upcoming 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics which is slated to start on Feb. 9.

The Korean-American is a gold medal favorite for the half-pipe (A half-pipe is the curved ramp for snowboarders _ also used for skateboarders and BMX bikers for their jumps.)

Kim, who is 17, has already built an impressive resume.

Her name came into the spotlight after receiving a medal at the American Winter X Games at 14 years of age, becoming the youngest medalist ever in the sport.

She is also the only athlete to score three gold medals at the Winter X Games before turning 16.

One of her most memorable moments was at the 2016 U.S. Grand Prix, where she stunned the crowd with two perfect back to back 1080s, becoming the only female boarder to successfully land the maneuver in competition.

Kim, at age 13, stood among a handful of Olympic qualifiers during the 2013-2014 seasons.

Chloe placed high enough to qualify for the Sochi Olympics to make the U.S. team, however she was deemed too young at the time to compete.

The International Olympic Committee set the minimum age at 15.

Kim is also a heavy favorite to win gold at PyeongChang. If she wins, she will become the youngest snowboarder to claim gold in the Olympics.

However, her success has not come easy and without the support of her father, she might not have reached her full potential.

A new commercial ad that was aired during the Super Bowl Sunday was based on the life of Chloe’s father Jong-jin and his efforts to aid his daughter to attain her Olympic dreams.

The father has accompanied his daughter along the way, whether at practices, competitions or being an all-around dedicated parent.

Jong-jin bought Chloe her first snowboard when she was four and a few years later, quit his engineering job so he could accompany Chloe full time.

“He went home and just told my mom, ‘I’m done working, I’m going to make my daughter an Olympian,’” Chloe told the Los Angeles Times.

Kim along with his wife Boran Yun Kim emigrated to the U.S from South Korea, in 1982.

Chloe is scheduled to compete in her first Olympic half-pipe preliminary on Feb. 12.