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| Korean-American snowboarding prodigy Chloe Kim holds up the American flag after winning gold in the women's halfpipe Feb 13. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
By Kim Hyun-bin
Chloe Kim, the Korean-American snowboarding sensation, is one of the most highlighted athletes at this year's 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. Kim, 17, has become one of the youngest Winter Olympic gold medalists, dominating her opponents in all three runs.
Not only did she blow away the crowd with her back-to-back frontside 1080s, but her glowing exuberance has set her aside from other top athletes. Her bubbly personality instantly attracts everyone she encounters, whether it be in person or just watching her on screen.
The whole world got a glimpse of her personality during her press conference after claiming gold in the Olympics.
The first joke was on her father Kim Jong-jin.
"My dad didn't cry at all, which I don't get," Chloe said. "I'm like: What are you doing."
Chloe and her father have a special relationship. Jong-jin quit his engineering job to accompany his daughter full time at practices and competitions.
His wish to help Chloe become a top Olympic athlete has become a reality and now she is one of the most favored athletes for major long-term corporate endorsement deals.
Just to name a few, she has already listed Nike, Mondelez and Toyota on her roster.
Chloe's picture has also been put on a special edition box of Kellogg's Corn Flakes cereal, which sold quickly as only a limited quantity was sold for a short time.
This is just the beginning for the snowboarding prodigy as she can compete in three more Winter Olympics and still be younger than Shaun White, the U.S. men's halfpipe three-time gold medalist.
