Patrick Chan Says Canada Doesn't Appreciate Him

The figure skating champion says had he skated for China, he would have received far more public and state support.

Canadian figure skater Patrick Chan has said he doesn't feel appreciated by his home country, and thinks had he skated for China, where his parents were born, it would be a much different story. Chan said as much to Reuters ahead of the Grand Prix Final in Quebec City this weekend, where the 20-year-old will battle for his second consecutive title. Chan said that the Chinese government is far more supportive of its athletes than the Canadian government, especially when it comes to figure skating, which Chan said gets vastly overshadowed here by hockey. (We, personally, have no problem with this status quo.) Chan, who won the World Championship early this year and is a four-time Canadian national champion, said that in an ideal world he would be able to skate for both China and Canada, as he has been increasingly drawn to his Chinese heritage recently.