Winter Olympics gold medallist figure skater Nathan Chen has been reunited with his Beijing-born and raised mother on US national television. The 22-year-old was visibly shocked to see mother Hetty Wang’s surprise appearance during his interview on NBC’s Today show. Chen, who often cites his mother’s sacrifices for his career since stepping on ice aged three, immediately placed his gold medal around Wang’s neck. He had not seen her in about a month. “What the heck? No way! Oh my gosh. It’s my mum,” said Chen, the first US skater in 12 years to win individual Olympic gold, as Wang pushed in a cart of New York pizza. “[The medal] is largely hers, and everyone else on my team’s, but mostly hers I would say. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Nathan Chen (@nathanwchen) “Since the very first day I got on the ice until now, she’s been with me every single step of the way. There’s no way I would be able to make it to where I am now without her support. She gave me structure, and she made it fun for me. “She was born and raised in Beijing, and on the backside of the medal there are Chinese characters, so it was really cool to be able to have that. Wang reportedly took Chen to his skating, ballet, hockey and piano classes as a child, picking up on his teachers’ every comment for improvement. She would later drive then-11-year-old Chen from their home in Utah to California for improved training with current coach Rafael Arutyunyan. Despite working multiple jobs to cover the costs, and four other children to take care of, the pair eventually relocated to train with Arutyunyan full-time. “We didn’t always have the funds to be able to support coaching,” three-time world champion Chen recalled after winning his first Olympic gold. “She was basically my coach throughout … growing up. She drove me back-and-forth in our trusty little [Toyota] Prius, so a lot of miles and time put together. This is a result of her.” Youngest child Chen had previously recounted the mother-of-five’s commitment to his figure skating pursuit to CNN: “She faced a lot and sheltered a lot from me, so I don’t even know a lot of the details. When I ask her, she always just gets very upset.” Wang, alongside husband Chen Zhidong, moved to the US from Tianjin, China in 1988 for the latter’s student visa. She could not speak English at the time, with no immediate relatives around. “It’s [been] a long journey. He worked very hard. Every single day,” Wang said, gesturing to the medal. Couldn't do it without you, mom. ❤️ @nathanwchen | @TODAYshow pic.twitter.com/Q28XtIHwOx — Team USA (@TeamUSA) February 22, 2022 “I basically [knew] what he was going to do, because most of the time I watch him practice, so I [knew] what was going to happen. Of course, the family’s support and the whole team behind him helped him for almost 20 years. Everything’s in here. It’s teamwork.” Chen’s older sister, Janice, also tweeted: “my mom, the real [Olympic gold medallist]. She has sacrificed everything for us five kids. So happy she got to surprise Nathan in [New York City] on the Today show this morning.” All thanks to mom. ❤️ @nathanwchen x #WinterOlympics pic.twitter.com/axRNxaSUPp — Team USA (@TeamUSA) January 10, 2022 Chen also shared his thoughts on the delayed team silver medal amid the Games’ women’s figure skater Kamila Valieva’s doping controversy. “We tried to fight for having the medal ceremony done before the closing [ceremony] of the Olympics, but unfortunately we lost that case,” he told NBC. “From here we are just trying to push forward as much as we can. We’re hoping for the best. This can take quite some time and I don’t have concrete details quite yet, but hopefully soon. Olympic Gold Medalist @nathanwchen teaches Jimmy how to do an axel! ⛸️ #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/fAzqu4Eh0a — The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) February 23, 2022 “I certainly think there are various routes to take with different pros and cons. There has been conversation about the age increase for a period of time completely unrelated to this case, so this perhaps may expedite that … but that’s my perspective and I don’t know what the actual case will end up being like. “I’m proud of my team and what we’ve done. We competed and did everything we needed to do correctly and did our very best [to be] able to come up with second place fairly. I think we deserve our medal soon. Chen also appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, with the comedian calling his routine “beautiful” and “unbelievable”, before performing off-ice jumps together in front of the studio audience.