His passion for the sport accelerated by watching the Olympics and other pro skaters. We knew I’d only make it to where I am now is if we put in all the time and effort and money into this.” I think what my mom saw in me was passion. When he was just 8 years old, his mom quit her job and the two moved from California to train in other parts of the country. Zhou’s parents continued on the unconventional path. As he explained, skating is an interesting balance between functionality and aesthetics. His small frame allowed him to rotate fast in the air, and his long, thin limbs created good lines. “I told her, ‘my heart is in skating,’” he said.Īnd while he was the first in his family to be a skater, but as it turns out, DNA was on his side.
“In skating the only thing holding me back was myself.”Īt eight years old, Zhou’s mom asked him to choose one sport. “Other sports were highly dependent on teammates,” he said. Another draw was the individuality of skating. He’d reach one skating milestone, then train to reach the next. Plus, the learning curve kept him engaged.
When you have that time commitment, it turns you off right away or it cements itself in your mind as part of your routine. “Skating, from the start, takes long hours and commitment,” Zhou said. Looking back years later, he’s had time to reflect on this question: Why was skating the sport that stuck? By the time he was 8 years old, Zhou had tried many sports like soccer, basketball, and ice skating. But their young son had lots of energy, so his parents encouraged him to channel it into something physical. Being immigrants from Beijing, China, where emphasis was usually on academics, deviating into sports was a bit unconventional. Zhou’s parents did things a bit differently.
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