Rock star

In this job you run into all kinds of people.

Occasionally, you run into one of the best people. Something tells me, I just did that.

As I sat in the Genting Snow Park media center awaiting two-time gold medal winner Chloe Kim's press conference, I was curious as to what I was about to hear. Obviously, most people have heard her before, after all she's the best women's halfpipe snowboarder out there and she won a gold medal in South Korea four years ago. 

But at heart, she's also just a 21-year-old young woman and I was curious as to how she would come across facing a room full of media members.

I learned pretty quickly that Chloe Kim is a rock star.

Yeah, she's talented, but she's also well-spoken, open and honest about all that she's been through and what she feels, no matter whether it's bad or good. She talked a lot about mental health and figuring out who you are and being happy with that person. Her struggles have been documented, as after the massive onslaught of media attention following her dominant performance in Pyeongchang in 2018, she struggled to find her way through things. At one point, she revealed, she even through her gold medal in the trash.

But as she sat on the stage earlier today, she was well-spoken and honest, talking about how she had a rough practice before her gold medal run and wasn't sure just what was going to happen. She acknowledged that mental health, taking care of yourself, is important. She spoke about just how hard it is to do what she and her fellow snowboarders do. And she also asked if anyone had any food.

She'd been competing since 9:30 a.m. and after the competition had made her way through the different television and print interviews and it was after noon and she was ready for lunch. Luckily for her, there was food to be had, from volunteers who quickly went to the media lounge at the back of the room to a reporter who handed her a piece of candy out of her pocket. And as the food kept coming, Chloe Kim just kept laughing.

And that is a good sign. The stress and the pressure leading up to the event was gone. She had the gold medal secured (if not in her hands, physically). She had done her job. 

Now it was time to eat.

Chloe Kim is a rock star. Don't fight me on it, it's true. 

Chloe Kim talked about competing, mental health, taking care of yourself and more in her victory press conference. She also asked for some food.