World champion figure skater Patrick Chan shocked the skating world after he was quoted saying Canadians don't support the sport enough and that he would like to compete for China.
"Sometimes I feel we are not appreciated for how much work we put in. If my parents hadn't emigrated from China and, say, I had skated for China, things would have been very different," he was quoted as saying in a Reuters story.
"My parents wouldn't have had to make as much sacrifices as they have and there would be a lot more respect for what we do as figure skaters," he said.
"I'm slowly feeling more Chinese and feel I should be more proud of being Chinese and appreciate where I've come from," he said, adding competing for both Canada and China would be the "ideal" situation for him in a "perfect world."
But Skate Canada officials say the interview with Chan was three months old and taken out of context and that he's passionate representing Canada in the elite sport.
"Patrick is very proud of his Chinese heritage and it's a big part of who he is," Mike Slipchuk, the high-performance director for Skate Canada, told CTVNews.ca Thursday.
"Patrick is a Canadian, a proud Canadian and a huge part of our team," Slipchuk said, brushing off the suggestion Chan would consider skating for another country.
Chan also lamented the sport has lost its status since the days champions Kurt Browning and Elvis Stojko were high-flying celebrities across the country, noting hockey is the sport to which Canadians are drawn.
However, Slipchuk, who's close to Chan, said sports in Canada have changed since the 1990s with more competing interests for both audience and financing.
"When Kurt and Elvis were skating in the 90s, figure skating was one of the few winter sports and since that time we've become a strong winter sports nation winning 14 medals in Vancouver," he said.
"There are a lot of sports competing for dollars and to be the top sport in Canada. We are not the only sport."
Chan isn't giving outside interviews but will likely speak about his comments to reporters at the ISU Grand Prix that gets underway in Quebec City Thursday. Chan is a favourite in the competition.
