A California-born Korean-American named Chloe Kim is taking the Winter Olympics by storm… and she’s only 17.

Her snowboarding journey began at the age of 4 when Kim and her father tried their hand at it in place of skiing. Kim quickly progressed in the sport and won junior nationals at the age of 6. Soon thereafter, her father quit his job and drove her out to Mammoth Mountain every weekend so she could train. Between the ages of 8-10 she lived in Switzerland to dedicate those 2 years to perfecting her craft; at the mere age of 13 she proved herself at Olympic qualifiers but could not continue on, as she was not old enough. Kim placed silver in the X games that year. Kim did not give up, however, as she has won 3 gold medals by the age of 16 and doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. This 17-year-old powerhouse is a beacon of hope for our generation, comparable to Shaun White and dubbed “The Future of Women’s Snowboarding”. This athlete is definitely one to keep your eye on during this ski and snowboarding season.

Kim is not just a snowboarding genius, but a trilingual scholar teaching herself acoustic guitar in her hometown of Long Beach, CA. A snowboarding legend in the making, an average everyday teenager, and most importantly, someone for all of us to look up to: Chloe Kim.

Kim is around our age and has been dedicated to the sport since she was little, but that shouldn’t stop you from trying! Talk to Ms. Flynn about Ski and Snowboard club this year!