As Chloe Kim heads to the Olympics, her father’s commitment to her already deserves a gold medal.
A new ad for the 2018 Winter Olympics shows the sacrifice that the 17-year-old snowboarder’s father, Jong-Jin Kim, made so that his daughter could attain her Olympic dreams. And it’s based on a true story.
In the commercial, set to air during the Super Bowl on Sunday, Jong-Jin is late to pick up his daughter for snowboarding practice. He later makes the decision to leave his career behind so that he can be there for his daughter through her journey
“I have to do what’s best for my daughter,” Jong-Jin says in the ad before quitting his job.
The father is then seen accompanying his daughter to practices, watching Chloe’s snowboarding clips alongside her, waiting to hug her at the finish line after a competition, and being an all-around dedicated parent.
The ad concludes with Chloe driving her sleeping father as he clutches her trophy.
As emotional as the ad is, it shows just a snippet of the snowboarder’s relationship with her father. Jong-Jin, a South Korean immigrant, moved to the U.S. in 1982 to study engineering at California State University, Long Beach.
Jong-Jin bought Chloe her first snowboard when she was 4 years old. A few years later, he did quit his engineering job.
“He went home and just told my mom, ‘I’m done working, I’m going to make my daughter an Olympian,’” Chloe told the Los Angeles Times.
At the time, the snowboarder wasn’t aware of her dad’s big life change and wondered why her father was home more, she told Reuters. But looking back, she says that Jong-Jin’s decision was admirable and credits her father with much of her success.
“Now that I think about it, I think it was a really bold move and I can’t believe my mum was okay with it,” she told Reuters. “I think that’s so cool.”
Still a teen, Chloe already has three gold, one silver, and one bronze X Games medals. And judging by the numerous accomplishments under her belt, her dad’s sacrifice certainly paid off.