Although she grew up near the beach in sunny Southern California, Chloe Kim has always been destined for the top of the mountain. A snowboarding sensation from the second she touched the slopes, Chloe began competing for America on the international level as a teenager, and at age 17 became the youngest woman to win Gold on the halfpipe when she debuted for the USA in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Four years later, Chloe did it again, earning another halfpipe Gold in Beijing, China, while vaulting herself to superstar status.
With a global audience, Chloe has used her platform to advocate for social causes near and dear to her, inspiring countless fans with her powerful voice and maturing into an icon for young athletes everywhere.
Q: Talk about your partnership with Breitling.
Chloe: I’ve been with Breitling for a few years now, and it's been an amazing partnership and I'm so grateful for it. It's pretty crazy how they're able to bring their athletes together and form these squads, and I love it. And of course, love Breitling watches—my family is really hyped on it too. My parents love watches—my dad's first gift to my mom was a watch, and I feel like that has always been so important to us in our family: everybody has to have a nice watch. So now that I'm with Breitling, my entire family is just decked out in Breitling watches going out to dinner! [laughs] A pretty cool sight to see.
What does being on the All-Star Squad mean to you?
Oh, it's incredible—I'm so grateful that I was one of the few selected to be able to be part of the All-Star Squad. We’re a group of like-minded people coming together and getting the privilege to represent a brand like Breitling, which is all about the community and the amount of care and attention they put into their athletes. And everyone else that's also in this squad is so incredible and have had such amazing careers and are inspirational in their own ways.
How do your All-Star Squad teammates inspire you?
Seeing how much my All-Star Squad teammates have done for their own sports. Everybody in these squads has contributed a great amount of positivity, in everything that they've decided to enter. And at a certain point it goes beyond sports—how are you giving back to your community? And sacrificing some of yourself to give back to this community that's given you so much, that acknowledgement, we really get that from everyone in this squad.
What do you want to inspire in other athletes?
Just unapologetically being yourself. It’s so cliche in a way, but also it's a journey that you have to go on to get to that point. It's not something that you just tell yourself and you're like, all right, cool, I can be myself now. That’s been something I've been working toward for the longest time. I started snowboarding at pro-level events at 13 years old, podiuming at them. And there's really no book or guide explaining how to deal with a lot of things, whether it be the pressure or the expectations and all that good stuff that us athletes have to deal with on a daily basis.
But I think a big thing that helped me combat that was just me being able to be myself and be vulnerable publicly and express things that I've struggled with throughout my career. I think that does so much good for other athletes, and just other people in general who are curious to see what a pro athlete endures. Being able to work with a brand like Breitling and them giving us a platform to share our stories even more is so important and it's an honor to be considered worthy of being part of this squad.
How would you describe your personal style?
I'm all over the place—you can tell what mood I'm in based on what I'm wearing. That’s why I love fashion so much, because I think it's the only way to express yourself without using words—and because I'm not the biggest fan of talking. When I'm just going out to get lunch or whatever, I could wear anything from sweats, which is literally “don't talk to me and don't look at me” type vibes. Or I'll dress super cute and super girly and then that's okay, I'm feeling cute, “probably going to take some pics later” type vibes. And then I have my super baggy street style that I love as well, and that's a “don't talk to me, but definitely look at me” kind of vibe. [laughs]
How do you put your Breitling watch together an outfit?
Oh, I put a lot of thought into it. It's a process, but it's my favorite part of the day. I feel like the first thing people look at is your face, and then your accessories, and then your outfit. Everything ties well together, so I have a Breitling in all materials: I have red golds, I have stainless steels, I have a super light sports watch made out of Breitlight®, I have it all. I have all of these different options in a bunch of different sizes too, so I can really just stick with what I'm looking for.
But then when I have a big event, I have such an incredible styling team that gives me a ton of options and I kind of just pick whatever one I love most. But yeah, I'm still always standing in my closet freaking out cause I have nothing to wear, even though my closet is entirely full of clothes! It's like a constant dilemma. [laughs]
How did you select your watches?
I’m really happy that the Chronomat was the collection that was selected for the All-Star Squad, because that's actually my favorite family in my vast Breitling closet. And it also brings a sense of badassery too, which is what I need. [laughs] I'm a snowboarder, I fall on my face for a living, I need a badass watch that looks cool and is commanding!
So Breitling invited me in, and I remember I went into the shop and they were like, "Chloe, look at some watches," and I was like, "All right, cool!" And they bring me all these watches and I was like, "Wait—I like diamonds." And they go, "Okay, perfect. Here are some diamonds." [laughs]
When I first saw the size of the Chronomat B01 42, it was kind of intimidating. But once I put it on, I’m like, “Okay, this is actually sick.” And I wear it all the time, anytime I go anywhere. Super comfortable feel, you can literally wear them all day and they're beautiful to look at. But I think that they did an incredible job selecting that and the whole process design and all of it. I mean, girls can wear it too. That's the best part. It's funny because whenever I wear it, men are coming up to me are like, "Oh what watch is that?" And I'm like, "You guys must really like this if you're coming up to me and asking me!"
What kind of impact do you feel you’ve made on your sport?
I hope that I've made an impact, but I think it'd be ridiculous for me to take all the credit. There are so many incredible snowboarders out there that have continued to push snowboarding and progress the sport and through their efforts bring more attention towards the sport. For the longest time, I didn't know the impact that I had because I always thought I'm just this regular girl who snowboards—which is true. But just continuously sharing my story, and talking about my parents' story, the immigrant story, the first-generation Asian-American story, those are moments that not a lot of people hear about and a lot of people don't talk about, and that's a lot more important than people realize.
I remember when I was younger, I didn't really have that [Asian-American] athlete to look up to. There were people in my industry that I thought were incredible, of course, but as an Asian-American girl, that story, that's not something that I found in my industry or in sports in general. But from my perspective, there's a lot of change happening, and getting more representation is important because, an Asian-American in snowboarding, that wasn't something that was common. And now I'm seeing more and more people at the mountains, and people who say they started snowboarding because of me and things like that. Even me going to places the Met Gala and getting magazine covers, things that are really cool, it makes it cooler because I know that I'm going there as a snowboarder, and bringing more awareness to the sport and getting people more excited about my sport.
How are you working to preserve winter sports for future snowboarders?
I work with Protect Our Winters, an amazing organization that has done so much good. It was just a no-brainer for me, because I am a snowboarder and I think that, with the rise in temperatures and the unpredictability of the climate, our sport is essentially in danger. That directly affects our sport, and Protect Our Winters is doing everything they can to fight that, going to the White House, getting things done, being proactive to protect our winters.
It's scary thinking that climate change could impact our winters, and the thought of my kids or my grandkids potentially not being able to experience snow or real snow is quite terrifying. Winter sports are something I've dedicated my entire life to and loved for so many years. The idea of that not being even feasible to my children is very unsettling. But it's good to know that Protect our Winters is out there doing everything they can to prevent that from happening and to allow our winters to continue to come back, so we can all have access to snow and all the great things that winter has to offer.
Chloe Kim’s Signature Style: Super Chronomat Automatic 38 Origins
“I loved this watch from the moment I saw it. The white strap and dial, and the sparkle of the diamonds are like the reflection of sun on snow, so it has a personal connection for me as a snowboarder. As an advocate for sustainability, I believe in this watch’s mission. We all have a responsibility to question where our products come from and to put a preference on brands that go the extra mile to source ethically. I know this effort will set a precedent.”
