Father-Son Duo Jason and Steve Brown are Full of Love, Positivity and Support

Joy and love radiate from Jason Brown and his father, Steve Brown, as they spend an evening together on Zoom in the family's Chicago suburb home. They are full of laughter, smiles and hugs as they reflect and share Jason's journey from Learn to Skate lessons at their neighborhood ice rink to the Olympics and time together during the COVID pandemic.
 
"I saw my sister on the ice and said, 'That's what I want to do,'" Jason said via video call when asked how he first started ice skating.
 
Originally, Steve and his wife, Marla, enrolled their eldest child and daughter in skating lessons after moving from Los Angeles to Chicago. Throughout his youth, Jason participated in baseball, soccer, cross country and school musicals. However, it was the end-of-year ice show with its twinkling lights that caught Jason's eye.
 
"He was always a natural athlete. Very nimble," Steve shared. "He progressed pretty darn quickly. So, he went from these little competitions where he was one of few men skating to being competitive in the state or region."
 
By 10, Jason was competing at the national level and Steve was spending his mornings taking Jason to the ice rink before going to work.
 
"I told Jason, 'If you get up in the morning [to go to practice five days a week], I will take you there. I will not wake you up,'" said Steve. "I would walk in his room, he would be up, and we were off to the rink."
 
By then, Jason's sister, Jordan, had opted out of morning skate practices in favor of sleep (Jason and Steve both laughed at the fear each of them had waking her up in the morning) and participating in other sports. Like Jordan, Jason's younger brother, Dillion, was also heavily involved in sports. Luckily for the Brown family, the ice rink was less than 10 minutes from their house, but Steve and Marla still found themselves balancing the schedules of their athletic children.
 
"My parents really made all of our events a big deal," Jason said. "Whether I was competing at Nationals (U.S. Championships), or we were going to a high school play."
 
The importance of family, unity and humility were strong themes for the Brown family. As Jason became more competitive, he would spend summers in different training locations with his coach. After his return each year, he would pitch moving to these locations to train fulltime and ask to be homeschooled. Much to Jason's dismay at the time, Steve and Marla denied these requests.
 
"My parents were outspoken with the parameters I could work in," Jason explained. "They weren't going to sacrifice going to another rink when we had one 10 minutes from the house. As far as school, they wanted me in the public school system so that I could be raised with my siblings. They were very adamant about wanting me to develop as a human as much as an athlete." 
 
"In some ways we were kind of selfish," Steve responded. "We only had so many years with our children. [Marla and I] had this little window [of time with the kids], and we want to stick together for that window. [For nine years], until COVID, we didn't have all of our kids home. For three months, everyone was home, and we were all working and living together. It was an amazing time for us."
 
After Jason turned 18 and graduated from high school in 2013, he moved away to Colorado with his then coach, Kori Ade. According to Steve, the 2014 Olympics still seemed like a lofty goal at that point. Prior to 2013, Jason had never competed at the senior level internationally. The possibility became more real as Jason won silver at his senior international debut at the 2013 Nebelhorn Trophy and then won bronze at one of his Grand Prix assignments, Trophée Éric Bompard.
 
"But in Boston [at the 2014 U.S. Championships when Jason performed his famous Riverdance free skate program]," Steve started before his voice started to quiver. "See, I don't want to cry… But, when he skated, we just knew. It was pretty great."
 
After placing first in the free skate, Jason was awarded the silver medal and named to the 2014 U.S. Olympic Figure Skating Team and was slated to compete in Sochi, Russia. While there, he received the bronze medal for the Team Event. For Jason though, the most special part of the Olympics was experiencing it with his parents. 
 
"It's a breathtaking moment," Steve said when asked what it was like to watch Jason at the Olympics. "There are things in life you never anticipate, and they are incredible, powerful moments. On the other hand, seeing him starring in a play, competing at the DuPage Open or playing a soccer game was the same feeling! They're all huge and exciting moments -- the venue is just a little bigger." 
 
Throughout Jason's international career, Steve and Marla have made a point to travel to all his events abroad. According to Jason, his parents go to the tourist locations during the competition week and then pick out their highlights to show him in the days following the competition.
 
"I have been so, so fortunate to have my parents travel to my events," Jason said, adding Oberstdorf, Germany, was a favorite location for the family. "Getting to see these places with my dad has been even more special. We grew up together in the sport in a way."
 
Outside of skating, Steve and Jason see their relationship continue to evolve, and Jason continuously strives to be the person his dad has role modeled for him.
 
"I think the best compliments I get are when people tell me I remind them of my dad. I love my dad, and he could not have been a more supportive father," Jason remarked as Steve stared lovingly back. "He is the most positive, optimistic, loving person and he shares it with all of us. He's like a best friend and someone I can always turn to for advice. We're very close and we just get closer over the years."
 
As Steve and Jason shared an embrace, Steve described how much of an honor it has been to be Jason's father. 
 
"You can't own all of your kid's problems just like you can't take credit for everything they do. I didn't make my son an Olympian. He made himself into an Olympian," Steve said. "More than anything, I'm proud of Jason for being a good human more than an amazing athlete because I know I've done something right as a parent."