Photo: Craig Melvin/Twitter
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Craig Melvin’s son is following in his journalistic footsteps.
The 42-year-old, who is the soleTodayco-host covering the Winter Olympicson the ground in Beijing, tells PEOPLE that his 7-year-old son had the opportunity to virtually ask figure skaterNathan Chena question while his dad was interviewing the gold medalist in person.
Melvin, who shares sonDelano, 7, and daughterSybil, 5, with wifeLindsay Czarniak, says he was FaceTiming his family at home when he got the idea.
“I said, as I do to him frequently because we’re trying to train him to be curious. I said, ‘Dell, if you could ask Nathan Chen any question in the world, what would you ask?’ And he said, ‘Dad, I’d ask him, why is he so good?’ And I was like, ‘That’s a pretty good question, really good question, pretty simple … not too wordy.’ "
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After talking to his producer about it, Melvin says he had his wife record Delano asking the question and later played it for Chen, 22, during the interview.
“Nathan Chen, being the gracious gentleman that he is, answered the question on the show this morning. Thankfully Nathan, without missing a beat, despite being young and childless, said the best advice he could give is listen to your parents. That’s how you become great. Listen to your parents,” says Melvin.
The dad of two also tells PEOPLE about the sweet gifts his kids sent him with on his trip to Beijing.
“They always send me with gifts to remember them,” he shares. “My son sent me with his stuffed Falcon, who’s named Falci. My daughter sent me with her candy bag … it’s a really big deal because she has what she thinks is a secret stash of candy that she keeps in the top drawer in her bedroom, that’s basically Halloween candy.”
“But we let her think it’s a secret. She gave me her candy bag to bring over to Beijing because she thought I might need some candy,” he says.
To learn more about Team USA, visitTeamUSA.org. Watch the Winter Olympics, now, and the Paralympics, beginning March 4, on NBC.
source: people.com