1969- American figure skater Rudy Galindo's story is in many ways the classic American rags-to-riches tale of overcoming adversity to triumph in the end. Again and again, Galindo has over-come personal tragedies and professional setbacks that would have defeated many other athletes. When the departure of Kristi Yamaguchi from their hugely successful skating partnership left him high-and-dry…
Canadian figure skaters It is the dream of perhaps every amateur athlete: to mount the podium and accept an Olympic gold medal. It happened for Canadian pairs skaters Jamie Sale (pronounced SA-lay) and David Pelletier (PELL-tee-ay). But in their case, the glow of the gold was tarnished somewhat by the taint of scandal that preceded it. Theirs was one of the most compelling stories to come out of t…
1935- American figure skater A pioneer on and off the ice, Tenley Albright was the first American woman to win a gold medal in ladies singles figure skating at the Olympics and the first American woman to win a world championship. Albright's strengths were her figures, and graceful free skates. She was as technically proficient as women figure skaters were in her day, and her success marked…
1980- American figure skater Michelle Kwan The most decorated American figure skater in the sport's history, Michelle Kwan became one of the most respected and admired athletes of her generation for her grace on and off the ice. First making headlines in 1994 when she was named an alternate to the American team at the Lillehammer Olympics during the Tonya Harding scandal, Kwan was a …
1956- American figure skater In the mid-1970s, American figure skater Dorothy Hamill was the leader in her field, capping her success with a gold medal at the 1976 Winter Olympics. She was known for her signature "Hamill camel" and wedge/bob haircut which started a fashion craze. After the Olympics, Hamill turned professional, skating in shows and professional events, and later ownin…
1985- American figure skater American figure skater Sarah Hughes is among the most consistent competitors in the sport, but no one expected her show at the 2003 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. Hughes, just sixteen years old, upset both the favorite, Michelle Kwan, and other strong contenders to take the gold medal in women's figure skating. Hughes was born on May 2, 1985 in Great Nec…
1958- American figure skater Scott Hamilton has experienced the highs and lows of life—from a debilitating childhood disease, to the glory of an Olympic gold medal, to the devastating diagnosis of cancer. Through it all, he has remained a beloved fixture on the figure-skating circuit, an ambassador for his sport, and an inspiration to people facing health crises. Born in Toledo, Ohio, Scott…
1969- Ukrainian figure skater An Olympic champion with a heart of gold, figure skater Viktor Petrenko is known for his finesse on skates and for the finesse of his heart. With his trademark grace and poise on the ice, he skated to gold-medal championships in international amateur competition and generously used his influence to raise funds and otherwise assist with worthy causes both international…
1970- American figure skater The pre-Olympic hype prior to the 1994 Winter Olympic Games intensified considerably when American figure skater Tonya Harding was implicated in a bizarre attack on her ice rival, Nancy Kerrigan. The now infamous incident occurred some six weeks before the Lillehammer Games were to begin as Harding and Kerrigan vied for top position on the women's team at the U.…
1971- Russian figure skater Ekaterina Gordeeva Figure skater Ekaterina Gordeeva, who skated with partner Sergei Grinkov, won four World Championships and two Olympic gold medals in pairs skating. Although her career was temporarily halted by Grinkov's tragic death in 1995, she has continued to skate as a solo professional. Address: c/o IMG, 22 East 71st Street, New York, NY 10021-491…
1969- American figure skater Nancy Kerrigan was born on October 13, 1969 in Stoneham, Massachusetts, where she was raised along with her two older brothers by her parents, Dan and Brenda Kerrigan. When she was one year old, her mother was struck by a rare illness that left her almost completely blind. Kerrigan began skating when she was six years old, taking group lessons at a nearby ice rink. The…
1948- American figure skater Peggy Fleming One of the most influential female athletes of the past century, Peggy Fleming combined grace and power to create some of the most memorable figure-skating programs of her era. After winning a surprising victory at the 1964 United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) National Championship as a fifteen-year-old, Fleming went on to capture four …
1929- American figure skater Ranked as one of the greatest figure skaters of all time—perhaps second only to Sonja Henie in terms of his impact on the sport—Dick Button remains an influential force on the contemporary scene more than fifty years after he won his second of two Olympic Gold Medals. In addition to his Olympic triumphs, Button was the reigning U.S. men's champion …
1912-1969 Norwegian figure skater During her lifetime Sonja Henie reigned as the "queen of ice," and today she remains the most influential individual to have been part of figure skating. During a career that spanned the 1920s, '30s, '40s, and '50s, the Norwegian skater made major contributions to women's figure skating, which would help propel the sport i…
1965- German figure skater Known as "Fire on the Ice," Katarina Witt emerged from the former East Germany to become the winningest figure skater since Norway's Sonja Henie. Witt made an enormous splash onto the international scene in the 1988 Olympic Games in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, where she took her first gold medal. Sexy and charming as well as technically astute and creative…
1963- American figure skater Brian Boitano transformed professional figure skating by both forcing his fellow skaters to excel in order to match his true technical mastery, as well as by his tireless outside of the rink, becoming one of figure skating's true ambassadors. Boitano captured six world professional titles during his career and has set standards that may never be matched. He is t…
British ice dancers For followers of sport, the insinuating rhythm of Maurice Ravel's instrumental composition "Bolero" may forever evoke images of the swirling figures of the ice-dancing pair who electrified the 1984 Olympic winter games in Sarajevo, in the former Yugoslavia. Great Britain's Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are perhaps best remembered as the "…
1972- Canadian figure skater During the 1990s Canadian skater Elvis Stojko (pronounced STOY-ko) revolutionized the field of men's figure skating with his athletic prowess. In 1991 he became the first figure skater to land a quadruple jump followed by a double jump at the world championships, and then in 1997 he surpassed himself by becoming the first person to land a quadruple-triple combin…
1982- American figure skater Although her competitive career in the amateur ranks of figure skating was brief, Tara Lipinski filled the record books with her accomplishments. As a thirteen-year-old, Lipinski claimed her first national medal with a third-place finish at the 1996 United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) National Championship in San Jose, California. The following year, in ju…
