Peggy Fleming

At the U.S. Nationals in Philadelphia in January 1998, Fleming discovered a lump in her left breast. Although she continued to work through the next few weeks, a biopsy showed that the lump was malignant. Undergoing surgery to remove the cancer on February 10—exactly thirty years after she had won her gold medal in Grenoble—Fleming later underwent radiation therapy and made a speedy recovery.

Inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1974, Fleming was also honored with an induction into the USFSA Hall of Fame and World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 1976. In 1981 she was inducted into the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame and in 1997 was the recipient of the U.S. Olympic Committee's Olympic Spirit Award. Each of these honors has highlighted Fleming's contribution to figure skating and to athletic endeavors in general. In combining sheer athletic power with aesthetic grace, Fleming was one of the first figure skaters to be able to integrate impressive jump sequences with choreographed ballet. As a National, World, and Olympic champion, she also has helped to popularize the sport of figure skating and expand the range of professional opportunities available to skaters after they had left the amateur ranks. More than thirty years after her last competition, Fleming remains a popular and admired personality, not only in the sports world but for her contributions to publicizing women's health issues as well.