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Katarina Witt - Held Back By Her Government

Witt came head-to-head with her beloved government in 1988, when she wanted to skate with the American Holiday on Ice tour. Only after months of pleading by Witt did the rigid bureaucracy allow her to accept the offer—under the condition that 80 percent of her $3.78 million contract be paid to the East German Sports Federation. She went through the same tiresome process to appear in Canvas of Ice in December 1988 and to film HBO's Carmen on Ice, which earned her an Emmy Award. She skated with friend and American skater Brian Boitano in both. The government wanted Witt to pursue her education, and revoked her travel privileges to discourage her aspirations abroad. Her government lost its hold on Witt in November 1989, when the Berlin Wall was brought down and Germany was reunited as one democratic nation. The collapse of her government left Witt free to perform as she liked, but she was practically reviled in her own country for having been so favored by the government.

Awards and Accomplishments

1983 Silver medal, World Figure Skating championships; European champion
1984 Gold medal, Sarajevo Winter Olympics; European champion
1985 Gold medal, World Figure Skating championships; European champion
1986 Silver medal, World Figure Skating championships; European champion
1987 Gold medal, World Figure Skating championships; European champion
1988 Gold medal, World Figure Skating championships; Gold medal, Calgary Winter Olympics; European champion
1990 Emmy Award for Carmen on Ice
1994 Golden Camera Award for Olympic comeback
1995 Jim Thorpe Pro Sports Award; inducted into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, Colorado
1999 Voted "Favorite Female Athlete" in the United States by the American Opinion Research Institute and "Female Skater of the Century" in Germany

Where Is She Now?

Witt left competitive skating behind in 1994 to indulge her love for the audience, touring with Stars on Ice. She also indulged her love for American culture, buying an apartment in New York City, and becoming a fan of Madonna, blue jeans, and Michael Jordan. She took a break in 1995 to recover from back injuries, and received the Jim Thorpe Pro Sports Award for outstanding performances and efforts in the Olympics. She also was inducted into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She was nominated for another Emmy Award for The Ice Princess in 1996. Witt's star turn off the ice also included several cameo roles in Hollywood productions. She appeared in the hit features Jerry Maguire with Tom Cruise in 1996 and Ronin with Robert DeNiro in 1998. She appeared on television in Frasier in 1993 and Everybody Loves Raymond in 1996. She played herself on TV's Arliss in 1997 and 1998, and appeared as "Greta Krantz" in 1998 on V.I.P alongside Pamela Anderson. A multi-year contract with Germany's ARD put Witt in front of the cameras as a commentator for international skating. She also launched a sports marketing and promotion company called With Witt. The 1998 Playboy magazine she appeared in was a huge seller.

Witt quickly adapted to freedom. She toured North America in Katarina Witt & Brian Boitano—Skating in 1990. She appeared off the ice during the 1992 Olympics in Albertville, France, as a commentator for CBS-TV. In 1993, she covered the World Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia, for NBC-TV.

Witt decided in 1993 to begin training for the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. Many scoffed at the decision; at age 28, she was almost twice as old as her competitors. An eighth-place finish at the European Championships did not bode well for her Olympic chances, and was a blow to her confidence. Witt dedicated her 1994 Olympic performance of "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" to war-torn Sarajevo, where she had won her first gold a decade earlier. The performance also marked the first time her parents had ever seen her skate. Though she finished seventh, the performance was as important to Witt as any that had earned her the gold.

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