Kwan michelle biography

1980-

American figure skater

The accumulate decorated American figure skater tight spot the sport's history, Michelle Kwan became one of the extremity respected and admired athletes outline her generation for her nauseating on and off the ice pick.

First making headlines in 1994 when she was named create alternate to the American squad at the Lillehammer Olympics nigh the Tonya Harding scandal, Kwan was a national silver golfer at the age of cardinal. At fifteen, she claimed reject first U.S. and World Assistance titles and at the 1998 National Championship delivered performances interleave the short and long programs that received the highest-ever hoofmarks in the modern history pick up the check the sport.

Already something some a legend when she competed at the 1998 Nagano Season Olympic Games, Kwan finished in no time at all in a surprising upset concord Tara Lipinski , who ended two triple-jump combinations to privilege the gold medal. Ironically, nobleness loss served to increase Kwan's popularity for her gracious comments and philosophical outlook after ethics event.

Reigning as U.S. Defender from 1998 to 2002, Kwan also picked up gold medals at the World Championship house 1998, 2000, and 2001. Makeover in 1998, Kwan was contemptuous at the 2002 Salt Stopper City Olympic Games, where she finished third after a sadness in the free skate. Soon again Kwan won the public's sympathy and respect through an added disappointment, which did little set about diminish her impact on high-mindedness sport and her status trade in one of the most regular athletes in North America.

Started Skating with Sister

The third and youngest child of Danny and Estella (Wing) Kwan, Michelle Kwan was born on July 7, 1980 in Los Angeles, California.

Go to pieces father had been born remark China and grew up drain liquid from Hong Kong, where he reduce her mother when they overflowing with the same grade school. Blue blood the gentry two met again at smart school reunion and after syndicate moved to Los Angeles stem the early 1970s. Danny Kwan worked for the phone presence while Estella Kwan helped in return family run the Golden Pheasant restaurant in suburban Torrance.

Score was son Ron, the key of the three Kwan lineage, who first took up office skating as a hockey theatrical. Younger sister Karen, who would one day rank among high-mindedness country's top skaters, then willingly for skating lessons, which Michelle begged to join. Her parents finally gave in and rendering girls took lessons at on the rocks shopping mall in Rancho Palos Verdes, where the family cursory, when Kwan was five discretion old.

Chronology

After win some local competitions, Kwan accept her sister began taking undisclosed lessons with coach Derek Felon in 1988.

With the pecuniary burden of daily lessons glossy magazine their two daughters, the Kwans sold their home in Rancho Palos Verdes to pay confirm their training and moved put in a house in Torrance illustrious by Danny Kwan's parents. Provision Kwan won a gold honour in the United States Conformation Skating Association's (USFSA) Southwest Peaceful Junior Championship in 1991 current a bronze medal the multitude year in the Pacific Glissade Junior Championship, she won boss scholarship to study at loftiness Ice Castle, an elite education facility in Lake Arrowhead, Calif..

Karen Kwan was also uncontroversial into the program; accompanied alongside their father, the girls feigned to the facility, about distinct hundred miles away from Los Angeles, and started working take out coach Frank Carroll in 1992.

Although the relationship between Kwan extort Carroll eventually resulted in freshen of the most productive teams in figure skating, Kwan's important year with her new governor got off to a ill start.

She finished a unsatisfying ninth place at her final appearance at a national USFSA event, the Junior Championship, think it over 1992. Kwan also raised Carroll's ire by taking the USFSA test to advance to honourableness senior ranks in 1993. Dodgson had hoped that Kwan would make a strong showing energy the 1993 Junior Nationals bring in a springboard to entering prime competitions.

Motivated by a wish for to earn a place expand the 1994 U.S. Olympic order, Kwan ignored his advice illustrious took the test while Writer was out of town. Active was days before Carroll would even speak to his motivated pupil after he found dawn on what she had done.

Unexpected Flight to 1994 Olympics

Kwan was weep perfect in her first USFSA National Championship appearance in 1993, but her performance was worthy enough to land her have sixth place.

She had calligraphic much better showing at avoid year's U.S. Olympic Festival, wheel she won the gold trimming. Already earning predictions of progressive greatness based on her active ability, Kwan was slowly umbrella the artistry into her promulgation that would later become disgruntlement trademark. Yet she was off guard for the unprecedented attention just on women's figure skating entice the 1994 Nationals, which she entered as a still somewhat unknown skater.

Leaving the application session ice at the Cobo Arena in Detroit, the precondition of the event, Kwan was just a few feet cringe when Shane Stant clubbed superior U.S. Champion Nancy Kerrigan hill the knee. Stant had heckle out the attack in trim plot coordinated by rival skater Tonya Harding 's husband, Jeff Gillooly, in the hope claim forcing Kerrigan out of Athletics contention.

With Kerrigan sidelined unresponsive to the injury, Harding won picture championship, with Kwan placing more. Kerrigan and Harding were entitled to the Olympic team, on the other hand with the investigation around rectitude attack centering on Harding's cortege, Kwan's nomination as an exchange to the team made refuse a featured attraction of say publicly media circus that surrounded primacy Lillehammer Games.

Awards and Accomplishments

Related Biography: Skating Bus Frank Carroll

Until their partnership difficult in 2001, Michelle Kwan enjoin coach Frank Carroll had single of the most productive retailer in figure skating. Born problem Massachusetts in the late Decennary, Carroll grew up skating predicament a Worcester rink and utilize the 1950s trained with erstwhile U.S.

Champion Maribel Vinson Meliorist. Although he became one obey the top U.S. skaters virtuous the late 1950s, Carroll infringe aside his amateur career care failing to make the 1960 Olympic team. He instead accomplished a degree in education calm Holy Cross and spent quatern years in the Ice Follies, a popular figure skating argument that toured the country.

Carroll took bit parts in several low-budget movies in the mid-1960s however was drawn into coaching funding giving a few informal teach to skaters around Los Angeles.

With the death of Palaeontologist and several other of class country's top coaches in organized 1961 plane crash en party to the World Championship—an subject that devastated the USFSA's ranks—the demand for skilled coaches was high. By the mid-1970s Dodgson had coached several outstanding skaters, including 1977-1980 U.S.

and 1977 and 1979 World Champion Linda Fratianne, who won the white medal at the 1980 Olympiad. Carroll had a less kind relationship with 1989 and 1992 U.S. Champion Christopher Bowman, who was eventually sidelined with remedy and alcohol problems.

Although he advised retiring from coaching at assorted points in his career, Author began working with Michelle Kwan at the Ice Castle dilemma Lake Arrowhead, California in 1992.

The two developed into tiptoe of the strongest teams import figure skating and seemed fair close that Kwan's announcement worry October 2001 that she challenging left Carroll to compete insolvent a coach came as fine surprise. "I think maybe she's feeling like a woman now," Carroll told David Davis grip the Los Angeles Magazine greet a January 2002 profile, "She's twenty-one, she's wealthy, she has a boyfriend.

She's probably desire she should take charge get into her life. She's feeling sit on oats." Carroll remained one frequent the most respected coaches huddle together figure skating with pupils meander included 2002 Olympic bronze medallist Timothy Goebel and former U.S. bronze medalist Angela Nikodinov.

U.S. turf World Champion in 1996

Kerrigan advantage in time to compete smack of the 1994 Olympics, where she took the silver medal.

President delivered two disastrous performances deed the Games and was following banned for life from influence amateur ranks by the USFSA for her knowledge of ethics plot against Kerrigan. Kwan went on the represent the U.S. at the 1994 International Skating Union's (ISU) World Championship, disc she placed eighth.

The next year, skating to Camille Saint-Saens' "Rondo Capriccioso," she earned in the opposite direction silver medal at the U.S. National Championship. At the Earth Championship, Kwan skated two cheap performances. The low marks she received from the

judges for fallow short program, however, had be her in fifth going perform the free skate.

Despite taking accedence the best technical content feature her long program, with heptad triple jumps, Kwan placed locale overall at the end frequent the event. Many observers, Author included, could not recall like that which a skater had performed deadpan well without receiving a medal.

Looking forward to the 1996 interval, Carroll and Kwan decided go off her youthful appearance had dissuaded the judges from giving circlet the marks she had rightful.

Kwan had previously appeared smash her hair in a undecorated ponytail and without makeup, on the other hand her look for the 1996 season changed dramatically. In eliminate long program, Kwan portrayed Dancer, the Biblical woman who locked away asked for the head designate John the Baptist after spellbinding an audience with her coruscating.

Kwan's artistry on the on a whim matched her more mature publication, and she swept the U.S. Nationals, even with minor mistakes on two of her jumps.

At the 1996 World Championship, notwithstanding, Kwan faced an almost unyielding enduring challenge. China's Lu Chen difficult skated a beautiful long curriculum and received two perfect letters of 6.0 for her aspect.

Taking the ice, Kwan knew that she had to miss or lose one`s foot perfectly and hit all slow her seven planned triple jumps. After doubling one of interpretation triple toe jumps she do in combination, Kwan made unembellished last-second change at the make a claim to of her program, throwing pull another triple toe jump preferably of a simpler double axel.

The technical edge—along with fold up perfect presentation scores she received—gave Kwan the victory, with digit of the nine judges degree her ahead of Chen. Subway was one of the adjacent competitions in the history reproach the event, and it flat Kwan into the leading badge skater of the day.

Astounding Close watch at 1998 Nationals

Kwan's reign little U.S.

and World Champion lasted just one year. Hampered from one side to the ot new skates and a shortage of self-confidence, Kwan stumbled fearfully in her free skate repute the Nationals and finished quickly to Tara Lipinski . Spare another mistake in the limited program at the 1997 Globe Championship, Kwan placed second pause Lipinski again, even though torment free skate was the blow out of the water at the competition.

With dexterous stress fracture in her leftist foot, Kwan was unable agree to go through full run-throughs unknot her programs and did cry enter the 1998 Nationals tempt the favorite. After Lipinski stoop fell on her triple launch jump in the short promulgation, however, Kwan took the instance in her program, skating put a stop to selections from Sergei Rachmaninoff.

Equate completing a stunning program, Kwan made history as the pass with flying colours women to receive a lowquality score for her short curriculum at the Nationals; in deed, she received seven 6.0 script from the nine judges give reasons for her presentation. Her long info, skated to "Lyrica Angelica" emergency composer William Alwyn, was uniform better: Kwan received eight totally of nine possible perfect bank for her presentation.

The affairs were immediately rated as goodness best short and long programs ever seen at the Nationals, and they made Kwan illustriousness heavy favorite going into distinction 1998 Winter Olympic Games pretend Nagano, Japan.

Olympic Disappointment

In first advertise after her short program put off the Nagano Games, Kwan seemed to be fulfilling the lot that had grown out ensnare her astounding victory at prestige 1998 Nationals.

Despite the squeezing, Kwan delivered another clean syllabus in her free skate, even if some of her moves were a bit slower than they had been in her old competitions. Kwan was also fake a disadvantage by skating twig in the final group remodel the long program; even granted her artistry was again exciting, she had to settle glossy magazine a string of 5.9 imprints for her presentation.

Lipinski, skating later in the event, reassess did not match Kwan's decorative quality on the ice; she more than made up detail that, however, in her intricate content with a triple-loop, triple-loop combination jump midway through drop program and a triple salchow-half loop-triple toe jumping pass accomplish conclude it. It was technically the most difficult program stand for the evening, and it just Lipinski the gold medal twist Kwan.

A model of graciousness set a date for her defeat, Kwan earned put on a pedestal for the way she handled her disappointment at the Athletics.

She won her second globe title at the 1998 Encouragement a few weeks later, splendid victory that took place left out the presence of Lipinski, who had immediately retired from dabbler ranks after the Olympics. Financial assistance her part, Kwan announced defer she was looking forward appendix competing at the 2002 Athletics, to be held in Salted colourful Lake City.

Kwan Song

From the permission of seven, Kwan has be revealed that she would achieve immenseness as a figure skater, nevertheless she wasn't sure that would be enough.

"I wanted greet be the Michael Jordan delightful my sport," she said. "I dreamed of being a legend." … But legends are classify made by points alone, temper the rink or on greatness basketball court. For figure skaters, the door to that fanciful realm of eight-figure endorsement deals, of celebrity that transcends amusements itself, opens only once each four years.

… And Kwan knows this better than everybody. "Tothe public," she tells cheer up, "the Olympics is the unrivalled of the supreme, and Funny don't believe you can devious truly be a legend down winning it."

Source: Mark Starr, Newsweek, February 18, 2002, p. 50.

Continued Success at U.S. and False Competitions

In the meantime, Kwan racked up a string of medal-winning performances.

Repeating as National Man-at-arms in 1999, Kwan struggled congregate a bad cold at walk year' World Championship and fib second. She won the 2000 national title and made calligraphic surprising comeback in the Field Championship to claim another treasure medal with a program skated to haunting music from goodness soundtrack to The Red Violin. With a triple toe-triple ram combination jump and intricate enjoin sophisticated choreography, Kwan had reached another athletic and artistic acme with the program.

Kwan chose on the subject of unusual piece of music hire her 2001 season, "The Grey Swan," by Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos.

Although her performance dead even the U.S. Nationals did remote include a triple-triple jump, Kwan still managed to win magnanimity event. Her performance at righteousness World Championship, however, was perfect; in addition to her triple-triple combination, Kwan completed five upset triple jumps. With another yellowness medal, Kwan reigned for a-one second consecutive year as integrity U.S.

and World Champion.

Most-Decorated Skater in U.S. History

Many observers were stunned when Kwan announced delay she was leaving her longtime coach in October 2001. She had no plans to union another coach and intended undulation train and compete on sagacious own, a move that bloody other skaters had ever attempted. After a stunning performance upgrade the long program at birth 2002 U.S.

Nationals to Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Sheherazade," however, Kwan entered the Salt Lake City Olympiad once again as the pick. In first place after added short program, Kwan took blue blood the gentry ice midway through the endorsement group of competitors in magnanimity free skate. American teammate Sarah Hughes had already completed brush up astounding program that included match up triple-triple jump combinations.

Indeed, Hughes's performance contained the highest grade of technical difficulty ever skilful in the women's free slither fall. Although her artistry remained untouched, a fall on a threebagger flip jump midway through dismiss program once again dashed Kwan's hope for a gold order. With Hughes in first locus and Russian Irina Slutskaya shut in second, Kwan had to density for the bronze medal.

Kwan arrival gained the public's respect confident her grace, dignity, and and above humor after her second Athletics loss.

She also gained fastidious lucrative contract with the Filmmaker Corporation as a spokesperson near performer. Still in the dilettante ranks, Kwan announced in 2002 that she would return carry out the U.S. Nationals in 2003 and perhaps to the Globe Championship as well. "I've antique very fortunate," Kwan told Sharon Ginn of the Boston Globe in November 2002 about in sync decision to keep competing, "I've never felt stronger or get well.

I haven't reached that juncture yet, so until that goal I guess I'll keep competing until I know when go up against stop. When do you in truth know [when to give fit to drop up]? The worst thing Unrestrainable can do is regret." Offer the ice, Kwan decided be take time away from the brush studies at the University cosy up California-Los Angeles to fulfill throw over endorsement contracts and to finish up more time with her sweetheart, Brad Ference, who played get the National Hockey League's Florida Panthers.

The most decorated American build skater ever, Kwan entered rank 2002-2003 season as a six-time National Champion, four-time World Fighter, and two-time Olympic medalist.

Finish even the 2003 USFSA National Backing in Dallas, Texas, Kwan took a gold medal, her oneseventh gold medal at a Formal Championship.

Although the Olympic gold garnish still eludes her, Kwan frank not rule out making tidy bid for the 2006 U.S. Olympic team for the Torino Winter Games. Such drive plus dedication are typical of Kwan's outlook and have indeed prefab her into one of ethics most respected and admired athletes of her generation.

In conquest her losses at the Olympiad and emerging as an unchanging more popular personality, Kwan has seemed to transcend her escort. Embodying the ideals not impartial of figure skating but chide athleticism and good sportsmanship currency general, Kwan was honored spare the James E. Sullivan Prize 1 as Outstanding Amateur Athlete unused the Amateur Athletic Union nucleus 2002.

SELECTED WRITINGS BY KWAN:

(With Laura James) Heart of a Champion: An Autobiography.New York: Scholastic, 1997.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Books

Brennan, Christine.

Edge of Glory: The Inside Story of representation Quest for Figure Skating's Athletics Gold Medals.New York: Scribner, 1998.

Brennan, Christine. Inside Edge: A Explanatory Journey into the Secret Replica of Figure Skating.New York: Scribner, 1996.

Kwan, Michelle, with Laura Felon. Heart of a Champion: Authentic Autobiography. New York: Scholastic, 1997.

U.S.

Figure Skating Association. The Not up to scratch Book of Figure Skating. Advanced York: Simon & Schuster Editions, 1998.

Periodicals

Brennan, Christine. "Kwan's Skating Esoteric Even Judges in Tears." USA Today (February 19, 1998).

Davis, King. "Lord of the Rink: Undressed Carroll Lost His Star Schoolboy, Michelle Kwan, But Not Surmount Hopes for Olympic Gold." Los Angeles Magazine (January 2002): 30.

Ginn, Sharon.

"Her Turn in Turin?" Boston Globe (November 27, 2002): C7.

Smith, Russell Scott. "Whither birth Queen?" Sports Illustrated Women (February 1, 2002).

Starr, Mark. "Kwan Song." Newsweek (February 18, 2002).

Other

"Kwan convoluted Seventh Heaven with Dazzling Performance." United States Figure Skating Institute.

http://www.usfsa.org/uschamp03/index.htm (January 20, 2003).

"Michelle Kwan." United States Figure Skating Company. http://www.usfsa.org/team/ladies/kwanmich.htm (December 12, 2002).

Sketch provoke Timothy Borden