Athletes - Michelle Kwan

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	Athletes - Michelle Kwan

Michelle Wing Kwan (Traditional Chinese:關穎珊, Simplified Chinese: 关颖珊, born July 7, 1980), is an American figure skater and media celebrity who has won nine U.S. championships, five world championships, and two Olympic medals. She has remained competitive for over a decade and is the most decorated figure skater in U.S. history. Known for her expressive artistry on ice, she has routinely been called one of the greatest figure skaters of all time.

Competitive Biography

Kwan has won five World Championships (1996, 1998, 2000, 2001, and 2003), the most by anyone in the ladies' division since Carol Heiss (1956 - 1960), with whom she is tied for the most wins by an American. She has won nine United States National Championships (1996, 1998-2005), tying the record for most set by Maribel Vinson-Owen (1928 - 1933, 1935 - 1937). Kwan's seven consecutive U.S. Championship titles (1998-2004) and 11 consecutive U.S. Championship medals (1994-2004) are both U.S. records. She is the only woman in figure skating history to reclaim the World title three times (1998, 2000, 2003). She has also won a silver medal in the 1998 Nagano, Japan Olympics and a bronze medal in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. Among her many accolades, Michelle has received the prestigious Sullivan Award as America's best amateur athlete in 2001. Kwan has received a combined total of 54 6.0s from her Nationals and Worlds competitions throughout the years.

Born in Torrance, California, Kwan is the third child of Danny and Estella Kwan, Chinese immigrants from Hong Kong. At the age of five her interest in figure skating began, as she followed after her two older siblings (one who played ice hockey, Ron, and one who figure skated, Karen) onto the ice. Kwan's family moved to Lake Arrowhead, California in 1991 to avail itself of training with Frank Carroll, a leading figure skating coach. At the age of 12 in 1992, Kwan passed a test to become a senior- level figure skater despite the disapproval of her coach. In 1993, Kwan finished sixth at her first senior U.S. championships, and later that year she won the 1994 World Junior title.

The Alternate Amidst The Scandal

In 1994, Kwan finished second to Tonya Harding at the U.S. championships, which ordinarily would have earned her a spot on the U.S. team to the 1994 Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway. However, that place was instead given to 1993 national champion Nancy Kerrigan, who had been sidelined by an assault and battery (eventually connected to Harding's ex-husband Jeff Gillooly), after a practice session at those championships. The 13-year-old Kwan went to Norway as an alternate. However, Kwan competed at the 1994 World Championships, where Kerrigan and Harding did not appear, finishing eighth.

The Jumping Bean

By the end of the 1994 competitive season, Tonya Harding, Nancy Kerrigan, Oksana Baiul, and other competitors of the Lillehammer Olympics had left the amateur level for the professional ranks, leaving behind a sport badly damaged by the scandals, and ready for a new star to help it regain its stature. As a result of the scandal, the U.S. Championship was vacant for Kwan and others to capture in 1995. While Nicole Bobek captured the gold medal at the U.S. Nationals, Kwan made a mark as a "jumping bean" in the World Championships, landing 7 clean triples and placing 4th.

Development As An Artist

Following 1995, Kwan and her team thought that she should transform herself from a "jumping bean" to a figure skating artist in order for her to emerge as a gold medal Olympic champion. This transformation manifested itself in her new competitive programs, Romanza (short program) and Salome (free skate); Kwan proved that she was a major contender for the world title. In 1996, Kwan won the U.S. Championships and the World Championships. In the latter event, she edged out defending champion Lu Chen from China in a close competition in which both competitors' marks for the free skate included perfect 6.0s.

In the 1996–97 season, Kwan skated to "Dream of Desdemona" (short program) and "Taj Mahal" (free skate.) It was during this year that Michelle Kwan debuted the change of edge spiral in her short program which is still considered her signature move. However, in this season, Kwan struggled with her jumps because she wore new skating boots as a result of an endorsement with a skate company. She fell three times in her free skate at 1997 U.S. Nationals and refused to be interviewed with Lipinski and bronze medalist Bobek. She also lost the Champion Series Final and World titles to Tara Lipinski that season.

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Athletes - Michelle Kwan

Competitive Biography

The Alternate Amidst The Scandal

The Jumping Bean

Development As An Artist

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