She boasts of being the Olympic Champion in 1988 and 1994 while also being the World Champion four times in 1986, 1987, 1989 and 1990. Great female figure skaters are known for breaking records and sparking emotions in their fans. One instance is Ekaterina Gordeeva’s performance in remembrance of her late husband and skating partner, Sergei Grinkov. Other great female figure skaters include Kim Yuna, Sonja Henie, Michelle Kwan, and Peggy Fleming. Michelle Wingshan Kwan (born July 7, 1980) is a retired competitive figure skater and diplomat serving as United States Ambassador to Belize.
From Olympic champions to pioneers who helped shape the very essence of the sport, this comprehensive collection features a diverse array of female figure skaters who have contributed significantly to the figure skating world. At the tender age of 12, the Japanese legend became the only woman to execute triple combination skating successfully. She also won the World Championship in 1989 and another silver medal in 1992. She is one of the most famous female figure skaters in the world.
- The collapse of a section of bleachers during a show in Baltimore, Maryland in 1952 compounded the tour’s legal and financial woes.
- The 1984 Olympic Champion boasts of being a two-time World Champion and a four-time Canadian Champion.
- In an epic showdown in Calgary, Canada, 22-year-old Katarina Witt of East Germany—the 1984 figure skating gold medalist—faced 20-year-old American Debi Thomas.
- The diminutive Hamilton overcame a childhood illness to eventually win four consecutive national championships within the U.S. ( ) and four straight world titles.
At home in Oslo, she trained at Frogner Stadium, where her coaches included Hjørdis Olsen and Oscar Holte. During the latter part of her competitive career she was coached primarily by the American Howard Nicholson in London. Hamill was a mentor to 2010 U.S. national champion Rachael Flatt.[6] Flatt, like Hamill, trained in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Get HISTORY’s most fascinating stories delivered to your inbox three times a week. Even after the music for the national anthem stopped during the medal ceremony, Lipinski remained at attention on the podium.
Your Favorite Olympic Figure Skaters, Then And Now
Viktor Petrenko 1988 Bronze Medal & 1992 Gold Medal in Men’s singles, who represented the Soviet Union & Unified Team is excluded from this count as Petrenko is Ukrainian [1] and would later represent Ukraine at the 1994 Winter Olympics. This count only applies to Russian athletes as the majority of Soviet figure skaters are Russian or were born in Russian SSR. Meryl Davis is the 2014 Olympic champion, 2010 Olympic silver medalist, two-time World champion, and six-time U.S. champion in ice dance alongside partner Charlie White. Davis and White also led the U.S. to the 2014 Olympic bronze medal in the inaugural team event. They are the first Americans to win ice dance titles at the Olympics and World Championships. In 2014, she was named the Women’s Sports Foundation Sportswoman of the Year.
- Two ice dancers and three pair skaters have earned non-consecutive titles.
- Witt then went on to win her first World title in dominant fashion (without Sumners) winning all three phases of the competition.
- Great female figure skaters are known for breaking records and sparking emotions in their fans.
- Not only is Hamilton one of the greatest skaters of all time, but he remains a true ambassador for the sport — and not just in the United States.
- At the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, Hamill came in second in the figures and then won the short and long programs, taking the gold medal.
The 1984 Olympic Champion boasts of being a two-time World Champion and a four-time Canadian Champion. She mainly participated in the ladies’ singles and is the only Canadian to have won the Olympic ladies’ singles gold medal. Focusing on highly accomplished female figure skaters, this assembly highlights the unique achievements and skills that set them apart in the realm of ice skating. Be it their exceptional grace or incredible athleticism, each of these famous ice skaters has demonstrated outstanding dedication and mastery in their field. Fans and enthusiasts alike will appreciate the nuances that make these individuals indispensable to the rich history of female figure skating and the inspiration they’ve provided to countless aspiring athletes.
Programs
She had a great shot at winning the 1982 World Championships, which she only required winning the long program to do. The eventual winner of the competition was Elaine Zayak, who landed six triples. The next season, she won her first European title but finished off the World podium in fourth place, because she was 8th in compulsory figures despite winning the combined free skating.
1968 Games: Peggy Fleming Skates Into America’s Heart
The duo will certainly be remembered for their achievements in pair skating, but Gordeeva showed the world that figure skating is sentimental, as she skated to Mahler’s “Symphony No. 5” in honor of her love. Dorothy Hamill is a retired figure skater whose efforts gave the United States of America an Olympic gold at the 1976 Winter Olympics. Despite suffering from chronic depression for much of her adult life, Dorothy Hamill served as a mentor to Rachael Flatt, who won the gold medal at the 2008 World Junior Figure Skating Championships. Of course, women (like men) have been skating, as a means of transport or recreation, for about as long as ice skates have been around.
Final scores for the 2022 Olympics
Henie became so popular with the public that police had to be called out for crowd control on her appearances in various disparate cities such as Prague and New York City. Since her subsequent retirement, Witt has worked in film and television. Over the course of the 19th century, as local skating clubs started competing with one another in national skating associations and then an international governing body, “they just presumed women wouldn’t compete,” Hines says. Russia became the first country to win six medals in a single Olympics at Beijing 2022. Two gold in the Team Event & Ladies Singles, three silver in Ice dance, Ladies Singles, & Pairs, and one bronze in Pairs.
1988 Games: Katarina Witt Beats Debi Thomas in Battle of the Carmens
Matching elegance with athleticism, America’s Yamaguchi bested Japan’s Midori Ito and teammate Nancy Kerrigan to win gold in Albertville, France. Less than two weeks before the Games in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Albright—who suffered from polio as a girl—accidentally stabbed herself in the right ankle with the heel of her left skate during a practice. In 2016, Sasha graduated from Columbia University with her bachelor’s degree. She now works for Morgan Stanley, as well as hosts a podcast for the U.S. The skater shares two children—a son born in January 2020 and a daughter born in August 2021—with fiancé Geoffrey Lieberthal.
Had she placed 1st in the long program instead of 2nd (on a 5–4 split) to Sumners, she would have jumped to the silver over both Leistner and Vodorezova. Her free skate with a triple flip and five triples was technically https://accounting-services.net/20-famous-female-ice-skaters-who-won-olympic/ superior to Sumners’, and many believed she should have taken the crucial 1st place in this phase. Russian figure skaters hold the unique record for earning gold medals in all six Olympic figure skating events.
