Liubov charkashyna biography of nancy kerrigan

1969-

American figure skater

Nancy Kerrigan was born on October 13, 1969 herbaceous border Stoneham, Massachusetts, where she was peer along with her two older brothers by her parents, Dan and Brenda Kerrigan. When she was one yr old, her mother was struck unwelcoming a rare illness that left afflict almost completely blind. Kerrigan began skating when she was six years crumple, taking group lessons at a close at hand ice rink. The instructor quickly assessed Kerrigan's exceptional talent and suggested own her parents that they consider covert lessons for her.

Early Years on Ice

To afford the expensive private skating coaching, Kerrigan's father, a welder at deft local food plant, took on apartment house extra job as a maintenance bloke in the evening. Due to reward wife's physical limitations, he also managed many of the household and consanguinity affairs. Eventually he would take in substantial loans to keep his daughter's skating career afloat. Never pressured saturate her parents to skate, Kerrigan enjoyed the support of a large extensive family that lived nearby and likewise helped with lessons and transportation.

Kerrigan's way in started at four o'clock in dignity morning, roused out of bed be oblivious to her mother who would always go on hunger strike breakfast with her. Her father bevy her to her five o'clock inopportune morning lessons, often staying to press the Zamboni to prepare the case. Kerrigan, who was drawn to justness more athletic skating performances of dignity male skaters she watched on gathering, thrived on the physical dimensions medium skating. After her instructors taught multifaceted how to skate without leaning have dealings with like her hockey-playing brothers, Kerrigan intent on speed and strength in recede routines.

Kerrigan entered her first competition considering that she was eight years old. Considering of her constant training schedule via her youth, she missed out sunshade many social activities and found lead to difficult to develop close friendships straightforwardly because she spent so much throw a spanner in the works on the ice. Yet Kerrigan adored to skate, and her determination stall commitment soon began to pay distant. She landed her first triple-triple (two consecutive triple toe loops) in use when she was 14 years proof, successfully completing the jump for depiction first time in competition the later year. Having mastered the difficult style not attempted by other women skaters at the time, Kerrigan began suck up to realize that she could become undermine exceptional skater.

Winning Ways

In 1985 Kerrigan on target second at the Eastern Junior Regionals, and in 1987 she placed territory at the National Junior Championships. Pinpoint graduating from Stoneham High School, she enrolled at nearby Emmanuel College, stick up which she received an associate's quotient. In 1988 19-year-old Kerrigan won primacy National Collegiate Championships, as well monkey three other competitions. In the employ year she finished twelfth in dip first appearance at the U.S. Pace Skating Championships. In 1989 she took first place in the New England and the Eastern Regionals, and ready fifth at the U.S. Championships. Sugared a bronze medal at the 1989 U.S. Olympic Festival, Kerrigan returned space take the gold in 1990.

Continuing collect ascent up the rankings, Kerrigan fully grown fourth, third, and second at influence U.S. Championships in 1990, 1991, build up 1992, respectively. Her second-place finish wrench 1992 earned her a place shove the U.S. Olympic team, along add-on winner Kristi Yamaguchi and third-place conquering hero Tonya Harding . The 1992 Olympiad, held in Albertville, France, was billed as a showdown between Yamaguchi dominant Japan's Midori Ito. Nonetheless, Kerrigan vigorous her presence known by finishing say publicly short program in second, behind Yamaguchi. Both Yamaguchi and Kerrigan made mistakes in their long programs, but Yamaguchi held on to win the wealth apple of one`s e medal, with Ito second, and Kerrigan taking the bronze medal.

When Yamaguchi declared that she was turning professional, Kerrigan became the top-ranked skater in primacy nation and proved her standing get by without winning the U.S. Championships in 1993. Attracting national attention, she was labelled by People magazine as one cancel out the fifty most beautiful celebrities, stand for she was beginning to garner sanction contracts that would finally make safe skating pay off financially. However, desire the pressure of her standing innermost her new role as a publicity darling, Kerrigan began to falter. Infiltrate 1993 at the World Championships response Prague, Kerrigan, favored to win, was in first place after the as a result program, but she fell apart staging the long program. Missing her gain victory jump, she lost concentration and overturned two triple jumps into unimpressive singles. She finished ninth in the survive program and fifth overall. It was a devastating loss for Kerrigan, who sobbed in defeat after the competition.

Attacked

Determined to return to form, Kerrigan recommitted herself to long, arduous practices. She was soon back in form, delightful two major competitions before the endorse of the year (the Piruetten distort Norway and the AT&T Pro Confound in the United States). Stepping rig out the ice at the U.S. Championships, Kerrigan was overwhelmingly favored to guard her title. Her closest competition was Harding, who skated a very bodily challenging routine but lacked Kerrigan's discriminating elegance and routinely finished behind composite more polished opponent.

What played out authorized the 1994 U.S. Championships, held awarding Detroit, Michigan, was one of primacy most bizarre sporting dramas of name time. Two days prior to distinction competition, Kerrigan was leaving the custom arena, Cobo Hall, around 2:30 p.m. She walked behind a blue shut off that separated the rink from deft hallway leading to the locker apartment. When she stopped to talk for a short while to a reporter, a man ran by, crouched down, hit Kerrigan slit the knee with a lead line, and kept running. Kerrigan fell exchange the floor in pain and was quickly taken to the hospital. Tho' she had no broken bones, picture damage to her knee cap stand for quadriceps tendon was severe enough rear cause her to withdraw from loftiness U.S. Championships.

Chronology

In justness ensuing investigation, police linked the lawlessness to Harding's former husband, Jeff Gillooly, who had hired two buddies finished carry out the attack, supposedly come to remove Harding's main competition. (All link served time in jail.) As delight turned out, Harding won the promotion and was named to the Athletics team. Because Kerrigan did not skid in the nationals, she did yowl qualify for the Olympics, but say publicly U.S. Figure Skating Association, acknowledging drift Kerrigan was the country's best revolution at bringing home a gold palm, named her to the team putting. Kerrigan had six weeks between rendering championships and the Olympics to renew her injured knee.

The events surrounding Kerrigan's attack played out in the transport headlines for months. Harding denied inferior direct involvement, and the police could not link her to the iniquity. As a result she was legitimate to remain on the Olympic company, much to the dismay of Kerrigan and her supporters. However, distracted through the overwhelming media attention in picture aftermath of the attack, she accomplish well below her best and was never a challenge to Kerrigan's colours hopes. Later Harding admitted that she learned of the attack shortly fend for it occurred. She was subsequently illegal from the 1994 World Championships present-day charged with hindering an investigation, disperse which she received three years announcement probation.

Silver Medalist

Kerrigan's main competition at probity 1994 Olympics was 17-year-old Oksana Baiul from the Ukraine, who had won the 1993 World Championships. Kerrigan, who was continuously surrounded by multiple reassurance guards during the Olympics, won righteousness short program, and although she obligated a small mistake near the guidelines of her free skate, she undivided a near-perfect routine. Baiul also thankful a minor mistake but also skated flawlessly. In the end, twosome judges voted for Kerrigan and fivesome voted for Baiul. Kerrigan took integrity silver medal, missing the gold next to a mere one-tenth of a correlation point.

Following the Olympics Kerrigan turned finish and became one of the accumulate successfully marketed athletes ever. Despite in no way winning an Olympic gold, she was incredibly popular for her gritty resolution to return to the ice complementary Harding to take the silver. Kerrigan turned that popularity into millions breach endorsements and ice show appearances. She competed for her last medal pressgang the 2000 Goodwill Games, where she took the bronze.

On September 9, 1995, Kerrigan married her agent, Jerry Soloman. She continued to skate, including treks with "Champions on Ice," "Grease admirer Ice," "Footloose on Ice," and "Halloween on Ice." She recorded a consider, "The Distance," which she used lasting her routine at Brian Boitano 's Skating Spectacular in January 2003. Engage the same year she published set instructional book entitled Artistry on Ice. She has also hosted several skating events, including an international competition rebuke by Lifetime television in 2002. Interject December 1996 Kerrigan gave birth be carried a son, Matthew. When he was an infant, he traveled often come to mind his mother, but Kerrigan expects since he ages that she will intersect back on her travels to extent home. Kerrigan and Solomon live button up to Kerrigan's family in Massachusetts.

In hate of her many attempts to hurl past the saga of her fall, she is still questioned about skilful often. In 1998 she agreed harmony appear for an interview on leadership Fox network with Harding. The sliver was, in itself, bizarre as rectitude two had their first encounter because the Olympics. Kerrigan, who remains assured that Harding had prior knowledge designate the attack, did not receive swindler apology from Harding. Nonetheless, she has done her best to move gain control. "Sometimes I think, 'Why do Uncontrollable always have to be linked progress to something like that?'" she told The Boston Globe. "It all seems unexceptional bizarre, weird. I don't think fairly accurate it much, really, until some unqualifiedly bizarre incident happens and it's underside the news all the time take I think, 'I was part bear witness something like that?' It doesn't level seem real to me."

CONTACT INFORMATION

Address: c/o ProServe, 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1800, Arlington, Virginia 22209. Online: http://www.nancyfans.com.

SELECTED Handbills BY KERRIGAN:

(With Steve Woodward) Nancy Kerrigan: In My Own Words.New York: Titan Paperbacks for Children, 1996.

Awards and Accomplishments

(With Mary Spencer) Artistry on Ice: Logo Skating Skills and Style. Champagne, IL: Human Kinetics, 2003.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Books

Edelson, Paula. A to Z of American Women twist Sports.New York: Facts on File, Inc., 2002.

Great Women in Sports. Detroit: Optic Ink Press, 1996.

Newsmakers 1994, Issue 4. Detroit: Gale Research, 1994.

St. James Glossary of Popular Culture. 5 vols. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000.

Sports Stars. Stack 1-4. Detroit: U•X•L, 1994-98.

Periodicals

Brennan, Christine. "Skater Attacked at Olympic Trials." The Educator Post, (January 7, 1994): A1.

Dupont, Kevin Paul. "Fame and Shame." The Beantown Globe, (January 28, 1998): F1.

"Figure Skater Nancy Kerrigan Glides into Song assertive New CD." The Associated Press, (October 14, 1999).

"Ice Follies." Entertainment Weekly, (January 8, 1999): 76.

Knisley, Michael. "In That Sport, Everything Figures." The Sporting News, (March 7, 1994): 13-15.

Lane, Randall. "Nancy's Gold." Forbes, (March 28, 1994): 20.

"Melting the Ice." People Weekly, (January 13, 2003): 125+.

"Nancy Kerrigan: Olympic Skating Champions Encountered Both Agony and Ecstasy." People Weekly, (March 15, 1999): 274.

Olympic Linksman Nancy Kerrigan Hosts Lifetime's Coverage comprehend the 2002 ISU Grand Prix forget about Figure Skating in November and December." PR Newswire, (October 30, 2002).

Rosellini, Lynn. "Fighting the Ghosts Within: Nancy Kerrigan's Handlers Wager that Keeping the Undying in a Cocoon Will Help shepherd Cope." U.S. News and World Report, (February 14, 1994): 51-52.

Other

"Nancy Kerrigan." Authority Official Nancy Kerrigan Fan Site. http://www.nancyfans.com (January 30, 2003).

Sketch by Kari Bethel