Michelle Kwan has become a household name in figure skating over the years. First emerging to the world at the age of 13 and capturing the hearts of the nation in the middle of the Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding crisis, she has grown into the amazing figure skater we know her to be today.
Michelle is the third child of Danny and Estella Kwan. She was born on July 7, 1980 and began skating at the age of 5. Her interest in skating came while she and her older sister, Karen, watched her older brother, Ron, playing hockey. The two wanted to learn how to skate and were soon starting skating lessons. Her first recollection of skating was when she was 6. "I was wearing rental skates and eating Nerds candy." That same year Michelle entered her first skating competition and won!
The dream of receiving a gold medal came to Michelle in 1988 while she saw American Brian Boitano win the Olympic gold medal. At first she thought, "Okay, tomorrow I'll go to the Olympics," but it wasn't exactly that easy. Michelle has committed herself to vigorous training and set out on her quest to become an Olympic champion. The Kwans hired Frank Carroll to coach their daughters and the two sisters moved to Lake Arrowhead the following year to train at the Ice Castle, where Michelle continues to train today.
Michelle placed ninth at the 1992 Junior National Championships. She was extremely disappointed with her performance. She wanted to test out at the senior level, but Frank thought she was not ready and needed more time and experience. So being a little sneaky, Michelle decided to take that test on her own while her coach was out of town. Her parents, who had thought Frank knew she was going to take the senior test, drove Michelle to take the test. She performed a vast variety of many skating moves in front of a panel of judges and passed the test with very high marks.
Well Frank was not exactly all that happy when he discovered Michelle's little trick. The man just about blew his top because he was pretty mad and he put her to work. Since Michelle had passed the senior test, then she would have to train very hard in order to stay on the senior level. At age 12, Michelle finished sixth at the National Championships, better than she did at the junior level.
In `93, Michelle received instant nationwide attention when she won at the U.S. Olympic Festival, being the youngest champion ever. She landed six triple jumps successfully in front of 25,691 people, the largest crowd ever. Michelle won four more competitions that same year.
After victory at the junior `94 World Championships, Michelle went on to take the silver at the National Championships. She became first alternate to the Olympic and World teams. Michelle replaced Tonya Harding at the 1994 World Championships. She skated magnificently in front of the local Japanese crowd. The spectators were shocked at the skill in which this little girl performed. Michelle came in eighth place and allowed the U.S. women's team to go to the World's again the following year. Michelle's top ten placing did not require her to try out for the next year's team.
The next season, Michelle won another silver at the National Championships. She skated beautifully at that year's World Championships on Birmingham, England. She received the only standing ovation of the night for her free skate and finished third. Michelle had skated to the capacity of her ability and was very happy with herself. Many thought that Michelle should have medalled that night instead of finishing fourth overall. Her coach thought that the judges were thinking that it was the Women's Championship, not the Girls'. With or without a medal, Michelle proved to the world that she was a capable skater.
The 1995-1996 season was great for Michelle. She was no longer the girl that most had remembered her to be, she had matured a great deal and became a young woman. With her new look and her artistry, Michelle was ready to stand on top of the podium that year. She won nine out of the ten competitions she entered that year. Michelle earned perfect marks of 6.0 in artistry at the World Championships and just edged out China's Chen Lu who had skated flawlessly.
The next season was a tough ride for Michelle. After winning the first four competitions of the season, Michelle fell at the National Championships. The loss was completely unexpected and showed even a woman of her skill was not unstoppable. She went on and placed second at the Champion Series. Many people began to wonder what was wrong because of the sudden fall from the top Michelle had. Michelle then decided that she needed a new perspective of the sport and life. She decided that no matter what she does, she should just go out and have fun. At the World Championships, Michelle placed in fourth place after the short program. Many were skeptical about Michelle's ability that night and thought she would mess up in the free skate, but she did the opposite. She received a standing ovation before her program was even finished. Although Michelle had only came in second place that night, Michelle won the battle against her own mind. She learned to take on her fears one on one, head on. With her new attitude, Michelle is sure to achieve her long awaited gold medal at the Olympics of `98 in Nogano, Japan.
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