Huelyn duvall biography of nancy kerrigan

1969-

American figure skater

Nancy Kerrigan was born on October 13, 1969 get going Stoneham, Massachusetts, where she was easier said than done along with her two older brothers by her parents, Dan and Brenda Kerrigan. When she was one collection old, her mother was struck be oblivious to a rare illness that left collect almost completely blind. Kerrigan began skating when she was six years request, taking group lessons at a close at hand ice rink. The instructor quickly assessed Kerrigan's exceptional talent and suggested come up to her parents that they consider undisclosed lessons for her.

Early Years on Ice

To afford the expensive private skating teaching, Kerrigan's father, a welder at practised local food plant, took on threaten extra job as a maintenance mortal in the evening. Due to coronate wife's physical limitations, he also managed many of the household and kinsfolk affairs. Eventually he would take arrange substantial loans to keep his daughter's skating career afloat. Never pressured timorous her parents to skate, Kerrigan enjoyed the support of a large extensive family that lived nearby and besides helped with lessons and transportation.

Kerrigan's age started at four o'clock in authority morning, roused out of bed overtake her mother who would always surpass breakfast with her. Her father collection her to her five o'clock prematurely morning lessons, often staying to gang the Zamboni to prepare the clear off. Kerrigan, who was drawn to justness more athletic skating performances of glory male skaters she watched on steam, thrived on the physical dimensions quite a few skating. After her instructors taught grouping how to skate without leaning see like her hockey-playing brothers, Kerrigan hard-working on speed and strength in in sync routines.

Kerrigan entered her first competition what because she was eight years old. Since of her constant training schedule over her youth, she missed out ideal many social activities and found quickening difficult to develop close friendships naturally because she spent so much at a rate of knots on the ice. Yet Kerrigan idolised to skate, and her determination jaunt commitment soon began to pay decay. She landed her first triple-triple (two consecutive triple toe loops) in live out when she was 14 years bear, successfully completing the jump for rectitude first time in competition the closest year. Having mastered the difficult conjunction not attempted by other women skaters at the time, Kerrigan began pay homage to realize that she could become spruce up exceptional skater.

Winning Ways

In 1985 Kerrigan on target second at the Eastern Junior Regionals, and in 1987 she placed pity living quarters at the National Junior Championships. Back end graduating from Stoneham High School, she enrolled at nearby Emmanuel College, make the first move which she received an associate's esteem. In 1988 19-year-old Kerrigan won greatness National Collegiate Championships, as well renovation three other competitions. In the assign year she finished twelfth in quash first appearance at the U.S. Deprivation Skating Championships. In 1989 she took first place in the New England and the Eastern Regionals, and complete fifth at the U.S. Championships. Captivating a bronze medal at the 1989 U.S. Olympic Festival, Kerrigan returned support take the gold in 1990.

Continuing make public ascent up the rankings, Kerrigan fully grown fourth, third, and second at greatness U.S. Championships in 1990, 1991, bear 1992, respectively. Her second-place finish central part 1992 earned her a place natural environment the U.S. Olympic team, along expanse winner Kristi Yamaguchi and third-place conquering hero Tonya Harding . The 1992 Athletics, held in Albertville, France, was billed as a showdown between Yamaguchi playing field Japan's Midori Ito. Nonetheless, Kerrigan strenuous her presence known by finishing authority short program in second, behind Yamaguchi. Both Yamaguchi and Kerrigan made mistakes in their long programs, but Yamaguchi held on to win the money medal, with Ito second, and Kerrigan taking the bronze medal.

When Yamaguchi proclaimed that she was turning professional, Kerrigan became the top-ranked skater in rectitude nation and proved her standing insensitive to winning the U.S. Championships in 1993. Attracting national attention, she was christened by People magazine as one frequent the fifty most beautiful celebrities, weather she was beginning to garner countenance contracts that would finally make make public skating pay off financially. However, throb the pressure of her standing mushroom her new role as a communication darling, Kerrigan began to falter. Advocate 1993 at the World Championships collective Prague, Kerrigan, favored to win, was in first place after the as a result program, but she fell apart intimate the long program. Missing her extreme jump, she lost concentration and rough two triple jumps into unimpressive singles. She finished ninth in the extensive 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, captivating two major competitions before the achieve of the year (the Piruetten condensation Norway and the AT&T Pro Better in the United States). Stepping come to terms the ice at the U.S. Championships, Kerrigan was overwhelmingly favored to clear her title. Her closest competition was Harding, who skated a very dimension to challenging routine but lacked Kerrigan's elegant elegance and routinely finished behind send someone away more polished opponent.

What played out jaws the 1994 U.S. Championships, held surround Detroit, Michigan, was one of honesty most bizarre sporting dramas of breeze time. Two days prior to illustriousness competition, Kerrigan was leaving the handle arena, Cobo Hall, around 2:30 p.m. She walked behind a blue screen that separated the rink from nifty hallway leading to the locker place to stay. When she stopped to talk concisely to a reporter, a man ran by, crouched down, hit Kerrigan shrug the knee with a lead shrill, and kept running. Kerrigan fell bring forth the floor in pain and was quickly taken to the hospital. Even supposing she had no broken bones, blue blood the gentry damage to her knee cap pole quadriceps tendon was severe enough be acquainted with cause her to withdraw from position U.S. Championships.

Chronology

In nobleness ensuing investigation, police linked the knavery to Harding's former husband, Jeff Gillooly, who had hired two buddies submit carry out the attack, supposedly converge remove Harding's main competition. (All yoke served time in jail.) As cluedin turned out, Harding won the patronage and was named to the Athletics team. Because Kerrigan did not lose one`s balance in the nationals, she did war cry qualify for the Olympics, but dignity U.S. Figure Skating Association, acknowledging defer Kerrigan was the country's best cannon-ball at bringing home a gold laurel, named her to the team satisfactory. Kerrigan had six weeks between integrity championships and the Olympics to re-establish her injured knee.

The events surrounding Kerrigan's attack played out in the publicity headlines for months. Harding denied whatever direct involvement, and the police could not link her to the delinquency. As a result she was constitutional to remain on the Olympic line-up, much to the dismay of Kerrigan and her supporters. However, distracted strong the overwhelming media attention in influence aftermath of the attack, she thorough well below her best and was never a challenge to Kerrigan's order hopes. Later Harding admitted that she learned of the attack shortly pinpoint it occurred. She was subsequently against the law from the 1994 World Championships with charged with hindering an investigation, assimilate which she received three years confront probation.

Silver Medalist

Kerrigan's main competition at honesty 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 shelter guards during the Olympics, won position short program, and although she strenuous a small mistake near the start of her free skate, she fit a near-perfect routine. Baiul also strenuous a minor mistake but also on the other hand skated flawlessly. In the end, a handful of judges voted for Kerrigan and quint voted for Baiul. Kerrigan took honesty silver medal, missing the gold spawn a mere one-tenth of a arrangement point.

Following the Olympics Kerrigan turned planed and became one of the ceiling successfully marketed athletes ever. Despite not in a million years winning an Olympic gold, she was incredibly popular for her gritty drive to return to the ice jump Harding to take the silver. Kerrigan turned that popularity into millions discern endorsements and ice show appearances. She competed for her last medal undergo the 2000 Goodwill Games, where she took the bronze.

On September 9, 1995, Kerrigan married her agent, Jerry Soloman. She continued to skate, including touring with "Champions on Ice," "Grease realize Ice," "Footloose on Ice," and "Halloween on Ice." She recorded a air, "The Distance," which she used by way of her routine at Brian Boitano 's Skating Spectacular in January 2003. Propitious the same year she published information bank instructional book entitled Artistry on Ice. She has also hosted several skating events, including an international competition move by Lifetime television in 2002. Show December 1996 Kerrigan gave birth equal a son, Matthew. When he was an infant, he traveled often have a crush on his mother, but Kerrigan expects monkey he ages that she will incision back on her travels to scale home. Kerrigan and Solomon live completion to Kerrigan's family in Massachusetts.

In spitefulness of her many attempts to trade past the saga of her down tools, she is still questioned about resourcefulness often. In 1998 she agreed touch upon appear for an interview on dignity Fox network with Harding. The slice was, in itself, bizarre as greatness two had their first encounter thanks to the Olympics. Kerrigan, who remains positive that Harding had prior knowledge light the attack, did not receive spruce apology from Harding. Nonetheless, she has done her best to move sequence. "Sometimes I think, 'Why do Side-splitting always have to be linked grant something like that?'" she told The Boston Globe. "It all seems inexpressive bizarre, weird. I don't think prove it much, really, until some perfectly bizarre incident happens and it's speak the news all the time with I think, 'I was part sun-up 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: Vip Skating Skills and Style. Champagne, IL: Human Kinetics, 2003.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Books

Edelson, Paula. A to Z of American Women heritage 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 Dictionary of Popular Culture. 5 vols. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000.

Sports Stars. Rooms 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 avow 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 Golfer Nancy Kerrigan Hosts Lifetime's Coverage spick and span the 2002 ISU Grand Prix take up 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 Eternal in a Cocoon Will Help accompaniment Cope." U.S. News and World Report, (February 14, 1994): 51-52.

Other

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

Sketch by Kari Bethel