Michelle Kwan Biography

Quick Facts

NAME: Michelle Kwan
OCCUPATION: Ice Skater
BIRTH DATE: July 07, 1980 (Age: 32)
EDUCATION: University of California at Los Angeles
PLACE OF BIRTH: Torrance, California
ZODIAC SIGN: Cancer

Best Known For

Michelle Kwan is a five-time world champion figure skater and Olympic medalist, though she has yet to capture Olympic gold.

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Michelle Kwan

APA Style

Michelle Kwan. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 02:55, Jun 19, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948.

Harvard Style

Michelle Kwan. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948 [Accessed 19 Jun 2013].

MLA Style

"Michelle Kwan." 2013. The Biography Channel website. Jun 19 2013, 02:55 http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948.

MHRA Style

"Michelle Kwan," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948 [accessed Jun 19, 2013].

Chicago Style

"Michelle Kwan," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948 (accessed Jun 19, 2013).

CBE/CSE Style

Michelle Kwan [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 Jun 19] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948.

Bluebook Style

Michelle Kwan, http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948 (last visited Jun 19, 2013).

AMA Style

Michelle Kwan. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/michelle-kwan-11919948. Accessed Jun 19, 2013.

Synopsis

Born July 7, 1980 in Torrance, California, Michelle Kwan finished eighth in the 1994 World Championships at the age of 13, and has since been a five-time World Champion. At her first Olympics in 1998 she lost gold to Tara Lipinski; in 2002 she took bronze. A serious injury forced to withdraw from the 2006 Olympics. Though she sat out the 2006-07 season, Kwan says she is not retiring.

Profile

Figure skater. Born July 7, 1980 in Torrance, California. The daughter of Hong Kong immigrants, Kwan watched her older brother play ice hockey as a youngster. She began skating when she was five, entering and winning her first figure skating competition a year later. She finished eighth in the 1994 World Championships at the age of 13, earning a spot as an alternate for the 1994 Olympic games. Kwan went on to capture the world title in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2003.

At the Nagano Olympics in 1998, Kwan was favored to win gold, but ended up with a disappointing silver medal when fellow U.S. skater Tara Lipinski took a surprising first place. Shortly before the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002, Kwan, who was then the reigning world champ, inexplicably fired both her choreographer, Lori Nichol, and longtime coach, Frank Carroll. Once again, the gold medal eluded her when she finished third behind rival Irina Slutskaya of Russia and U.S. skater Sarah Hughes, who took first.

A student at the University of California at Los Angeles, Kwan has continued to compete since her defeat in Salt Lake City, winning gold at the U.S. Nationals and bronze at the World Championships in 2004. In February 2006, she was forced to withdraw from the Olympic games in Torino, Italy, due to a severely strained groin. Though Michelle Kwan did not compete during the 2006-2007 figure skating season, she has turned down an offer to be a commentator for NBC Sports and says she is not retiring.