Peggy Fleming Biography

Quick Facts

NAME: Peggy Fleming
OCCUPATION: Ice Skater
BIRTH DATE: July 27, 1948 (Age: 63)
PLACE OF BIRTH: San Jose, California
ZODIAC SIGN: Leo

Best Known For

Figure skater Peggy Fleming won the only U.S. gold medal in the 1968 Olympics. Later, she publicly battled breast cancer, beating it with radiation therapy.

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Peggy Fleming

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Synopsis

Peggy Gale Fleming was born on July 27, 1948, in San Jose, California. She began figure skating at age nine and won a gold medal in the 1968 Olympics. She won five U.S. titles and three world championships. She went on to host numerous television specials

Profile

Figure skater, Olympic athlete, philanthropist, businessperson. Born Peggy Gale Fleming on July 27, 1948, in San Jose, California. Before Dorothy Hamill and Michelle Kwan, Peggy Fleming was one of the best American figure skaters. She began skating at age nine, and her family made several sacrifices to support the young athlete's amateur career. When she was 12, her coach was among those killed when a plane carrying the U.S. figure skating team crashed in Belgium. With her new coach, Carlo Fassi, the lithe, elegant skater went on to win five U.S. titles and three world championships.

In 1968, Peggy Fleming won gold at the 1968 Olympics in Grenoble, France. Hers was the only gold medal won by the United States that year. The victory was also particularly sweet because it signaled a resurgence in U.S. figure skating following the 1961 airplane tragedy.

After her Olympic gold, Peggy Fleming starred in several television specials and performed in countless skating revues across the U.S. She was also a popular commentator for ABC Sports, often working with fellow Olympic champ Dick Button.

In 1998, Fleming was diagnosed with breast cancer. She had surgery to remove a malignant tumor on the 30th anniversary of her famous Olympic win. After completing radiation therapy, Fleming was cancer-free. She shared her battle with breast cancer with the public, appearing on such television shows as Oprah and The Rosie O'Donnell Show. Since her diagnosis, Fleming has been a tireless champion for health-related causes.

The year after her cancer treatment, Fleming planted a small vineyard with her husband, retired dermatologist Greg Jenkins, on their property near California's Santa Cruz Mountains. The couple first produced Chardonnay wine and now operates the Fleming Jenkins Vineyards & Winery. They sell several varieties of wine, including a syrah from grapes grown by friend, sports announcer John Madden. The proceeds from their rosé are donated to support breast cancer research.

Fleming and her husband live near Los Gatos, California, and have two sons, Andy and Todd, and three grandchildren.