Michelle Kwan

Known for: Olympic performances that fell short of the expected gold medals
Sport: figure skating
Country Represented: USA
Dates: July 7, 1980 -
Also known as: Michelle Wing Kwan

Olympics: Though Michelle Kwan was favored to win in 1998 and 2002, Olympic gold eluded her.

• 1994: she won second place at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, right after Nancy Kerrigan was injured when she was attacked, and could have been expected to be on the Olympics team, but the U.S. Figure Skating Association decided to give Nancy Kerrigan the Olympic spot instead, making Kwan an alternate
• 1998: silver medal (Tara Lipinski, gold)
• 2002: bronze medal (Sarah Hughes, gold; Irina Slutskaya, silver)
• 2006: withdrew from games after sustaining an injury

• World Junior Figure-Skating Championships, 1994
• U.S. National Figure-Skating Championships, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
• World Figure-Skating Championships, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003

• University of California - Los Angeles

• Father: Danny Kwan
• Mother: Estella Kwan
• Sister: Karen Kwan, also a top competitive figure skater

Michelle Kwan's parents, both emigrants from Hong Kong, sacrificed so that their two California-born daughters could compete as figure skaters. Michelle Kwan began figure skating lessons when she was five, and by age eight was studying with coach Derek James. At age 12 she began training with coach Frank Carroll.

Michelle Kwan placed ninth in the National Junior Championships in 1992, and by 1994 had earned a place as an alternate to the Olympics at Lillehammer. She competed at the 1998 and 2002 Olympics, each time as a favorite for the gold medal, gaining instead a silver and a bronze. An injury took her out of the 2006 games.

• Stewart, Mark and Mike Kennedy. Michelle Kwan: Quest for Gold. 2001.
  

Children's and Young Adult Books:

• Kwan, Michelle: Michelle Kwan: Champion on Ice (Sports Achievers Biographies). 1998. Ages 9-12.
  
• Kwan, Michelle. Michelle Kwan: Heart of a Champion. 1997.
  
• Kwan, Michelle.Michelle Kwan: My Book of Memories. 1998. Ages 9-12.
  
• Kwan, Michelle. My Special Moments. 2001. Ages 9-12.
  
• Kwan, Michelle and Laura James. The Winning Attitude: Michelle Kwan What It Takes to Be a Champion. 1999. Ages 9-12.
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• Lovitt, Chip. Skating for the Gold: Michelle Kwan and Tara Lipinski. 1997. Young Adult.
  
• Paprocki, Sherry Beck. Michelle Kwan (Women Who Win). 2000. Ages 9-12.
  
• Thacker, Nola and Michelle Kwan. The Turning Point (Michelle Kwan Skating Dreams, 1). 2000. Ages 9-12.
  
• Thacker, Nola and Michelle Kwan. Staying Balanced (Michelle Kwan Skating Dreams, 2). Ages 9-12.
  
• Thacker, Nola and Michelle Kwan. Skating Backwards. (Michelle Kwan Skating Dreams, 3). Ages 9-12.
  
• Thacker, Nola and Michelle Kwan. Champion's Luck (Michelle Kwan Skating Dreams, 4). Ages 9-12.
  
• Thacker, Nola and Michelle Kwan. The Winning Edge (Michelle Kwan Skating Dreams, 5). 2001. Ages 9-12.
  
• Thacker, Nola and Michelle Kwan. Coach's Choice (Michelle Kwan Skating Dreams, 6). Ages 9-12.
  
• Torres, John. Michelle Kwan: A Real-Life Reader Biography. 1999. Ages 9-12.
  
• Wellman, Sam. Michelle Kwan (Female Skating Legends). 1998. Ages 9-12.
  
• Grace on the Ice: Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, Michelle Kwan (Road to Reading: Reading on Your Own, Mile 3). 2001. Ages 4-8

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