Nancy Kerrigan

Nancy Kerrigan
Kerrigan interviewed in Turin, Italy, February 22, 2006
Personal information
Full name	Nancy Ann Kerrigan
Country represented	United States
Born	(1969-10-13) October 13, 1969 (age 47) Stoneham, Massachusetts, United States
Height	1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)
Former coach	Evy Scotvold Mary Scotvold
Retired	1994
Medal record Representing the  United States Ladies' figure skating Olympic Games 1994 Lillehammer Ladies' singles 1992 Albertville Ladies' singles World Championships 1992 Oakland Ladies' singles 1991 Munich Ladies' singles Winter Universiade 1989 Sofia Ladies' singles

Nancy Ann Kerrigan (born October 13, 1969) is a former American figure skater.

Kerrigan was the 1992 Olympic Bronze medalist, the 1993 US National Champion, the 1994 Olympic Silver medalist, and a two-time world medalist. In 1994, Kerrigan was attacked with a police baton by an assailant hired by the ex-husband of her rival Tonya Harding.

Kerrigan was born in Stoneham, Massachusetts, the youngest child and only daughter of welder Daniel Kerrigan and homemaker Brenda Kerrigan. Her ancestry includes English, Irish and German. She has stated: "There's very little Irish in me, just my name" . While her brothers Michael and Mark played hockey, she took up figure skating at age six. She did not start private lessons until age eight and won her first competition, the Boston Open, at age nine.

The Kerrigan family was of modest means. Kerrigan's father sometimes worked three jobs to fund her skating career; he also drove the ice resurfacer at the local rink in exchange for Nancy's lessons. Kerrigan was coached by Theresa Martin until she was 16, then began working with Evy and Mary Scotvold. after a brief period with Denise Morrissey. The Scotvolds remained her coaches through the rest of her competitive career.

Kerrigan began to reach prominence at the national level when she placed fourth at the junior level at the 1987 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. She made an early impression as a strong jumper but was comparatively weak in compulsory figures. Kerrigan made her senior debut the following season, moving up the national rankings each year: 12th in 1988, fifth in 1989, and fourth in 1990. She continued to be held back by compulsory figures until they were eliminated from competitions after the 1990 season.

Kerrigan's rise at the national level continued when she placed 3rd at the 1991 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. She qualified for the 1991 World Figure Skating Championships, where she won the bronze medal. Her achievement was considered especially astonishing in that it was part of the first-ever sweep of the women's podium by a single country at the World Championships, as her team mates Kristi Yamaguchi and Tonya Harding won gold and silver, respectively.