A figure skating legend reflects on her Olympic triumphs and the emerging talents in U.S. figure skating.
DENVER — Kristi Yamaguchi, renowned for her remarkable achievements in figure skating, revisits her gold-medal glory from the 1992 Olympics as she shifts her focus to the promising athletes gearing up for the 2026 Winter Games in Milan Cortina.
Yamaguchi, who broke barriers as the first Asian American to clinch a gold medal at the Winter Olympics, shared how the media frenzy and public attention after her victory at just 20 years old transformed her life.
“Experiencing success on that stage and returning home to a changed reality is quite astonishing,” she remarked.
Reflecting on the intense pressure of her winning long program, Yamaguchi vividly remembers the anxiety leading up to a pivotal triple lutz.
“I was unsure about landing my second-to-last jump,” she recalled. “Fear had gripped me. Mid-air, I thought, ‘I’m going to fall.’ Yet, instinct and rigorous training helped me land on my feet in the end.”
As the United States prepares to send a deep roster of figure skaters to the 2026 Games, Yamaguchi said this year’s team could be one of its strongest.
She highlighted Ilia Malinin, nicknamed the “Quad God,” whose technical skills have pushed the boundaries of modern skating.
“I don’t think we ever fathomed we’d see a quad axel in our lifetime, and here is Ilia Malinin doing it almost with ease,” she said. “The gold is really his to lose. He’s just heads and tails above the competition.”
Yamaguchi also praised Alysa Liu, the Northern California native who retired at 16 before unexpectedly returning to competition and winning a world title.
“Everyone was excited to hear her comeback,” Yamaguchi said. “She found the joy again and realized it was still really fun for her. I think she surprised herself.”
As this year’s Olympic broadcast revisits highlights from her 1992 performance, Yamaguchi said she hopes viewers take away a message of perseverance.
“I hope they say it was a memory of inspiration,” she said. “Something that inspires them to go after their dreams, face a fear or get over a hump—and hopefully pass that on to their kids.”
