In the world of figure skating few names garner as much adoration as California-native Kristi Yamaguchi. The 43-year-old figure skater entered her first Olympics in 1992 where she won a gold medal, in addition to winning two World Figure Skating Championships, and being inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 2005.
The figure skater who was also a 2008 contestant on “Dancing with the Stars” nearly quit ice skating for good though before even entering her first Olympic games. In a recent interview at her home rink in Dublin California, Kristi admitted that after 14 years of nearly daily skating she was ready to call it quits. “We put so much pressure on ourselves that we feel we have to get that training in ever single day or the whole world’s going to crumble, but it’s important to enjoy it [skating] a little more,” said Kristi.
The world-champion skater also admitted that while going to the Olympics was gratifying, it didn’t dawn on her how well-known she had become until she returned home and people were climbing up in the trees to see her at a mall appearance.
Kristi pointed out during the interview that her goals have changed from her Olympic-hopeful self 20 years ago. Rather than skating for fame and medals, Kristi now uses her skating to help children with her charity, The Always Dream Foundation. The foundation works to help children with early childhood literacy, a necessity that Kristi believes is essential for all children to learn early on.
