Kristi Yamaguchi

Kristi Yamaguchi is an American former competitive figure skater, author, and television personality. Born on July 12, 1971, she achieved great success in her skating career. She won the gold medal in women's singles at the 1992 Olympics, becoming the first Asian American to do so in a Winter Olympic competition. Yamaguchi also secured two World championship titles in 1991 and 1992, and was the 1992 U.S. champion. As a pairs skater with Rudy Galindo, she won the 1988 World Junior championship and two national championships. Following her retirement from competition, Yamaguchi continued to perform in shows and won the World Professional Figure Skating Championships four times. In 2008, she became the celebrity champion in the sixth season of Dancing with the Stars. Besides her skating career, Yamaguchi is an accomplished author with five published books.