Olympic medalist
Oksana Baiul
Medal record
Competitor for  Ukraine
Figure skating
Gold	1994 Lillehammer	Ladies' singles

Oksana Baiul (Ukrainian: Оксана Баюл) (born November 16, 1977) is a professional figure skater and Olympic gold medalist. Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ukraine. ... These are the Olympic medalists in figure skating. ... The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, were celebrated in 1994 in Lillehammer, Norway. ... The 1994 Winter Olympics Figure skating results // Ladies Oksana Baiul (  Ukraine) Nancy Kerrigan (  United States) Lu Chen (  China) Men Pairs Ice dancing Categories: | | ... November 16 is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 45 days remaining. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... Figure skating is an ice skating sporting event where individuals, mixed couples, or groups perform spins, jumps, and other moves on the ice, often to music. ... The five Olympic rings were designed in 1913, adopted in 1914 and debuted at the Games at Antwerp, 1920. ... Gold Medal is an album by American band The Donnas, released in 2004. ...

Biography

Oksana Baiul was born in Dnipropetrovsk, Soviet Union, in what is present-day Ukraine. She was only 13 when her mother, Marina, died. Location Map of Ukraine with Dnipropetrovsk highlighted. ...

Baiul won the 1993 World Figure Skating Championship in her first senior competitive season at the age of 15. She then won the gold medal at the 1994 Winter Olympics, defeating Nancy Kerrigan from the US. Baiul nearly missed competing in the free skate altogether, having been injured after a collision with Tanja Szewczenko of Germany during a warm-up session following the ladies' short program. She received two Olympic-approved pain-killing injections in her lower back which enabled her to perform and complete her free skate. World Figure Skating Championships: Mens singles winners: 1896 - Gilbert Fuchs, (Germany) 1897 - Gustav Hugel, (Austria) 1898 - Henning Grenander, (Sweden) 1899 - Gustav Hugel, (Austria) 1900 - Gustav Hugel, (Austria) 1901 - Ulrich Salchow, (Sweden) 1902 - Ulrich Salchow, (Sweden) 1903 - Ulrich Salchow, (Sweden) 1904 - Ulrich Salchow, (Sweden) 1905 - Ulrich Salchow, (Sweden) 1906 - Gilbert... Gold Medal is an album by American band The Donnas, released in 2004. ... The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, were celebrated in 1994 in Lillehammer, Norway. ... Nancy Kerrigan (born October 13, 1969 in Stoneham, Massachusetts) is a two-time American Olympic figure skating medalist and 1993 U.S. champion. ... Tanja Szewczenko (born July 26, 1977, Düsseldorf, Germany) was a successful German figure skater. ...

Baiul turned professional after the 1994 Winter Olympics, even though she was only 16 years old at the time and had only competed in four major international events (winning the two highest ranked -- World Figure Skating and the Olympics -- and finishing second in the European competition in 1993 and 1994). Following her win at the 1994 Winter Olympics, some skating commentators and critics praised Baiul's balletic style and performance ability. Following the Olympics, however, Baiul was plagued by two physical ailments that affected her skating ability. The first was arthroscopic knee surgery in the summer of 1994, after which she was advised by her doctor to not return to the ice for two months. Due to the million dollar contract signed by her coach/manager/surrogate mother, Galina Zmievskaya, Baiul ignored doctor's wishes (at Zmievskaya's behest) and returned to the ice in two weeks and was competing in six. This, as well as the changes in her maturing body, hindered her jumping ability drastically. Galina Zmievskaya is a figure skating coach, formerly based in Odessa, Ukraine. ...

In response to her increasing professional and personal problems, Baiul turned to alcohol. In 1997, she was arrested after intoxication caused her to crash her car. She eventually entered a rehab program. Since then, Baiul has continued to skate professionally from time to time, including an engagement with the touring show "Broadway on Ice". Functional group of an alcohol molecule. ...

Baiul lived in Richmond, Virginia for a while before moving to her current residence in New Jersey. She recently amicably ended an engagement with long-time boyfriend, Gene Sunik. She has her own line of clothing and jewelry. In November 2005, she appeared on the Bravo program Celebrity Poker. She also is part of the celebrity panel of judges (along with Steve Garvey and Jonny Moseley) on the American Broadcasting Company show Master of Champions. Official language(s) English de facto Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Area  Ranked 47th  - Total 8,729 sq mi (22,608 km²)  - Width 70 miles (110 km)  - Length 150 miles (240 km)  - % water 14. ... This article is about the U.S. cable network. ... A game of Texas holdem, currently the most popular form of poker, in progress. ... Steven Patrick Garvey (born December 22, 1948) is a former Major League Baseball first baseman, and current Southern California businessman. ... Jonny Moseley (born August 27, 1975) is the first Puerto Rican to belong to the U.S. Ski Team. ... The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) operates television and radio networks in the United States and is also shown on basic cable in Canada. ... Master of Champions is a show scheduled to begin airing June 22, 2006 on ABC. Rumored to be produced by Simon Cowell, the competition involves unique sports. ...

Recently, Baiul discovered her previously unknown Jewish heritage when talking with her paternal grandmother. Due in part to this, she supports the Tikva Children's Home Charity offering help for the Jewish Children of Odessa, Ukraine. In addition, Baiul also supports and is a member of the International Museum of Women, a world-class cultural and educational institution whose mission is to value the lives of women around the world. The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination... This page is a candidate to be copied to Wiktionary. ...

In December 2006 Oksana was warmly welcomed in Moscow where she skated at the Red Square ice-rink alongside the famous champions from Russia, China, France and many other countries. Look up December in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays full 2006 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Red Square (disambiguation). ...

In February 2007, Oksana will collaborate with renowned ballet dancer Saule Rachmedova to bring together New York Ice Theater and couture fashion for the debut of innovative fashion designer Levi Okunov's Winter Collection. February 2007 is the second month of the year. ...

In Late March 2007, Oksana appeared on MTV's TRL. She was there to promote the new ice skating film Blades Of Glory starring Will Ferrell. John William Will Ferrell (born July 16, 1967[1]) is an Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated American comedian, impressionist, writer and actor who first established himself as a cast member of Saturday Night Live, and has since gone on to a successful film career. ...

Beginning May 16th 2007, Oksana will be starring in the world premiere of the ice skating musical COLD AS ICE [1]. This musical will performed at the Gateway Playhouse in New York with rumors of a possible tour and broadway transfer.

Olympic Gold Medal

Oksana's 1994 Olympic Gold medal win to this date is still a subject of controversy on whether USA's Nancy Kerrigan should have won. Heading into the free skate, Oksana was 2nd behind Kerrigan, and Kerrigan (who skated before her in the free) only had one mistake - a doubled flip. Otherwise, she landed 5 triples, including a triple toe-triple toe, triple loop, triple salchow-double toe, and a triple lutz 3 minutes into the program. Oksana on the other hand had no triple jump combinations. She hit a triple lutz, double footed a triple flip, landed a triple salchow, double axel, and triple loop before doubling a triple toe. She threw in a triple toe, and added a double toe to the end of a double axel (replays show that the double toe was only a 1 3/4 revolution). Her total triple jump count was still only 4, compared to Kerrigan's 5. The Gold was awarded to Oksana in an extremely close 5-4 split. Nancy Kerrigan (born October 13, 1969 in Stoneham, Massachusetts) is a two-time American Olympic figure skating medalist and 1993 U.S. champion. ...

Those who defend Oksana's win claim that her artistry and interpretation were clearly better. Kerrigan supporters claim that Kerrigan had the technically harder program (more triple jumps, more spins, and more difficult spirals and footwork than Baiul), and if she got silver, then that meant the 1998 Olympic decision was wrong (citing that Michelle Kwan who had the better artistry should have gotten gold and teammate Tara Lipinski who had the more technically challenging program should have gotten silver). However, this is a circular argument. Using one judging panel's decision in an attempt to invalidate the decision of another panel in another event is false logic. Michelle Wing Kwan (關穎珊) (born 7 July 1980) is an American figure skater and media celebrity who has won nine U.S. championships, five world championships, and two Olympic medals. ... Tara Kristen Lipinski (b. ...

Trivia

• Baiul is mentioned in the Family Guy episode, Wasted Talent (season 2, episode 20), during brewmaster Pawtucket Pat's song about his brewery: (Pat) "When you drink enough of my beer/ you'll find this magic brew'll/ make every joke a jewel/ you'll drive drunker than Oksana Baiul."

• Although an Olympic and World champion, Baiul never won a gold medal at the European Figure Skating Championships.

• Oksana's parents divorced when she was 2, and she did not see her father until years later.

• Her long program at the 1993 World Championships contained no combination jumps. This caused fury in silver medalist Surya Bonaly of France, who thought she skated the better program (her program contained a triple toe-half loop-triple salchow combination) and that she was "cheated" of the gold. Surya would earn the same medal color the next two years running. In 1994 she also said that she felt that she skated a better program than Yuka Sato, but in 1995 she knew that Lu Chen deserved the gold.

• Baiul is mentioned in Blades of Glory starring Will Ferrell (2007). The dialogue:

Chazz: "...She's as cold as the ice she skates on . She's like dry ice. No, wait! She's colder than that. What's colder than dry ice?"

Jimmy: "I don't know."

Chazz: "I'll tell you what is, Oksana."

“Wasted Talent” is an episode from the second season of the FOX animated television series Family Guy, guest starring Adam Carolla as Death. ... Surya Bonaly Surya Bonaly (born December 15, 1973) is a French professional figure skater, born in Nice, France. ... Yuka Sato Yuka Sato (佐藤有香; Satō Yūka, born February 14, 1973 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese figure skater. ...

Competitive history

An athlete carries the Olympic torch The Winter Olympic Games are a winter multi-sport event held every four years. ... The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual event sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion. ... The 2007 mens podium For the 2007 competition, see 2007 European Figure Skating Championships. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Skate America is a figure skating competition in the Grand Prix Series. ... The Bofrost Cup on Ice (previously Sparkassen Cup and Nations Cup) is a German figure skating competition. ...

References

• Baiul, Oksana. (1997). Oksana: My Own Story. Random House Books. ISBN 0-679-88382-7
• Baiul, Oksana. (1997). Secrets of Skating. Universe / Rizzoli. ISBN 0-7893-0104-0.

See also

• List of Olympic medalists in figure skating

This is the complete list of Olympic medalists in figure skating from 1908 to 2006. ...

External links

• OksanaStyle.com Official Website
• Golden Skate - Interview
• View Zone - Interview
• "Oksana’s New Spin; Gold medal figure skater now embracing her recently discovered Jewish roots, with the help of an ex-chasidic fashion designer," 2/16/07

Navigation