2007.1.23

• photography

Photograph of figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi. She is wearing a dark beaded low-cut costume, with a very short ruffled skirt and short ruffled sleeves, and white skates. Her arms are extended out to the side with her palms up and her right knee is raised so that her right foot is just above her left ankle. Caption in bottom margin of photo reads, "Kristi Yamaguchi -- 1991 World Gold Medalist and reigning U.S. Champion, Kristi Yamaguchi, of Fremont, Calif. sets her sights on another world title in 1992 when she comes home to the Bay Area for the 1992 Worlds." Tribune caption affixed to back of photo reads, "By George S. Rossano / Among the world competitors, Olympic winner Kristi Yamaguchi." There are red cropping/registration marks drawn in the margins for reproduction purposes.

Kristi YamaguchiFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristi_Yamaguchi (5/3/2007)Kristi Tsuya Yamaguchi (born July 12, 1971) is an American figure skater. In December 2005, she was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.BiographyKristi Yamaguchi was born July 12, 1971 in Hayward, California, to Jim Yamaguchi, a dentist, and Carole Doi, a medical secretary. A fourth-generation Japanese American, Kristiﾐs grandparents were victims of the United States' anti-Japanese policies during World War II and were sent to an internment camp, where her mother was born. Kristi and her siblings, Brett and Lori, grew up in Fremont, California, where Kristi attended Mission San Jose High School. Yamaguchi began skating as a child, as physical therapy for her club feet.With Rudy Galindo she won the junior title at the U.S. championships in 1986. Two years later, Yamaguchi won the singles and, with Galindo, the pairs titles at the 1988 World Junior Pair Championships. In 1989 Yamaguchi and Galindo won the senior U.S. championships pairs title and won again in 1990.As a pairs team, Yamaguchi and Galindo were unusual in that they were both accomplished singles skaters, and in that they jumped and spun in opposite directions, Yamaguchi counter-clockwise, and Galindo clockwise. In 1990, Yamaguchi decided to focus solely on singles. Galindo went on to have a successful singles career as well, winning the 1996 U.S. championships and the 1996 World bronze medal.In 1991, coached by Christy Ness, Yamaguchi placed second to Tonya Harding at the U.S. championships, her third consecutive silver medal at Nationals. The following month in Munich, Germany, Yamaguchi won the 1991 World Championships. That year the American ladies team, consisting of Yamaguchi, Harding and Nancy Kerrigan, became the first and only national team to have its members place first, second and third at Worlds. In 1992, Yamaguchi won her first U.S. title and gained a spot to the 1992 Winter Olympic Games in Albertville, France. Joining her on the U.S. team were again Kerrigan and Harding. While competitors Harding and Japanﾐs Midori Ito were consistently landing the difficult triple axel jump in competition, Yamaguchi instead focused on her artistry and her triple-triple combinations in hopes of becoming a more rounded skater. Both Harding and Ito fell on their triple axels at the Olympics, (though Ito successfully landed the jump later on in her program after missing it the first time) allowing Yamaguchi to win the gold, despite errors in her free program, including a step-out on a triple loop and a double salchow instead of a planned triple. Yamaguchi went on to successfully defend her World title that same year.

Used: Oakland Tribune