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| Katarina Witt |
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"When I go out on the ice, I just think about my skating. I forget it is a competition. When I go out on the ice, I just think about my skating. I forget it is a competition."
-Katarina Witt
| Date of Birth: December 3rd, 1965 |
| Birthplace: Staaken, East Germany |
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| Katarina became one of the biggest winners in the world of figure skating -- and who doesn't like a winner? Once her Olympic days were over, Katarina moved on with grace, intelligence and beauty to other projects, while maintaining close ties to her sport. |
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| Most famous as a two-time Olympic figure skating champion, Katarina is more than an athlete; she is also an artist, actress, television personality, and businesswoman. In addition to her numerous Olympic, World, and European figure skating titles, Katarina also has a Jim Thorpe Pro Sports Award, and even an Emmy, to her credit. |
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Katarina Witt was born on December 3rd, 1965, in Staaken, East Germany. Her father, Manfred, managed an agricultural products factory, while her mother, Kathe, was a physical therapist. Rounding out the Witt family was Katarina's brother Axel, also an athlete, who trained to be a physical therapist like his mother. Coincidentally, Axel would later marry Anett Potzsch, the 1980 Olympic figure skating gold medalist, who was a pupil of Katarina's skating coach.
Katarina was drawn to skating from the start. Every day, on her way to school, Katarina would pass by the Kuchwald Ice Arena, and pestered her mother to let her try skating. Once Kathe agreed, it was clear that Katarina was a natural. It wasn't long before the director of the Karl-Marx-Stadt sports school, Bernd Egert, spotted her and admitted her to the school.
In 1974, when Katarina was 9 years old, one of East Germany's most respected coaches, Jutta Mueller (who also trained Katarina's future sister-in-law) first watched Katarina skate, and realized her potential. Mueller took Katarina under her wing and laid the groundwork for Katarina's success.
By the early 1980s, Katarina was clearly a champion on the way up. In 1982, she took home silver medals from both the European and World Figure Skating Championships. The next year, Katarina won the European Championship, and won it six consecutive times from 1983 through 1988. Meanwhile, she won the gold at the World Championship in 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1988. These achievements were capped with a gold medal at the 1984 Olympic games in Sarajevo and the 1988 Olympic games in Calgary. In half a dozen years, Katarina had racked up more titles than anyone before her. |
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© Tony Barson
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