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2006 Winter Olympics

A quick ending for 'courageous' Kwan

Injury forces the American figure skating star to cede her Olympic shot at the only award to elude her in an illustrious career.

By GARY SHELTON
Published February 13, 2006

TURIN, Italy - Given the length of the career, the farewell came quickly. Given the brilliance it included, the mood was solemn.

Michelle Kwan, the face of American figure skating, withdrew from the Olympics early Sunday morning. The Games will go on without her.

Kwan, a five-time World Champion and nine-time U.S. champion, dropped out of the games after sustaining another groin injury a day earlier. She will be replaced by Emily Hughes, who finished third in the recent nationals.

"When I first put in my petition, I said I believed I'd be 100 percent by the time the Olympics came around," Kwan said at a news conference, her voice soft and frail. "But yesterday, after going on the ice and feeling stiff, I don't think that I can be 100 percent. I respect the Olympics too much to compete, and I don't feel I can be at my best."

For Kwan, 25, the injury was the latest in a series that has plagued her for a year. Kwan missed the national championships last month and was placed on the team only after applying for an exemption.

It was not a move without controversy; four years ago, Hughes' sister Sarah won the Olympic gold medal in Salt Lake City after finishing third at the trials.

Kwan struggled through her first practice in Turin, telling reporters she felt stiff and sore after spending four hours in the cold during the Opening Ceremonies. She missed four of her five jumps and was visibly upset.

Sunday, Kwan said she felt something pull on an attempted triple flip during Saturday's workout. Therapy did not help, and at 2:15 a.m., team doctor Jim Moeller told her she should consider withdrawing. She did.

"I don't think in my heart I can be at my best," she said. "I have to be honest with what my body is feeling."

Shortly after Kwan withdrew, the Hughes family was eating at a restaurant called Daruma in Great Neck, N.Y. Emily was eating sushi - a Sarah gold roll, named after her older sister. She was told she could not tell anyone.

"So we left quickly so we could go home and jump up and down," Hughes said on a conference call. "I'm so excited."

Hughes said she understood why Kwan was selected to the team instead of her.

"I think it was fair she had all the opportunity to be named to the Olympic team," Hughes said. "I feel it was unfortunate she was injured."

Hughes said she was unsure of when she would leave for Turin.

Kwan has won five world champions and nine U.S. national championships, but her only two Olympic medals are a silver and a bronze.

She will be 29 years old before the next Olympics, making it unlikely that she will ever realize her goal of a gold medal.

"My parents are here, and they want me to be happy, they want their baby to win gold," Kwan said. "But I've learned that it's not about the gold, it's about the spirit of it. I've tried my best. If I don't win the gold, it's okay."

Despite the absence of a gold medal, USOC chairman Peter Ueberroth said Kwan "means more to the United States Olympic Committee then maybe any athlete that's ever performed." He called her decision to withdraw "courageous."

Both Ueberroth and Moeller stressed that Kwan's groin strain was a new injury, not the aggravation of an old one.

The distinction seemed to be a defense from those who would suggest that Kwan was damaged goods all along while the USOC was granting her exemption.

Kwan said she will not stay in Turin for the Olympics.

"I think the best thing is for me to go home," Kwan said. "I don't want to be a distraction here."

[Last modified February 13, 2006, 00:46:05]