In the glamorous, ultra-competitive world of figure skating, Katarina Witt is a living legend. She has won more titles than anyone else before her — including two Olympic gold medals, four world championships, and eight national championships. She is also renowned for independence and self-possession in a world where many stars are in thrall to management companies, and for her ability to stay true to skating while developing new careers in business, movies and television. Witt has always done whatever she's done with all her heart — with passion, intelligence, and a love of perfection. Now, in Only with Passion, she offers advice to a new generation of women athletes making their way in the world on how to live full out, compete with edge, and navigate life with grace. When a young skater consults her for advice on whether to train abroad — and leave a boyfriend behind — Witt finds occasion to recall the major turning points of her own journey, from her East German childhood to the international spotlight. She shares her inside perspective and frank opinions on the insular world of skating and offers her views about what it takes to be a champion, and to create a fulfilling life. Whether she's talking about life on or off the ice (or on the cover of Playboy!), Witt is always candid, fresh, and down-to-earth. Written with E.M. Swift, author of My Sergei, one of the best-selling skating books of all time, Only with Passion is the perfect gift for young women, young athletes —particularly skaters — and skating fans of all ages.

A biography of the German ice skater who won the figure skating gold medal in two successive Olympic competitions.

Figure skating is the most beautiful and mysterious of all sports. When the skaters are on the ice, every twitch of a muscle and every slip of a skate blade is visible for the world to see. In Inside Edge, Christine Brennan chronicles—for the first time—a season on the skating circuit, intimately portraying the lives, on and off the ice, of the sport's current and upcoming stars. Woven into the narrative are stories of figure skating luminaries—including Peggy Fleming, Janet Lynn, Katarina Witt, Brian Boitano, Scott Hamilton, Kristi Yamaguchi, Nancy Kerrigan, Oksana Baiul, Michelle Kwan, Rudy Galindo, and Tara Lipinski. Revealing the backstage conflicts high-profile figure skaters face, and the ambition that drives them, Brennan also tells the stories of their families, of improbable rises to the top, and of wasted talents. If skaters are perfect, they can become international heroes. But if they fall, if they miss a three-revolution jump on a quarter-inch blade of steel, the despair is theirs alone. This is their life on the edge, where decades of training culminate in little more than four crucial minutes on the ice. There is no other sport like it. There is no other story like theirs.

Figure skating is the most popular televised sport at the Olympic Winter Games and is the oldest of the winter sports, having first been contested at the Games of the fourth Olympiad in London in 1908. No other sport creates such a perfect balance between athleticism and artistry, and the athletes—many of them household names like Oksana Baiul, Brian Boitano, Nancy Kerrigan, Evan Lysacek, Katarina Witt, and Kristi Yamaguchi—spend years in training to make it look effortless. The Historical Dictionary of Figure Skating relates the history of the sport through a chronology, an introductory essay, an extensive bibliography, appendixes, and over 800 cross-referenced dictionary entries on hundreds of skaters, past and present, but also on skating countries, governing bodies, skating disciplines, technical elements, skating styles, and many other subjects. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the history of figure skating.

While producing a tribute to figure skater and coach Lucian Price, Rebecca "Bex" Levy finds herself skating on thin ice when Lucian dies after taking a bad fall and she discovers that someone had tampered with his skates. Original.

Scott Hamilton is one of the most beloved figure skaters in the world -- not just among his colleagues, but to the sport's countless fans as well. So when the Olympic gold medalist and four-time World Champion launched his Stars on Ice tour back in 1986, everyone wished him the best. In fact, the best is exactly what he got. Hamilton's Stars on Ice has become the most successful ice skating tour on the planet.In this lively look at figure skating's most remarkable success story, Stars on Ice features full-color illustrations of the graceful skaters who have entertained fans throughout the show's reign. From Dorothy Hamill to Brian Orser, from Katarina Witt to Kristi Yamaguchi, Stars on Ice beautifully displays the talents of Olympic and World Champion skaters through stunningly realistic photography. In addition, behind-the-scenes vignettes from the tour reveal the heartfelt camaraderie and sense of family felt among the skaters. From the tour's early days of opening night fiascoes to the tragically unexpected loss of Sergei Grinkov to Scott Hamilton's own battle with cancer, Stars on Ice tells a tale of a sport that has touched fans like no other.Each year, Stars on Ice plays to sold-out crowds in 48 to 55 cities in the United States and Canada, bringing at least 14 of the top figure skaters in the world to each venue. It's been a recipe for success that's helped elevate figure skating to its position of global prominence. Now, Stars on Ice helps to explain and illustrate this sport's everlasting fascination.By its third season, Stars on Ice had forever altered the complexion of professional figure skating.