Dorothy Stuart Hamill (born July 26, 1956) is a retired American
figure skater
Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...
. She is the
1976 Olympic champion and
1976 World champion in ladies' singles.
Early life
Hamill was born in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
, to Chalmers and Carol Hamill. Her father was a mechanical engineer.
[ Shortly after her birth, her family moved to the Riverside neighborhood of ]Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich (, ) is a New England town, town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town had a total population of 63,518. The largest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast (Conne ...
, where Hamill spent the rest of her childhood. She has two older siblings, a brother, Sandy, and a sister, Marcia.[
Hamill started skating in early 1965 at the age of 8, taking weekly group lessons. She became more serious about the sport the next season, taking regular private lessons and passing her preliminary and first figure test before the seasonal rink closed in March. She would wake early in the morning to go to the rink for practice at 4:30 am.][ Hamill was first coached by Otto Gold and ]Gustave Lussi
Gustave François Lussi (June 2, 1898 – June 23, 1993) was a figure skating coach. His students include many champions, such as Dick Button, Tenley Albright, Maria Jelinek / Otto Jelinek, Donald Jackson, Alena Vrzáňová, Ronald Robertson, Ron ...
. Ice time was limited in her area, so she eventually began training at Sky Rink in New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, staying overnight in the city with friends when possible. In the summers, Hamill trained in Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,303.
The village of Lake Placid is near the center of the town of North Elba, southwest of Plattsburgh. ...
and later in Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
with her coach at the time, Sonya Dunfield.[ During her career, her father would spend up to $20,000 a year on her skating expenses, including skating lessons, travel, living expenses, and costumes.][
Until the spring of 1970, Hamill attended public schools in Riverside, but at that point she switched to a small school with flexible tutoring to accommodate her skating schedule. She attended and graduated from ]Colorado Academy
Colorado Academy is an independent nonsectarian, co-educational, college preparatory day school for students from Pre-Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade. The school's campus is located in Lakewood, Colorado, and serves approximately 1000 studen ...
high school.[
]
Career
Hamill's first national success came in 1969, when she won the novice ladies' title at the U.S. Championships at the age of 12. Later that spring, Hamill was invited to perform in Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
with the exhibition tour (in later years known as Champions on Ice
Champions on Ice was a touring ice show in the United States. The show featured a large cast of both professional and Olympic-eligible figure skaters along with novelty acts such as skating acrobats. The shows were focused primarily on solo perf ...
) that followed the 1969 World Figure Skating Championships. She placed second at the junior level at the 1970 Championships, and made her senior debut in 1971.[ The U.S. Figure Skating Association arranged for her to be coached by ]Carlo Fassi
Carlo Fassi (20 December 1929 – 20 March 1997) was an Italian figure skater and international coach whose students included several World and Olympic champions. As a single skater, he was the 1953 World bronze medalist, a two-time European cha ...
when she began to compete internationally.[
Hamill was U.S. champion from 1974 to 1976. At the 1974 World Championships in ]Munich, Germany
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
, she was in 3rd place after the compulsory figures
Compulsory figures or school figures were formerly a segment of figure skating, and gave the sport its name. They are the "circular patterns which skaters trace on the ice to demonstrate skill in placing clean turns evenly on round circles". For ...
and the short program. She was set to skate directly after the West German skater Gerti Schanderl
Gerti Schanderl (born 12 October 1956) is a German former figure skater who represented West Germany. She is the 1973 Prize of Moscow News champion, the 1973 Nebelhorn Trophy bronze medalist, and a four-time German national champion.
Schanderl ...
, whose marks were booed while Hamill was already on the ice. Visibly upset, Hamill left the ice and burst into tears. After the crowd settled down, she returned to the ice and won the silver medal behind Christine Errath
Christine Errath (later Trettin then Stüber, born 29 December 1956) is a German former figure skater who represented East Germany in competition. She is the 1976 Olympic bronze medalist, the 1974 World champion, and a three-time European c ...
of East Germany.
Hamill competed with an injured right leg at the 1975 U.S. Championships.[ She said her leg was fine after receiving treatment for a pulled hamstring (earlier believed to be pulled ligaments) while training in Denver during the month before the 1975 World Championships.][ She won silver at Worlds in Colorado Springs, Colorado, behind ]Dianne de Leeuw
Dianne Margaret de Leeuw (born 19 November 1955) is a Dutch-American former competitive figure skater who represented the Netherlands. She is the 1975 World champion, the 1976 European champion, and the 1976 Olympic silver medalist.
Personal ...
of the Netherlands and ahead of Errath.
Hamill was disappointed by her performance at the 1976 U.S. Championships, admitting that she was outskated by Linda Fratianne
Linda Sue Fratianne (born August 2, 1960) is an American former figure skating, figure skater known for winning two World Championship titles (1977, 1979), four consecutive U.S. Championships (1977–1980), and a silver medal in the 1980 Winter ...
because she had not trained properly. Immediately after the national championships, her coach Carlo Fassi
Carlo Fassi (20 December 1929 – 20 March 1997) was an Italian figure skater and international coach whose students included several World and Olympic champions. As a single skater, he was the 1953 World bronze medalist, a two-time European cha ...
left the U.S. to accompany his other star pupil, John Curry
John Anthony Curry, (9 September 1949 – 15 April 1994) was a British Figure skating, figure skater. He was the 1976 1976 European Figure Skating Championships, European, Figure skating at the 1976 Winter Olympics, Olympic and World Figure Sk ...
, to the European Championships
The European Championships is a multi-sport tournament which brings together the existing European Championships of some of the continent's leading sports every four years. The inaugural edition in 2018 was staged by the host cities of Berlin, ...
, leaving Hamill coachless with the Olympics only a few weeks away. She began training with Peter Burrows instead. She was pleased with their work together and wanted to bring him to the Olympics as her coach of record.[ However, the USFSA refused her request, and she was reunited with Fassi for a brief period of training in Germany before the Olympics.][
At the ]1976 Winter Olympics
The 1976 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XII Olympic Winter Games (german: XII. Olympische Winterspiele, french: XIIes Jeux olympiques d'hiver) and commonly known as Innsbruck 1976 ( bar, Innschbruck 1976, label=Austro-Bavarian), was a ...
in Innsbruck, Austria, Hamill came in second in the figures and then won the short and long programs, taking the gold medal. She was the last single skater
Single skating is a discipline of figure skating in which male and female skaters compete individually. Men's singles and women's singles are governed by the International Skating Union (ISU). Figure skating is the oldest winter sport contested ...
to win the Olympics without a triple jump.[ Hamill also won the 1976 World Championships, and then turned professional.
Hamill is credited with developing a new skating move, a ]camel spin
The camel spin (also called the parallel spin) is one of the three basic figure skating spin positions. British figure skater Cecilia Colledge was the first to perform it. The camel spin, for the first ten years after it was created, was performed ...
that turns into a sit spin
The sit spin (also known as the Jackson Haines spin) is one of the oldest elements in figure skating
Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be include ...
, which became known as the "Hamill camel."[ The bobbed hairstyle that she wore during her Olympic performance was created by stylist Yusuke Suga ][ and started a fad, known as the "short and sassy" look. Her eyeglasses with oversized frames also started a trend in the 1970s.][ The media dubbed her "America's sweetheart."][
Hamill was an ]Ice Capades
The Ice Capades were traveling entertainment shows featuring theatrical ice skating performances. Shows often featured former Winter Olympic Games, Olympic and United States Figure Skating Championships, US National Champion figure skating, figur ...
headliner from 1977 to 1984. She was asked to join Ice Capades by Donna Atwood, who had been its star for years and who had eventually acquired financial control of the Ice Capades. Hamill was asked to be Atwood's successor as its new star. After Ice Capades folded due to competition and changing tastes, Hamill and her husband bought the financially strapped company's assets in 1993 in an effort to revive its earlier success, but they declared bankruptcy in 1994. It was sold to Pat Robertson's International Family Entertainment, Inc. in 1995.[
In 1993, the Associated Press released results of a national sports study showing that Hamill was statistically tied for first place with fellow Olympian ]Mary Lou Retton
Mary Lou Retton (born January 24, 1968) is an American retired gymnast. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, she won a gold medal in the individual all-around competition, as well as two silver medals and two bronze medals. Her performanc ...
as the most popular athlete in America, ranking far ahead of other major sports stars such as Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...
, Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player. He is often regarded as the greatest point guard of all-time and has been compared with Stephen Curry. Johnson played 13 seasons in the ...
, Troy Aikman
Troy Kenneth Aikman (born November 21, 1966) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. After transferring from Oklahoma, he played college football at UCLA, ...
, Dan Marino
Daniel Constantine Marino Jr. (born September 15, 1961) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons with the Miami Dolphins. After a successful college career at Pittsburgh and be ...
, Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Douglas Gretzky ( ; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "the Great One ...
, Joe Montana
Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
, Nolan Ryan
Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanning four decades, Ryan ...
, and 800 other athletes.[
At 40, Hamill experienced debilitating chronic pain and was later diagnosed with ]osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a type of degenerative joint disease that results from breakdown of joint cartilage and underlying bone which affects 1 in 7 adults in the United States. It is believed to be the fourth leading cause of disability in the w ...
. Her condition responded well to medication and she was able to return to skating professionally.
Hamill has continued to skate in shows, including a regular principal role with Broadway on Ice
Broadway On Ice is a long-running ice show produced by Willy Bietak Productions. Dating back to the early 1980s, in recent years the show has been presented in theatrical venues in resort areas such as Las Vegas and Branson, Missouri with a rotat ...
. She was a special guest in the Brian Boitano
Brian Anthony Boitano (born October 22, 1963) is an American figure skater from Sunnyvale, California. He is the 1988 Olympic champion, the 1986 and 1988 World Champion, and the 1985–1988 U.S. National Champion.
He turned professional foll ...
–Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...
skating extravaganza at AT&T Park
Oracle Park is a Major League Baseball stadium in the SoMa neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Since 2000, it has been the home of the San Francisco Giants. Previously named Pacific Bell Park, SBC Park, and AT&T Park, the stadium's curren ...
in San Francisco in 2007.
In February 2013, it was revealed that Hamill would take part in the sixteenth season of ''Dancing with the Stars
''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the forma ...
'', partnering with Tristan MacManus
Tristan MacManus (born 23 July 1982) is an Irish dancer and television presenter. He best known for his professional appearances on ''Dancing with the Stars'', ''Strictly Come Dancing'' and '' Dancing with the Stars Australia''. In 2017, he wen ...
. After only two dances, on March 26, 2013, she was forced to withdraw from the competition upon advice from her spine surgeon due to a severe strain on her lower back sustained during practice.[
On March 3, 2017, Hamill was announced as one of 16 celebrities taking part in a cooking competition on the Food Network TV series '']Chopped Chopped can have the following meanings:
* Chopped and screwed
Chopped and screwed (also called screwed and chopped or slowed and throwed) is a music genre and technique of remixing music that involves slowing down the tempo and deejaying. It ...
''. She was featured in the "Star Power: Culinary Muscle" episode, alongside former NFL player LaMarr Woodley
LaMarr Dewayne Woodley (born November 3, 1984) is a former American football outside linebacker. He played college football at Michigan, where he was recognized as a unanimous All-American, and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the seco ...
, Olympic medalist fencer Mariel Zagunis
Mariel Leigh Zagunis (born March 3, 1985) is an American sabre fencer. She is a two-time Olympic champion in the individual sabre ( 2004 and 2008) and the first American to win a gold medal in Olympic fencing. She was Team USA flag bearer in t ...
, and UFC fighter Paige VanZant
Paige Michelle VanZant (''née'' Sletten; married name Vanderford; born March 26, 1994), is an American mixed martial artist, bare knuckle boxer, professional wrestler, author, and model. She is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling, as a wres ...
. Hamill was the third and last contestant to be eliminated, narrowly missing out on advancing to the final heat, losing to Paige VanZant in the final round.
Personal life
Hamill wrote an autobiography titled ''On and Off the Ice''. She was married and divorced twice: to singer/actor Dean Paul Martin
Dean Paul Martin Jr. (born Dino Paul Crocetti Jr., November 17, 1951 – March 21, 1987) was an American pop singer and film and television actor. A member of the California Air National Guard, Martin died in a crash during a military training f ...
(1982–1984), and then to Kenneth Forsythe (1987–1995), with whom she had a daughter named Alexandra. Hamill married her third husband, John MacColl, in 2009.[ Her second autobiography ''A Skating Life: My Story'', was published in 2007.
For much of her adult life, Hamill has experienced chronic depression, which is controlled through medication and therapy. Her daughter also suffers from the condition.][ In 2008, Hamill announced that she was being treated for ]breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...
.[
Hamill was a mentor to 2010 U.S. national champion ]Rachael Flatt
Rachael Elizabeth Flatt (born July 21, 1992) is an American former competitive figure skater. She is the 2008 World Junior champion, a winner of four silver medals on the Grand Prix series, and the 2010 U.S. national champion.
She was nominat ...
.[ Flatt, like Hamill, trained in ]Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
.
Results
Records and achievements
Amateur
*Olympic Champion (1976)
*World Champion (1976)
*Three-time United States National Champion (1974–1976)
*Invented the ''Hamill camel'', a camel spin followed by a sit spin
Professional
* World Professional Champion (1983–1987)
Awards
*Awarded the National Young American Award by the Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...
*Won Daytime Emmy Award
The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...
– Outstanding Individual Achievement in the Performing Arts – Host/Hostess for Romeo and Juliet on Ice (1983)
*Inducted into the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame (1991)
* Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement
The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a non-profit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest achieving individuals in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet o ...
(1996)
*Inducted into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame
The World Figure Skating Hall of Fame serves as a repository for the sport of figure skating. The World Figure Skating Hall of Fame is where the greatest names in the history of the sport are honored. It is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, ...
(2000)
*The "Dorothy Hamill Skating Rink" in her hometown of Greenwich, Connecticut, is named after her.
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamill, Dorothy
1956 births
Living people
American female single skaters
Daytime Emmy Award winners
Figure skaters at the 1976 Winter Olympics
Olympic figure skaters of the United States
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in figure skating
Figure skaters from Chicago
Sportspeople from Greenwich, Connecticut
World Figure Skating Championships medalists
Participants in American reality television series
Medalists at the 1976 Winter Olympics
Colorado Academy alumni
21st-century American women