132-638: The Seattle Times is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle , Washington . Founded in 1891, The Seattle Times has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region . The Seattle Times Company , which owns and publishes the paper, is mostly owned by the Blethen family, which holds 50.5% of the company; the other 49.5% is owned by The McClatchy Company . The Blethen family has owned and operated
264-530: A change of edge spiral that soon became her signature move. Kwan's spiral was famed by commentators not only for its great extension and line, but also its speed, the strength and security of the edge, the deep lean and the easy smoothness of the change of edge. In the 1998–1999 season, Kwan revived a variation of the Charlotte spiral , a move innovated by German skater Charlotte Oelschlägel which had not been performed in decades. Kwan's split falling leaf
396-648: A clause in the JOA contract that three consecutive years of losses allowed it to pull out of the agreement. Hearst sued, arguing that a force majeure clause prevented the Times from claiming losses as reason to end the JOA when they result from extraordinary events (in this case, a seven-week strike by members of the Newspaper Guild). While a district judge ruled in Hearst's favor, the Times won on appeal, including
528-486: A state referendum to legalize same-sex marriage . The newspaper's management said the ads were aimed at "demonstrating how effective advertising with The Times can be." The advertisements in favor of McKenna represented an $ 80,000 independent expenditure, making the newspaper the third largest contributor to his campaign. More than 100 staffers signed a letter of protest sent to Seattle Times publisher Frank Blethen, calling it an "unprecedented act". From 1983 to 2009,
660-586: A 20 to 3 vote approved Kwan's petition under the stipulation that she show her physical and competitive readiness to a five-member monitoring panel by January 27. Kwan performed her long and short programs for the panel on the stipulated day, and her spot on the Olympic team was established, as the panel felt she was fit to compete. However, on February 12, 2006, the United States Olympic Committee announced that Kwan had withdrawn from
792-498: A 54-inch web, the four-page width of a roll of newsprint . Following changing industry standards, the width of the page was reduced in 2005 by 1 inch (2.5 cm), to 12 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (32 cm), now a 50-inch web standard. In February 2009, the web size was further reduced to 46 inches, which narrowed the page by another inch to 11 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (29 cm) in width. Seattle Seattle ( / s i ˈ æ t əl / see- AT -əl )
924-484: A NW section for the day, Sports, and any other sections listed below. Friday : NW Autos; Weekend Plus Saturday : NW Homes Sunday : Business; ShopNW; NW Jobs; NW Arts & Life; NW Traveler; Pacific NW Magazine Pacific NW is a glossy magazine published every week and inserted in the Sunday edition. For decades, the broadsheet page width of the Times was 13 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (34 cm), printed from
1056-402: A bun instead of a ponytail and wore heavy theatrical makeup, including rhinestones pasted near the corner of her eyes. Her costume consisted of "a short-sleeved rich purple dress with rhinestone-studded flesh-colored fabric across the midriff and deep front and black necklines, ornamated with elaborate sequined floral patterns in gold and bright pastels". According to writer Ellyn Kestnbaum, Kwan
1188-513: A clean program. Kwan won the bronze medal behind Hughes and Slutskaya. Kwan's final event of the season was the 2002 Worlds , where she won the silver medal behind Slutskaya. Kwan began working with coach Scott Williams in the summer of 2002. She continued to compete on the Olympic-eligible circuit, although in a more limited way. During the fall seasons of 2002 to 2004, Kwan competed in only one Grand Prix event, Skate America in
1320-589: A combined total of 57 perfect marks (6.0s) at major competitions, the singles record under the former 6.0 judging system . In 1991, Michelle Kwan and her sister Karen began training with Frank Carroll in Lake Arrowhead, California. After one year of coaching by Carroll, 11-year-old Michelle placed 9th at the junior level at the United States Figure Skating Championships. At the age of 12 in 1992, Michelle passed
1452-477: A figure skating commentator for NBC Sports . During an interview with Bob Costas and Scott Hamilton , Kwan said she was not retiring yet. Kwan underwent elective arthroscopic surgery in August 2006 to repair a torn labrum in her right hip, an old injury which she traces back to 2002. According to Kwan, the surgery allowed her to skate pain-free for the first time in four years. Kwan did not compete during
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#17327733665201584-470: A full-time student. During her initial weeks at DU, she had to use crutches due to hip surgery. Shortly after her arrival at DU, Kwan engaged in an international studies internship. Condoleezza Rice , the former Secretary of State , appointed Kwan as the inaugural American Public Diplomacy Envoy. Her role was to foster a better understanding of America by sharing her personal story through cross-cultural dialogues with international students. Kwan mentioned
1716-689: A great frenzy among the technology companies in Seattle but the bubble ended in early 2001. In 1999, the World Trade Organization held its conference in Seattle, which was met with protest activity . The protests and police reactions to them largely overshadowed the conference itself. In 2001, the city was impacted by the Mardi Gras Riots and then by the Nisqually earthquake the following day. Another boom began as
1848-716: A local family (the Blethens). The Seattle Times Company, while owning and operating the Times , also owns three other papers in Washington , and formerly owned several newspapers in Maine that were later sold to MaineToday Media . The McClatchy Company owns 49.5% of voting common stock in the Seattle Times Company, formerly held by Knight Ridder until 2006. The Seattle Times has received 11 Pulitzer Prizes , most recently in 2020 for its national reporting of
1980-762: A new synthetic skating rink at the Marina Bay Sands resort in Singapore in December 2010, where she performed a modified routine to "Winter Song", a program she self-choreographed with her sister. She returned to Singapore a month later as a Public Diplomacy Envoy to meet local students and to promote ice skating in the tropical country. As of 2008, Kwan is a member of the Chinese-American organization Committee of 100 . In 2014, Kwan joined Fox Sports 1 for its Winter Olympics broadcast. Kwan
2112-441: A number of technology companies, including Amazon , F5 Networks , RealNetworks , Nintendo of America , and T-Mobile . This success brought an influx of new residents with a population increase within city limits of almost 50,000 between 1990 and 2000, and saw Seattle's real estate become some of the most expensive in the country. Seattle in this period attracted attention as home to the companies opened operations in or around
2244-478: A number of theaters in the city exhibiting vaudeville acts and silent movies. He went on to become one of America's greatest theater and movie tycoons. Scottish-born architect B. Marcus Priteca designed several theaters for Pantages in Seattle, which were later demolished or converted to other uses. Seattle's surviving Paramount Theatre , on which he collaborated, was not a Pantages theater. War work again brought local prosperity during World War II , centered on
2376-404: A place on the 2002 Olympic team . Joining her on the team were Sasha Cohen (second) and Sarah Hughes (third). The 21-year-old Kwan and Russia's Irina Slutskaya were favorites to win the gold. Kwan led after the short program, followed by Slutskaya, Cohen, and Hughes. In the free skate, Kwan two-footed her triple toe loop combination and fell on her triple flip , while Sarah Hughes skated
2508-533: A recommended painkiller in state-supported care. In April 2010, the Times staff won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting for its coverage, in print and online, of the shooting deaths of four police officers in a Lakewood coffee house and the 40-hour manhunt for the suspect. A tenth Pulitzer Prize was awarded in 2015 for breaking news coverage of the Oso mudslide . Times photographer Jerry Gay won
2640-518: A rough qualifying round and placed third in the short program. In the free skate, Kwan fell on her triple salchow and two-footed a triple lutz . Although she finished third in both the short and long program portion of the competition, Kwan was edged by Carolina Kostner for the bronze medal and finished fourth overall, missing third place by 0.37 points. It was the first time since 1995 that Kwan had failed to medal at any international competition, and would be her final competitive event. Kwan looked at
2772-485: A similar incident that happened with an MSNBC article during the Winter games in 1998, which was reported on by Times . The newspaper's Executive Editor at the time of the controversy, Mike Fancher, issued an apology in the aftermath of the controversial headline. On October 17, 2012, the publishers of The Seattle Times launched advertising campaigns in support of Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna and
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#17327733665202904-604: A total area of 142.5 square miles (369 km ), 84 square miles (220 km ) of which is land and 58.1 square miles (150 km ) is water (41% of the total area). According to the Köppen climate classification system, Seattle has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate ( Csb ), while under the Trewartha system, it is labeled an oceanic climate ( Dobk ). It has cool, wet winters and mild, relatively dry summers, covering characteristics of both climate types. The climate
3036-651: A unanimous decision from the Washington State Supreme Court on June 30, 2005. Hearst continued to argue that the Times fabricated its loss in 2002. The two papers announced an end to their dispute on April 16, 2007. The JOA was terminated when the Post-Intelligencer ceased publication; its final printed edition was March 17, 2009. The Times contains different sections every day. Each daily edition includes Main News & Business,
3168-399: A very close competition in which both competitors garnered two perfect 6.0s for Presentation in the free skate. She was the third youngest figure skater to hold both titles. The1996-97 season marked the beginning of a winning streak for Kwan that lasted more than a year, from the fall of 1995 to the fall of 1996. As Kestnbaum put it, Kwan became "the most consistent and well-rounded skater in
3300-428: Is Sonia Henie of Norway. Kwan won nine U.S. Championships (1996, 1998–2005), tying the record for most wins set by Maribel Vinson-Owen (1928–1933, 1935–1937). She holds the record for the most consecutive U.S. titles (eight) and most consecutive U.S. Championship medals (twelve). She also earned the silver medal at the 1998 Nagano Olympics and the bronze medal in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics . Kwan has received
3432-526: Is a city on the West Coast of the United States . It is the seat of King County , Washington . With a 2023 population of 755,078 it is the most populous city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region of North America , and the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The Seattle metropolitan area 's population is 4.02 million, making it the 15th-largest in
3564-412: Is a retired American competitive figure skater and diplomat serving as United States Ambassador to Belize . In figure skating Kwan is a two-time Olympic medalist (silver in 1998, bronze in 2002), a five-time world champion (1996, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003) and a nine-time U.S. champion (1996, 1998–2005). She is tied with Maribel Vinson for the all-time National Championship record. She competed at
3696-506: Is hilly in some places. Like Rome, the city is said to lie on seven hills ; the lists vary but typically include Capitol Hill , First Hill , West Seattle , Beacon Hill , Queen Anne , Magnolia, and the former Denny Hill . The Wallingford , Delridge , Mount Baker , Seward Park , Washington Park , Broadmoor , Madrona , Phinney Ridge , Sunset Hill , Blue Ridge , Broadview , Laurelhurst , Hawthorne Hills , Maple Leaf , and Crown Hill neighborhoods are all located on hills. Many of
3828-491: Is sometimes characterized as a "modified Mediterranean" climate because it is cooler and wetter than a "true" Mediterranean climate, but shares the characteristic dry summer (which has a strong influence on the region's vegetation). Temperature extremes are moderated by the adjacent Puget Sound , greater Pacific Ocean , and Lake Washington . Thus extreme heat waves are rare in the Seattle area, as are very cold temperatures (below about 15 °F; −9 °C). The Seattle area
3960-568: Is the cloudiest region of the Continental United States , due in part to frequent storms and lows moving in from the adjacent Pacific Ocean. Seattle is cloudy 201 days out of the year and partly cloudy 93 days. With many more "rain days" than other major American cities, Seattle has a well-earned reputation for frequent rain: In an average year, there are 150 days in which at least 0.01 inches (0.25 mm) of precipitation falls, more days than in nearly all U.S. cities east of
4092-525: The 1962 World's Fair , for which the Space Needle was built. Another major local economic downturn was in the late 1960s and early 1970s, at a time when Boeing was heavily affected by the oil crises , loss of government contracts, and costs and delays associated with the Boeing 747 . Many people left the area to look for work elsewhere, and two local real estate agents put up a billboard reading "Will
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4224-403: The 1997 World Championships , Kwan came in second place, behind Lipinski, who won the gold medal. Kwan came in fourth place in her short program due to an unsuccessful jump combination while Lipinski came in first place and Irina Slutskaya, who missed her combination jump, came in sixth place. All three skaters performed well during their free skates, each earning first-place ordinals from three of
4356-499: The 1998 Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan . Kwan placed first in the short program, winning eight first place votes out of nine judges, while Lipinski came in second place. In the free skate, Kwan, who skated first in the final group, executed a clean seven-triple performance but placed behind Lipinski, who also did seven triples including a triple loop/triple loop combination and a triple toe-loop/half-loop/triple Salchow. Kwan's performance
4488-618: The Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition of 1909, which is largely responsible for the layout of today's University of Washington campus. A shipbuilding boom in the early part of the 20th century became massive during World War I , making Seattle somewhat of a company town. The subsequent retrenchment led to the Seattle General Strike of 1919 , an early general strike in the country. A 1912 city development plan by Virgil Bogue went largely unused. Seattle
4620-476: The Boeing 737 MAX crashes by reporters Dominic Gates, Mike Baker, Steve Miletich and Lewis Kamb. It has an international reputation for its investigative journalism in particular. In April 2012, investigative reporters Michael Berens and Ken Armstrong won the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting for a series documenting more than 2,000 deaths caused by the state of Washington's use of methadone as
4752-753: The Democratic Party . In January 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Kwan to be U.S. Ambassador to Belize . She was confirmed by the Senate on September 29, 2022, took the oath of office on October 22, and presented her credentials on December 5. Born in Torrance, California , Kwan was the third child of Danny Kwan and Estella Kwan, Chinese immigrants from Hong Kong . Her father was a native of Canton and emigrated from Hong Kong to California in 1971. Kwan grew up speaking both Cantonese and English at home. Kwan's interest in figure skating began at
4884-663: The Lake Washington Ship Canal (consisting of two man-made canals, Lake Union , and the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks at Salmon Bay , ending in Shilshole Bay on Puget Sound). The sea, rivers, forests, lakes, and fields surrounding Seattle were once rich enough to support one of the world's few sedentary hunter-gatherer societies. In modern times the surrounding area lends itself well to sailing, skiing, bicycling, camping, and hiking year-round. The city
5016-790: The Pacific Ring of Fire , Seattle is in a major earthquake zone . On February 28, 2001, the magnitude 6.8 Nisqually earthquake did significant architectural damage, especially in the Pioneer Square area (built on reclaimed land , as are the Industrial District and part of the city center), and caused one fatality. Other strong earthquakes occurred on January 26, 1700 (estimated at 9 magnitude), December 14, 1872 (7.3 or 7.4), April 13, 1949 (7.1), and April 29, 1965 (6.5). The 1965 quake caused three deaths in Seattle directly and one more by heart failure. Although
5148-680: The Port of Seattle is the fourth-largest port in North America in terms of container handling as of 2021 . The Seattle area has been inhabited by Native Americans (such as the Duwamish , who had at least 17 villages around Elliot Bay) for at least 4,000 years before the first permanent European settlers. Arthur A. Denny and his group of travelers, subsequently known as the Denny Party , arrived from Illinois via Portland, Oregon , on
5280-759: The Rocky Mountains . However, because it often has merely a light drizzle falling from the sky for many days, Seattle actually receives significantly less rainfall (or other precipitation) overall than many other major U.S. cities like New York City , Miami , or Houston . According to the 2012–2016 American Community Survey (ACS), the racial makeup of the city was 65.7% White Non-Hispanic , 16.9% Asian , 6.8% Black or African American , 6.6% Hispanic or Latino of any race, 0.4% Native American , 0.9% Pacific Islander , 0.2% other races, and 5.6% two or more races . Seattle's population historically has been predominantly white. The 2010 census showed that Seattle
5412-749: The Seattle Daily Times , it doubled its circulation within half a year. By 1915, circulation stood at 70,000. The newspaper moved to the Times Square Building at 5th Avenue and Olive Way in 1915. It built a new headquarters, the Seattle Times Building , north of Denny Way in 1930. The paper moved to its current headquarters at 1000 Denny Way in 2011. In 1966, the publication changed to its current name of The Seattle Times . The Seattle Times switched from afternoon delivery to mornings on March 6, 2000, citing that
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5544-525: The Seattle Fault passes just south of the city center, neither it nor the Cascadia subduction zone has caused an earthquake since the city's founding. The Cascadia subduction zone poses the threat of an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 or greater, capable of seriously damaging the city and collapsing many buildings, especially in zones built on fill. According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the city has
5676-471: The Times and Seattle's other major paper, the Hearst -owned Seattle Post-Intelligencer , were run under a " Joint Operating Agreement " (JOA) whereby advertising, production, marketing, and circulation were controlled by the Times for both papers. The two papers maintained their own identities with separate news and editorial departments. The Times announced its intention to cancel the JOA in 2003, citing
5808-551: The United States Figure Skating Association , which publishes Skating , announced that the award would be renamed the "Michelle Kwan Trophy". The USFSA stated that although Kwan may continue to skate competitively, she would no longer be eligible for the award. The only other skater to win the award multiple times, Johnny Weir , only won it twice in comparison. On November 9, 2006, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice named Michelle Kwan as
5940-518: The University of Washington negatively. As schools across Washington lost funding and attendance, the university actually prospered during the time period as they focused on growing their student enrollment. While Seattle public schools were influenced by Washington's superintendent Worth McClure, they still struggled to pay teachers and maintain attendance. Seattle was the home base of impresario Alexander Pantages who, starting in 1902, opened
6072-609: The anti-Chinese riots of 1885–1886 . This violence originated with unemployed whites who were determined to drive the Chinese from Seattle; anti-Chinese riots also occurred in Tacoma . Seattle had achieved sufficient economic success when the Great Seattle Fire of 1889 destroyed the central business district. However, a far grander city center rapidly emerged in its place. Finance company Washington Mutual , for example,
6204-428: The schooner Exact at Alki Point on November 13, 1851. The settlement was moved to the eastern shore of Elliott Bay in 1852 and named "Seattle" in honor of Chief Seattle , a prominent 19th-century leader of the local Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. Seattle currently has high populations of Native Americans alongside Americans with strong Asian, African, European, and Scandinavian ancestry, and, as of 2015, hosts
6336-462: The 1975 Spot News Photography prize for " Lull in the Battle ", an image of firefighters resting after fighting a house fire. In 1982, reporter Paul Henderson won the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting for his coverage of the case of Steve Titus . Titus had been wrongfully convicted of rape, and in a series of articles Henderson challenged the circumstantial evidence in the case, convincing
6468-482: The 1980s, the Seattle area developed into a technology center ; Microsoft established its headquarters in the region. In 1994, Internet retailer Amazon was founded in Seattle, and Alaska Airlines is based in SeaTac, Washington , serving Seattle–Tacoma International Airport , Seattle's international airport. The stream of new software, biotechnology , and Internet companies led to an economic revival, which increased
6600-633: The 1997—98 Olympic season, the American press "play[ed] up the Kwan-Lipinski rivalry for all it was worth". According to Kestnbaum, Kwan's programs emphasized sophistication and pure skating, which Kestnbaum called "a change of pace" from her previous two seasons, which featured dramatic storylines. Kestbaum also called both Kwan's programs "carefully choreographed expressions of joy". For Kwan's short program, she chose piano music by Rachmaninoff , and for her free skating program, she chose music from
6732-509: The 1998–99 season, although she bypassed the fall Grand Prix season and instead chose to skate in a series of made-for-television pro-am events. Her "regular" competitive programs that season were "Fate of Carmen" (short program) and "Lamento D'Ariane" (free skate). Kwan won her third national title at the 1999 U.S. Championships, competing against a weak field. At the 1999 World Championships, Kwan did not skate her best, and placed second behind Russian competitor Maria Butyrskaya . Kwan's win at
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#17327733665206864-424: The 2000 U.S. Nationals was controversial to some. She was criticized for planning an easier solo jump in her short program than some of her competitors (a triple toe loop rather than a triple flip ), and fell on this element in the competition. The judges nevertheless placed her third in that segment behind younger challengers Sasha Cohen and Sarah Hughes ; however, the placement still kept her in contention for
6996-531: The 2005 Worlds as a learning experience in the ISU Judging System . She continued to train and stated that she would attempt to qualify for the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin , Italy. However, following a hip injury, she was forced to withdraw from her three planned competitions in the fall of 2005. Kwan skated her new short program ("Totentanz") at a made-for-TV event in December 2005, but her performance
7128-550: The 2006–2007 figure skating season. Kwan told the Associated Press in October 2007 that she would decide in 2009 if she planned to compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics , but she ultimately decided not to do so, focusing instead on graduate school. She has said "Representing the United States as an American Public Diplomacy Envoy the past three years has been very rewarding, and I want to do more." After graduating from
7260-562: The 2010 Winter Olympics. In August 2009, Kwan made her first on-ice appearance in several years, performing at Ice All Stars , a show headlined by South Korean world champion Yuna Kim in Seoul , South Korea . Kim considered Kwan her idol growing up. Kwan also later appeared in Kim's All That Skate shows in South Korea and Los Angeles. She was chosen as the guest of honor to help open
7392-548: The Biblical story of Salome seducing King Herod . She also improved her extension, speed and jump technique, and performed to more difficult choreography. Carroll defended their decision to make Kwan appear more mature by stating that they were giving the judges what they wanted, saying, "The judges were looking for the ladies' champion of the world, not the girls' champion of the world". In both her practices and during her performance at Skate America , Kwan wore her hair in
7524-625: The Denny Party. Members of the Denny Party claimed land on Alki Point on September 28, 1851. The rest of the Denny Party set sail on the schooner Exact from Portland , Oregon, stopping in Astoria , and landed at Alki Point during a rainstorm on November 13, 1851. After a difficult winter, most of the Denny Party relocated across Elliott Bay and claimed land a second time at the site of present-day Pioneer Square , naming this new settlement Duwamps . Charles Terry and John Low remained at
7656-573: The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and graduated in 2011. On May 8, 2010, she was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Southern Vermont College . Kwan won five World Championships (1996, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003), tying her with Carol Heiss (1956–1960) for the most world titles by an American. Kwan's nine world medals overall is the all-time record for an American skater in any discipline. The only ladies' singles skater with more world titles or medals
7788-616: The Games after suffering a new groin injury in her first practice in Turin. Kwan remarked that she "respected the Olympics too much to compete". The Turin organizing committee accepted the USOC's application for Emily Hughes (who had finished third at the U.S. Championships) to compete as Kwan's replacement. After her withdrawal from the Olympic team, Kwan turned down an offer to stay in Turin as
7920-572: The Legislature of Territorial Washington incorporated the Town of Seattle with a board of trustees managing the city. The Town of Seattle was disincorporated on January 18, 1867, and remained a mere precinct of King County until late 1869, when a new petition was filed and the city was re-incorporated December 2, 1869, with a mayor–council government . The corporate seal of the City of Seattle carries
8052-586: The Month" fourteen times, which is more than any other athlete, male or female, as well as being named "Female Figure Skating Athlete of the Year" by the USOC multiple times. She is also the recipient of the USOC's "Citizenship Through Sports Alliance Award" (2004). Kwan is one of only two multiple winners of the "Readers' Choice Figure Skater of the Year" award given by Skating magazine, winning it an unprecedented seven times (1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001–2003). In 2003,
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#17327733665208184-750: The Pacific Ocean) to the west and Lake Washington to the east. The city's chief harbor, Elliott Bay , is part of Puget Sound, making the city an oceanic port. To the west, beyond Puget Sound, are the Kitsap Peninsula and Olympic Mountains on the Olympic Peninsula ; to the east, beyond Lake Washington and the Eastside suburbs, are Lake Sammamish and the Cascade Range . Lake Washington's waters flow to Puget Sound through
8316-683: The Seattle area and has been open to all residents of Washington since 2002. On March 20, 1970, twenty-eight people were killed when the Ozark Hotel was burned by an unknown arsonist. The Wah Mee massacre in 1983 resulted in the killing of 13 people in an illegal gambling club in the Seattle Chinatown-International District . Prosperity began to return in the 1980s beginning with Microsoft 's 1979 move from Albuquerque, New Mexico , to nearby Bellevue, Washington . Seattle and its suburbs became home to
8448-416: The Seattle area during his 1791–1795 expedition for the Royal Navy , which sought to chart the Pacific Northwest for the British. In 1851, a large party of American pioneers led by Luther Collins made a location on land at the mouth of the Duwamish River ; they formally claimed it on September 14, 1851. Thirteen days later, members of the Collins Party on the way to their claim passed three scouts of
8580-411: The U.S. Championships again and regained her World title. In autumn 2003, she hired the noted technician Rafael Arutyunyan as her coach, with whom she attempted to increase the technical difficulty of her programs and hone her jump technique. In the 2003–2004 competitive season, she skated again to "The Feeling Begins" for her short program, and Puccini's " Tosca " for her long program. Again, Kwan won
8712-443: The U.S. Championships, earning seven more 6.0s for presentation during the free skating. At the 2004 World Championships , after a difficult qualifying round, Kwan was penalized in her short program for going two seconds over the time limit. This caused her to place fourth going into the long program, behind American Sasha Cohen , Japan's Shizuka Arakawa , and Miki Ando . Kwan skated a clean performance with five triples and received
8844-536: The United States. According to the ACS 1-year estimates, in 2018, the median income of a city household was $ 93,481, and the median income for a family was $ 130,656. 11.0% of the population and 6.6% of families were below the poverty line. Of people living in poverty, 11.4% were under the age of 18 and 10.9% were 65 or older. According to a 2024 study by Henley & Partners , the city of Seattle has an estimated 54,200 millionaires and 11 billionaires. Michelle Kwan Michelle Wingshan Kwan (born July 7, 1980)
8976-407: The United States. Its growth rate of 21.1% between 2010 and 2020 made it one of the country's fastest-growing large cities. Seattle is situated on an isthmus between Puget Sound , an inlet of the Pacific Ocean , and Lake Washington . It is the northernmost major city in the United States, located about 100 miles (160 km) south of the Canadian border . A gateway for trade with East Asia ,
9108-478: The University of Denver in 2009, Kwan said "Furthering my education will bring me closer to that goal, and I don't want to wait any longer to continue the journey." On February 17, 2010, Kwan told ABC News in an interview that she was continuing her studies as a graduate student at the Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy , as well as continuing her work as a Public Diplomacy Envoy. Kwan also said she would be commentating for Good Morning America at
9240-515: The [women's] field, taking on an almost legendary mystique as she continued to mature as a feminine artistic skater emphasizing beauty, musicality, and dramatic storylines concerned with love and death". In the 1996–97 season, Kwan skated to "Dream of Desdemona" (short program) and "Taj Mahal" (free skate). During this season, Kwan struggled with her jumps because of a growth spurt, which affected her balance on her jump, and problems with new skating boots which she wore for an endorsement contract with
9372-510: The age of five when she followed her two older siblings ( ice hockey player Ron and figure skater Karen ) onto the ice. Karen and Michelle began serious training when Michelle was about eight years old. They practiced three to four hours a day, waking up at 4:30am and arriving at the rink at 5:00am to skate before school, and then going back to the rink right after school to skate again. Paying for their increased skating-rink time led to financial hardship for Kwan's working-class family. When Kwan
9504-634: The bigger West Coast city. Seattle had building contracts that rivaled New York City and Chicago , but also lost to Los Angeles. Seattle's eastern farm land faded due to Oregon 's and the Midwest 's, forcing people into town. Hooverville arose during the Depression, leading to Seattle's growing homeless population. Stationed outside Seattle, the Hooverville housed thousands of men but very few children and no women. With work projects close to
9636-476: The challenges of balancing travel and school, recounting instances when she had to take exams on campus shortly after returning from a 15-hour flight. She applied the knowledge gained in her classroom to her international endeavors. In June 2009, she graduated from Denver's Josef Korbel School of International Studies with a bachelor's degree in international studies and a minor in political science. In 2009, she began graduate studies in international relations at
9768-493: The city emerged from the Great Recession , commencing when Amazon moved its headquarters from North Beacon Hill to South Lake Union . The move initiated a historic construction boom which resulted in the completion of almost 10,000 apartments in Seattle in 2017, more than any previous year and nearly twice as many as were built in 2016. From 2010 to 2015, Seattle gained an average of 14,511 residents per year, with
9900-496: The city's population by almost 50,000 in the decade between 1990 and 2000. The culture of Seattle is heavily defined by its significant musical history . Between 1918 and 1951, nearly 24 jazz nightclubs existed along Jackson Street, from the current Chinatown/International District to the Central District . The jazz scene nurtured the early careers of Ernestine Anderson , Ray Charles , Quincy Jones , and others. In
10032-631: The city, Hooverville grew and the WPA settled into the city. A movement of women arose from Seattle during the Great Depression , fueled in part by Eleanor Roosevelt 's 1933 book It's Up to the Women ; women pushed for recognition, not just as housewives, but as the backbone to family. Using newspapers and journals Working Woman and The Woman Today , women pushed to be seen as equal and receive some recognition. The Great Depression did not impact
10164-546: The city. In 1990, the Goodwill Games were held in the city. Three years later, in 1993, the APEC leaders was hosted in Seattle. The 1990s also witnessed a growing popularity in grunge music, a sound that was largely developed in Seattle's independent music scene. In 1993, the movie Sleepless in Seattle brought the city further national attention, as did the television sitcom Frasier . The dot-com boom caused
10296-583: The concerto Lyra Angelica by William Alwyn . She came in first place at Skate America, winning both the short program and free skate, while Lipinski came in second place. She also won Skate Canada , but suffered a stress fracture on her foot and was forced to withdraw from her third Champions Series Final . Kwan regained her U.S. title from Lipinski at the 1998 National Championships, despite her fractured toe. Her injury prevented her from attempting her triple toe-triple toe combination, but she completed all seven jumps in her free program earning 6.0s from eight of
10428-511: The date "1869" and a likeness of Chief Seattle in left profile. That same year, Seattle acquired the epithet of the "Queen City", a designation officially changed in 1982 to the "Emerald City". Seattle has a history of boom-and-bust cycles, like many other cities near areas of extensive natural and mineral resources. Seattle has risen several times economically, then gone into precipitous decline, but it has typically used those periods to rebuild solid infrastructure. The first such boom, covering
10560-598: The early part of the 20th century, and funded many new Seattle companies and products. In 1907, 19-year-old James E. Casey borrowed $ 100 from a friend and founded the American Messenger Company (later UPS ). Other Seattle companies founded during this period include Nordstrom and Eddie Bauer . Seattle brought in the Olmsted Brothers landscape architecture firm to design a system of parks and boulevards. The Gold Rush era culminated in
10692-486: The early years of the city, rode on the lumber industry. During this period the road now known as Yesler Way won the nickname "Skid Road", supposedly after the timber skidding down the hill to Henry Yesler 's sawmill. The later dereliction of the area may be a possible origin for the term which later entered the wider American lexicon as Skid Row . Like much of the U.S. West , Seattle experienced conflicts between labor and management and ethnic tensions that culminated in
10824-656: The fall of 2002, which she entered as a last-minute replacement. She won the event and qualified for the Grand Prix Final but chose not to compete in it. Kwan chose to not compete in Grand Prix events in the 2003 and 2004 seasons where the new judging system was being used. Kwan won all phases of every competition she entered in the 2002–2003 competitive season with her programs: Peter Gabriel's "The Feeling Begins" from The Last Temptation of Christ (short program) and " Concierto de Aranjuez " (free skate). She won
10956-451: The few skaters who can spin in both directions. Kwan is a recipient of the prestigious James E. Sullivan Award (2001), which is given to America's best amateur athlete; she was the first figure skater to win the award since Dick Button in 1949. In 2003, she was named the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) "Sportswoman of the Year", and is the 5th figure skater in history to receive this honor. She has also been named USOC "Athlete of
11088-472: The fifth-largest LGBT community in the U.S. Logging was Seattle's first major industry, but by the late 19th century the city had become a commercial and shipbuilding center as a gateway to Alaska during the Klondike Gold Rush . The city grew after World War II , partly due to the local company Boeing , which established Seattle as a center for its manufacturing of aircraft. Beginning in
11220-473: The founders of Duwamps, was the primary advocate to name the settlement Seattle after Chief Seattle ( Lushootseed : siʔaɫ , anglicized as "Seattle"), chief of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. The name "Seattle" appears on official Washington Territory papers dated May 23, 1853, when the first plats for the village were filed. In 1855, nominal land settlements were established. On January 14, 1865,
11352-560: The free skate and despite Kwan's successful execution of her jumps, which were second in difficulty behind Bonaly's. Kwan began to develop a more mature style during the 1995 season. She used "Romanza" for her short program and in her free skate, music from "Salome's dance" from the film score King of Kings by Miklós Rózsa and "The Dance of the Seven Veils" from the Richard Strauss opera Salome , both pieces depicting
11484-404: The free skate, allowing Kwan to win the overall title as well. During the 2000–2001 season, Kwan began working with the famed designer (and former figure skater) Vera Wang , who designed most of her competition and exhibition costumes for the next six years. Kwan was only the second figure skater Wang designed for, following Nancy Kerrigan . At that year's national championships, Kwan again won
11616-481: The gold test to become a senior-level figure skater despite the disapproval of her coach. In 1993, Kwan finished sixth at her first senior U.S. championships. The next season, she won the 1994 World Junior Championships . In 1994, Kwan finished second to Tonya Harding at the U.S. Championships, which ordinarily would have placed her on the U.S. team to the 1994 Olympic Games in Lillehammer , Norway. That place
11748-411: The growth strongly skewed toward the center of the city, and unemployment dropped from roughly 9 percent to 3.6 percent. The city has found itself "bursting at the seams", with over 45,000 households spending more than half their income on housing and at least 2,800 people homeless , and with the country's sixth-worst rush-hour traffic. Seattle is located between the saltwater Puget Sound (an arm of
11880-401: The hilliest areas are near the city center, with Capitol Hill, First Hill, and Beacon Hill collectively constituting something of a ridge along an isthmus between Elliott Bay and Lake Washington. The break in the ridge between First Hill and Beacon Hill is man-made, a result of two of the many regrading projects that reshaped the topography of the city center. The topography of the city center
12012-472: The judge to reverse Titus' conviction. In February 2002, The Seattle Times ran a subheadline "American outshines Kwan , Slutskaya in skating surprise" after Sarah Hughes won the gold medal at the 2002 Olympics . Many Asian Americans felt insulted by the headline because Michelle Kwan is also American. Asian American community leaders criticized the subheadline as perpetuating a stereotype that people of color can never be truly American. The incident echoed
12144-515: The last 6.0 marks given at the World Championships. She placed second in the free skating portion (she was one judge short from winning the free skating) and placed third overall, behind Arakawa (who performed seven triples, including two triple-triple combinations) and Cohen. For the 2004–2005 competitive season, Kwan skated her long program to " Boléro ", choreographed by British ice dancer Christopher Dean who had famously skated to
12276-418: The last person leaving Seattle – Turn out the lights." Seattle remained the corporate headquarters of Boeing until 2001, when the company separated its headquarters from its major production facilities; the headquarters were moved to Chicago. The Seattle area is still home to Boeing's Renton narrow-body plant and Everett wide-body plant . The company's credit union for employees, BECU , remains based in
12408-425: The late 19th and early 20th centuries were almost entirely from Guangdong Province . The Seattle area is also home to a large Vietnamese population of more than 55,000 residents, as well as over 30,000 Somali immigrants. The Seattle-Tacoma area is also home to one of the largest Cambodian communities in the United States, numbering about 19,000 Cambodian Americans, and one of the largest Samoan communities in
12540-460: The late 20th and early 21st century, the city also was the origin of several rock bands, including Foo Fighters , Heart , and Jimi Hendrix , and the subgenre of grunge and its pioneering bands, including Alice in Chains , Nirvana , Pearl Jam , Soundgarden , and others. Archaeological excavations suggest that Native Americans have inhabited the Seattle area for at least 4,000 years. By
12672-490: The mainland U.S., with over 15,000 people having Samoan ancestry. Additionally, the Seattle area had the highest percentage of self-identified mixed-race people of any large metropolitan area in the United States, according to the 2000 United States Census Bureau. According to a 2012 HistoryLink study, Seattle's 98118 ZIP code (in the Columbia City neighborhood) was one of the most diverse ZIP Code Tabulation Areas in
12804-489: The manufacturer. She won the short program at the 1997 U.S. Nationals , but fell early in her free skate and as she later stated, "panicked" and made several more errors. She lost to Tara Lipinski , who came in first place in her free skate. Three weeks later, at the Champion Series Final , she again lost to Lipinski, who completed more successful jumps than Kwan in both the short program and free skate. At
12936-620: The miners in Alaska and the Yukon . Few of those working men found lasting wealth. However, it was Seattle's business of clothing the miners and feeding them salmon that panned out in the long run. Along with Seattle, other cities like Everett , Tacoma , Port Townsend , Bremerton , and Olympia , all in the Puget Sound region, became competitors for exchange, rather than mother lodes for extraction, of precious metals. The boom lasted into
13068-416: The move would help them avoid the fate of other defunct afternoon newspapers. This placed the Times in direct competition with its Joint Operating Agreement (JOA) partner, the morning Seattle Post-Intelligencer . Nine years later, the Post-Intelligencer became an online-only publication. The Times is one of the few remaining major city dailies in the United States independently operated and owned by
13200-428: The music with Jayne Torvill two decades before, and debuted a new short program, "Adagio" from Aram Khachaturian 's ballet Spartacus . At the U.S. Championships, she won her 9th title, tying the all-time record previously set by Maribel Vinson-Owen . Vinson-Owen had coached Frank Carroll , who in turn coached Kwan. At the 2005 World Championship, Kwan competed for the first time under the new judging system. She had
13332-648: The newspaper since 1896. The Seattle Times had a longstanding rivalry with the Seattle Post-Intelligencer until the latter ceased physical publication in 2009. The Seattle Times has received 11 Pulitzer Prizes and is widely renowned for its investigative journalism . The Seattle Times originated as the Seattle Press-Times , a four-page newspaper founded in 1891 with a daily circulation of 3,500, which Maine teacher and attorney Alden J. Blethen bought in 1896. Renamed
13464-400: The nine judges. As Kestnbaum put it, Kwan "skated with a transcendent floating quality that was becoming her trademark". Many people consider her performances at the 1998 U.S. Championships to be the high point of her career from both a technical and artistic standpoint. Both performances earned her fifteen perfect 6.0s and left two judges in tears. Kwan and Lipinski were co-favorites to win
13596-447: The nine judges. Kwan won the free skate, with Lipinski coming in second place and Slutskaya coming in third place. Kwan's jumps in her free skate were not as difficult as Lipinski and Slutskaya's, but her skating between her jumps was more complex and demonstrated "more polished refinement". Overall, Lipinski came in first place, Kwan came in second place, and Slutskaya came in fourth place behind Vanessa Gusmeroli of France. Going into
13728-473: The original landing location, reestablished their old land claim and called it "New York", but renamed "New York Alki" in April 1853, from a Chinook word meaning, roughly, "by and by" or "someday". For the next few years, New York Alki and Duwamps competed for dominance, but in time Alki was abandoned and its residents moved across the bay to join the rest of the settlers. David Swinson "Doc" Maynard , one of
13860-411: The population, Spanish was spoken by 4.5% of the population, speakers of other Indo-European languages made up 3.9%, and speakers of other languages made up 2.5%. Seattle's foreign-born population grew 40% between the 1990 and 2000 censuses. The Chinese population in the Seattle area has origins in mainland China , Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, and Taiwan . The earliest Chinese-Americans that came in
13992-586: The production of Boeing aircraft. The war dispersed the city's numerous Japanese-American businessmen due to the Japanese American internment . After the World War II, however, the local economy dipped. It rose again with Boeing's growing dominance in the commercial airliner market. Seattle celebrated its restored prosperity and made a bid for world recognition with the Century 21 Exposition ,
14124-445: The program evoked "images of a sensual, luxurious, exotic Middle East". Kwan's free skate consisted of seven successfully-executed triple jumps, including two triple Lutz jumps, one of which was done in combination and was debuted at Skate America and the other preceded by intricate steps. Other elements, such as the complexity of her steps that connected these elements and her spin positions' originality and variety, also contributed to
14256-560: The program's difficulty and artistry. Kestnbaum insists that Kwan's increased speed, the strong debut of her triple-triple jump, and her improved poise, precision, and posture "say more than her hairstyle or makeup about her new maturity as a skater". Kestnbaum states that Kwan's fellow competitors were better in how they executed flow across the ice, speed, and height of their jumps and that although Kwan exhibited more caution and control than her competitors, she skated with "new power and excitement compared to her younger self". Kestnbaum credits
14388-469: The qualifying round), Kwan had the sole responsibility to ensure two entries for the U.S. at the 1995 World Championships by placing in the top ten. Kwan had an unusual mistake in the short program and placed eleventh in that portion of the competition, but skated a strong freestyle program and finished eighth overall. At the 1995 U.S. Championships, Nicole Bobek won the gold medal, while Kwan again placed second after struggling with her lutz jump in both
14520-466: The same presentation scores, mostly 5.9s, although Lipinski won the free skate. Kwan ended up winning the silver medal, with the gold medal going to Lipinski and the bronze medal to Chen Lu . Lipinski and Chen both retired from competitive skating shortly after the Olympics, while Kwan went on to win the 1998 World Championships in Minneapolis. Kwan continued to compete as an eligible skater in
14652-463: The senior level for over a decade and is the most decorated figure skater in U.S. history. Known for her consistency and expressive artistry on ice, she is widely considered one of the greatest figure skaters of all time. For well over a decade, Kwan maintained her status not only as America's most popular figure skater but as one of America's most popular female athletes. Kwan landed numerous major endorsement deals, starred in multiple TV specials and
14784-586: The short program and free skate. At the 1995 World Championships , Kwan was in fifth place after the short program. She skated last in the free skate, giving the best performance of her career up to that point, completing all seven of her triple jumps, and "exuding joy and enthusiasm". She finished in third place in the free skate, behind Chen Lu from China, who came in first place, and French skater Surya Bonaly , who came in second. Kwan came in fourth place overall, behind American Nicole Bobeck , who came in third place overall, even though she came in fourth place in
14916-486: The start of the 2001 Skate America competition. In interviews, Kwan said she needed to "take responsibility" for her skating. Coachless, Kwan arrived at the 2002 U.S. Championships in Los Angeles amid the media's scrutiny over her separation with Carroll and her season's inconsistencies. Kwan won the competition with a revived "Rachmaninoff" short program and a new " Scheherazade " program for her free skate, securing
15048-461: The success of the Salome program to Kwan's intricate choreography, which featured emotional depth during the program's heavier moments and frequent reversals of direction that often unexpectedly led to spins or jumps. Kwan ended up winning Skate America in 1995. Kwan won both the U.S. Championships and the World Championships in 1996. In the later event, she edged out defending champion Chen Lu in
15180-471: The time the first European settlers arrived, the Duwamish people occupied at least 17 villages in the areas around Elliott Bay . The name for the modern city of Seattle in Lushootseed , dᶻidᶻəlal̓ič , meaning "little crossing-over place", comes from one of these villages, which was located at the present-day King Street Station . In May 1792, George Vancouver was the first European to visit
15312-470: The title, receiving first-place ordinals from all 9 judges in both the short program and free skate. At the 2001 World Championships, Kwan was second behind Slutskaya in the short program. Kwan won the title with her "Song of the Black Swan" free skate, executing 7 triples, including a triple toe loop/triple toe loop combination. Kwan and Carroll decided to end their coaching relationship two days before
15444-490: The title. Ultimately, she won the free skate with the best performance of the night, capturing 8 of the 9 first-place ordinals. At the 2000 World Championships, Kwan was again in third place after the short program, behind Maria Butyrskaya and Irina Slutskaya . In her free skate, Kwan landed seven triple jumps, including a triple toe loop/triple toe loop combination, and won that segment of the competition. Butyrskaya lost her commanding lead by finishing third behind Slutskaya in
15576-517: The triples (except for the Axel ) in her programs, including two lutzes (the most difficult jump after the Axel). She landed the triple toe-triple toe combination cleanly eleven times in competition, including at her 2000 and 2001 world championship victories. During the 2004–2005 season, she debuted a triple flip - double toe - double loop combination. Beginning in the 1996–1997 season, Kwan debuted
15708-502: Was "graceful and well-measured, filled with complex edging and unusual moves such as a sequence of spins in both directions". Kestnbaum called Kwan's free skate "tenative and slow" as compared to her performance at Nationals. Her jumps were more difficult and bigger than Lipinski's, but Kwan's were not as high and did not cover as much ice as her competitors' jumps. Lipinski's spins were faster than Kwan's. The judges awarded Lipinski with higher technical scores and gave both Lipinski and Kwan
15840-754: Was also changed by the construction of a seawall and the artificial Harbor Island (completed 1909) at the mouth of the city's industrial Duwamish Waterway , the terminus of the Green River . The highest point within city limits is at High Point in West Seattle, which is located near 35th Ave SW and SW Myrtle St. North of the city center, the Lake Washington Ship Canal connects Puget Sound to Lake Washington. It incorporates four natural bodies of water: Lake Union , Salmon Bay , Portage Bay , and Union Bay . Due to its location in
15972-478: Was founded in the immediate wake of the fire. The Panic of 1893 hit Seattle hard. The second and most dramatic boom resulted from the Klondike Gold Rush , which ended the depression that had begun with the Panic of 1893 . In a short time, Seattle became a major transportation center. On July 14, 1897, the S.S. Portland docked with its famed "ton of gold", and Seattle became the main transport and supply point for
16104-489: Was in the 8th grade. After graduation from Rim of the World High School in 1998, Kwan attended University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) for one year. In the fall of 2006, she transferred to the University of Denver (DU). Kwan mentioned that her attendance at DU marked a significant "turning point" in her life. She made the shift from having tutors since 7th grade and being a full-time skater to becoming
16236-458: Was inspired more to the music than to the narrative, which as Kestnbaum criticized, revealed Kwan as "a sexual being". Kestnbaum stated, however, that she found it difficult to construct a linear narrative about the seductive Salome, but that Kwan's moves "might better represent a young woman venturing confidently into the world, encountering loss and confusion, but ultimately finding peace and triumph". Kestnbaum also stated that Kwan's movements in
16368-462: Was instead given to 1993 national champion Nancy Kerrigan , who had been sidelined by an assault and battery (eventually connected to Harding's ex-husband Jeff Gillooly ) after a practice session at those championships. The 13-year-old Kwan went to Norway as an alternate but did not compete. Kerrigan and Harding both dropped out of eligible competition before the 1994 World Championships. Because of this (and teammate Nicole Bobek not making it out of
16500-404: Was known for her unrivaled consistency in delivering clean programs, as well as her strong skating skills and deep, quiet edges that have been described as "silent blades" that "barely whispered". She was also known for her musicality and ability to combine grace and artistry with athleticism. Although not of the greatest height nor explosive spring, Kwan, for most of her career, included all of
16632-730: Was mildly prosperous in the 1920s but was particularly hard hit in the Great Depression, experiencing some of the country's harshest labor strife in that era. Violence during the Maritime Strike of 1934 cost Seattle much of its maritime traffic, which was rerouted to the Port of Los Angeles . The Great Depression in Seattle affected many minority groups, one being the Asian Pacific Americans; they were subject to racism, loss of property, and failed claims of unemployment due to citizenship status. Seattle
16764-497: Was one of the major cities that benefited from programs such as the Works Progress Administration , CCC , Public Works Administration , and others. The workers, mostly men, built roads, parks, dams, schools, railroads, bridges, docks, and even historical and archival record sites and buildings. Seattle faced significant unemployment, loss of lumber and construction industries as Los Angeles prevailed as
16896-448: Was one of the whitest big cities in the country, although its proportion of white residents has been gradually declining. In 1960, whites constituted 91.6% of the city's population, while in 2010 they constituted 69.5%. According to the 2006–2008 American Community Survey , approximately 78.9% of residents over the age of five spoke only English at home. Those who spoke Asian languages other than Indo-European languages made up 10.2% of
17028-399: Was praised by fellow skaters Dick Button and Peggy Fleming during competitions, for its effortlessness and perfect split position in the air. Kwan has done multiple split falling leaves in immediate succession (without any turns or steps in between) while maintaining a split position on both. Another of her trademark moves is a Y-spin done consecutively on both feet. Kwan is also one of
17160-713: Was ten years old, her family could no longer afford a coach, but they were offered financial assistance by a fellow member of the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club that allowed them to train at the Ice Castle International Training Center in Lake Arrowhead, California . Kwan attended Soleado Elementary School in Palos Verdes, California , but left public school to be homeschooled in 1994, when she
17292-462: Was the subject of extensive media coverage. From 1997 to 2005, she was the U.S. Figure Skating Association 's top-paid skater in appearance fees and prize money, as well as one of the highest paid Winter Olympic athletes in endorsements. Kwan was also the highest-paid skater on the Champions on Ice tours. Following her figure skating career, Kwan became active in politics, particularly with
17424-465: Was well below her usual standard. On January 4, 2006, Kwan withdrew from the U.S. Figure Skating Championships with an abdominal injury incurred in December 2005. One week later, she filed a petition with the USFSA for a medical waiver to be placed on the 2006 Olympic figure skating team. On January 14, 2006, after the United States ladies' figure skating event, the USFSA's International Committee met and in
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