Scott Hamilton (figure skater)

Infobox Figure skater
title= Scott Hamilton


caption=
country= USA
dateofbirth= birth date and age|1958|8|28
residence=
height=
formercoach= Don Laws, Carlo Fassi, Pierre Brunet
choreographer=
formerchoreographer=
skating club= Philadelphia SC & HS
retired= 1984

Scott Scovell Hamilton (born August 28, 1958 in Toledo, Ohio) is an American figure skater and Olympic gold medalist known for his originality and engaging on-ice personalities. He won four consecutive U.S. championships (1981-1984), four consecutive World Championships (1981-1984) and the 1984 Olympics.

Childhood

Hamilton was adopted at the age of six weeks by Ernest S. Hamilton and Dorothy McIntosh of Bowling Green, Ohio. He has two siblings, older sister Susan and younger brother Steven (also adopted). He attended Kenwood Elementary School.When Scott was two years old he contracted a mysterious illness that caused him to stop growing. After numerous tests and several wrong diagnoses (including a diagnosis of cystic fibrosis that gave him just six months to live), the disease began to correct itself. His family physician sent him to Boston Children's hospital to see a Dr. Shwachman. Sources are unable to verify if he was actually diagnosed by Dr. Shwachman as having Shwachman-Diamond syndrome. It is said that a special diet and exercise cured the problem. However, he grew to only 5-foot-2½ and he weighed only 108 pounds during his peak skating years.

At age 13 he began training with Pierre Brunet, a former Olympic champion. In 1976, however, he was almost forced to quit skating because the cost of training was too high, and he enrolled in college. However, Helen and Frank McLoraine stepped in to provide financial support for Hamilton to continue his training.

Career

In 1980 Hamilton finished third in the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, earning him a place on the U.S. Olympic team. He finished in fifth place at the 1980 Winter Olympics, where he also had the honor of carrying the American flag in the opening ceremony. His breakthrough performance was in the 1981 U.S. Championships. He performed flawlessly and the audience was at a standing ovation several seconds before the end of the performance. He never lost a competition again. In 1981 he won gold in the World Figure Skating Championships. He won gold again in 1982 and 1983 at the U.S. and World Championships, and won the gold medal at the 1984 Winter Olympics. He won that year's World Championships and then turned professional in April 1984.

. He co-founded, co-produced and performed in Stars on Ice for fifteen years before retiring from the tour in 2001 (though he still returns for occasional guest performances).

He has been awarded numerous skating honors, including being the first solo male figure skater to be awarded the Jacques Farvat Award (in 1988). In 1990 he was inducted into the United States Olympic Hall of Fame.

Hamilton was a skating commentator for CBS television for many years, beginning in 1985. He has also worked for NBC television. In 2006 he was the host of the FOX television program "Skating with Celebrities." He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Special Olympics International.

Competitive highlights

Personal

In 1990, as the Make-A-Wish Foundation honored its 10th birthday, Scott Hamilton was recognized as the Foundation's first ever "Celebrity Wish Granter of the Year."In 1997 Hamilton had a much-publicized battle with testicular cancer. He made a return to skating after his treatment and his story was featured in magazines and on television. It was announced on November 122004 that Hamilton had a benign brain tumor, which was treated at the Cleveland Clinic. He has also helped to benefit St. Jude's Children's Hospital and the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation where he is a honorary board member. [ [http://www.multiplemyeloma.org/foundation/1.05.php MMRF Honorary Board] ]

On November 142002 he married Tracie Robinson, a nutritionist. The couple have two sons, Aidan McIntosh Hamilton (born in 2003) and Maxx Hamilton (born in 2008). [ [http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20172901,00.html Ice Skater Scott Hamilton & His Wife Have a Boy - Babies, Scott Hamilton : People.com] ] The family resides in Nashville, Tennessee.

Quotes

* "The only disability in life is a bad attitude."cite web|accessdate=2007-12-25
url=http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/s/scott_hamilton.html
title= Scott Hamilton Quotes
publisher=BrainyQuotes]

Television

* Scott Hamilton was featured in "The Fairly OddParents" Olympic special as a host for the Fairy Olympics (under the impression he was having a dream).
* Hamilton did the voice of a dog dancing commentator on the King of the Hill episode "Dances with Dogs".
* Hamilton appeared on the August 26, 2008 episode of Wanna Bet?. He finished 2nd, losing to Bill Engvall.

References

*

External links

*imdb name | id = 0358156 | name = Scott Hamilton
* [http://www.nbcolympics.com/commentator/5088465/detail.html NBCOlympics.com Bio]
* [http://www.usolympicteam.com/26_596.htm Scott Hamilton's U.S. Olympic Team bio] with photo gallery

Persondata
NAME=Hamilton, Scott
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=United States figure skater
DATE OF BIRTH=August 28, 1958
PLACE OF BIRTH=Toledo, Ohio
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=