Michelle Kwan is an American figure skater and media celebrity who has won nine U.S. championships, five world championships, and two Olympic medals. She has remained competitive 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 to be one of the greatest figure skaters of all time despite having never won an Olympic gold medal.

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• At 13, I was fearless. I looked at everything so positive. When you're older and been through it all, you know how bad it can get. There is a fear of failing.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Kwan_Michelle.html

• As a child, I'd wonder, 'When I die, will people still remember me 1,000 years later?' And without the gold medal ... Well, the Olympics are the ultimate achievement in my sport. At times I think, 'Why should I push myself all those long hours in the rink?' But then I think, 'How will I ever know how good I could have been?' I want to be the Michael Jordan of my sport.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Kwan_Michelle.html

[Responding to her 9th US Championships title]

• It's incredible. Nine? Wow. I just remember winning my first one, getting the medal and the plate, the pin with the diamond for first place. My ninth title, I have no answer for that because I never thought it would be possible.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Kwan_Michelle.html

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• I don't believe I can be at 100%, and I respect the Olympics too much.
  • During a press conference announcing her withdrawal from the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.
• "People ask me how it feels to lose the gold. I tell them, I didn't lose the gold; I won the silver."
  • Interview with Bob Costas following her second place finish at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan