Tearful Nancy Kerrigan Speaks About D.C. Crash That Killed Figure Skaters
Olympic figure skater Nancy Kerrigan tearfully offered condolences to the members of her former skating club who lost their lives in D.C. plane crash, calling the loss a 'blow.'
'I feel for the athletes, the skaters and their families, but [also] anyone who was on that plane,' Kerrigan said during a press conference at the Skating Club of Boston's rink Thursday.
Skating Club of Boston CEO Doug Zeghibe said Thursday that skaters Jinna Han, Spencer Lane and their mothers died in the crash, as well as coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov. Shishkova and Naumov competed in the 1994 Olympics, where Kerrigan won a silver medal.
'When you know so many people on the plane, it's an even bigger blow,' Kerrigan said.
Fourteen members of the figure skating community died when an Army helicopter crashed into American Airlines flight Wednesday night near Reagan International Airport.
The flight was coming from Wichita, Kansas, where the U.S. figure skating championships were held.
'Anytime I've been able to be here and watch them grow, the kids care,' Kerrigan said. 'They really work hard. Their parents work hard to be here.'
Kerrigan said she didn't know Shishkova and Naumov well, but they were 'always welcoming and happy to see one another.'
'To think, to walk in here and not see that would be very strange for everybody that comes here,' she said.
Kerrigan's one-time figure skating rival Tonya Harding also expressed condolences to the victims and their families.
Zeghibe recalled the deadly 1961 plane crash that killed 18 U.S. figure skaters on their way to the world championships.
'Almost half of everyone aboard that plane were from [the Skating Club],' Zeghibe said. 'It had long-reaching implications for the Skating Club and for the sport in this country, because when you lose coaches like this, you lose the future of the sport, as well.'
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