Surya Bonaly

About

Retired French figure skater and Olympian known for being a three-time World silver medalist, a five-time European champion, the 1991 World Junior Champion, and a nine-time French national champion. She is also known for her impressive flips and backflips she was able to perform. She retired in 1998 to become a skating coach.

Before Fame

She began ice skating at age two. She also began learning gymnastics, tumbling, diving, and other sports. She began concentrating on her ice skating and in 1989 she made her debut at the European and World Championships.

Trivia

 She is the only Olympic figure skater to land a backflip on one blade. She performed this stunt at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. Her name means "the sun" in Sanskrit.

Family Life

She was born in Nice, France. She was adopted by the Bonaly family as a baby. Her adoptive parents were both very physically active and encouraged her to get involved in multiple sports.

Associated With

She was the first woman to attempt a quadruple jump in Olympic figure skating until Anna Shcherbakova was able to accomplish it nearly 30 years later.