Only five-feet tall and 93 pounds, Kristi Yamaguchi was a giant in 1992 when she won what many consider the biggest prize of the Olympic Winter Games in Albertville, France--the gold medal in women's figure skating. She put on a spectacular, near-perfect performance that reminded experts of earlier champions--Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, and Katarina Witt. According to Sports Illustrated, Yamaguchi "lands her jumps so softly it seems as if she is skating in her slippers." Even though she's small, she's still tough. "She has character. She has guts," Witt told Newsday. "You have to have guts to win the Olympics."

Kristi Tsuya Yamaguchi was born July 12, 1971, in Hayward, California. Although Yamaguchi was born and raised in California, fans and reporters often think she is a native of Japan. "Not long ago, a photographer said to me `You speak nice English,'" Yamaguchi told the Miami Herald. "I said, `I should...