She turned out to be a natural figure skater, able to jump and spin easily. By the age of seven Oksana was winning local competitions.
Incredible tragedy
Baiul has had a very hard life. Her father disappeared when she was only two years old. Her grandmother, who helped raise her, died in 1987 when Baiul was eight, and her grandfather died in 1988. Her mother, Marina, was a French teacher who died in 1991 of cancer when Baiul was just 13. It is still very painful for her to talk about her mother because the two were very close. Skating helped her accept the loss. "It helps me forget," she told People magazine. "It helps me get over the pain." Baiul slept for a short time on a cot at the skating rink after her mother died, cooking her food on a hot-plate.
Luck changes
Baiul suffered another loss when her coach of nine years, Stanislav Koretek, left Ukraine in 1992 to work at the Toronto Skating, Curling and Cricket Club in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. "He just bought a ticket and left," Baiul recalled in Sports Illustrated. "He called me afterward to tell me, and I understand his position.
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