Olympian Nancy Kerrigan broke down in tears during a live interview over the deaths of 14 members of the U.S. figure skating community, including six who Kerrigan knew from the Skating Club of Boston.
Among the 67 lives lost in the tragic collision between an Army helicopter and American Eagle Flight No. 5342 near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night, six were members of the Skating Club of Boston. The victims included skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, along with their mothers, Jin Han and Christine Lane.
Also among those lost were esteemed coaches Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova. The group was returning to Boston via Washington after taking part in a national development camp in Wichita, Kansas.
A visibly shaken Kerrigan said:
"I told them, I have to be around you guys. I needed the community, the support. It's okay to ask for help and to be there for one another."
“I’m unsure how to process it. Which is why I’m here. I didn’t feel like it was right to be home and doing interviews for this.”
“We’ve been through tragedies before as Americans, as people, and we are strong. And I guess it’s how we respond to it, and so my response is to be with people I care about and I love, and I needed support. … I think it’s a shock.”
Kerrigan recognized the crash as a devastating tragedy for “anyone that was on that plane, not just the skaters, because it’s just such a tragic event.” However, she admitted feeling “an even bigger blow” upon realizing that she personally knew some of the victims.
She said:
“We just wish them well and the families — the courage and the strength to make the next steps. I don’t know how — you look at people who go through tragedies, and you wonder how they do it. I don’t know, but we’re so strong.”
You can hear what she said in the video below.
- YouTubewww.youtube.com
Many were touched by Kerrigan's words and also offered their condolences to the families of the crash victims.
Kerrigan, who competed for The Skating Club of Boston throughout her career, is a two-time Olympic medalist, winning bronze at the 1992 Albertville Games and silver at the 1994 Lillehammer Games.
Kerrigan also acknowledged that "the skating community has been through tragedy before," a reference to the 1961 crash of Sabena Flight 548.
That plane crash claimed the lives of all 18 members of the U.S. figure skating team as they traveled to the world championships in Prague. In response, U.S. Figure Skating, the sport’s governing body, created a memorial fund to support the training expenses of aspiring skaters.
