Scott Hamilton, an Olympic gold medalist figure skater, struggled to hold back tears while discussing the “unthinkable” loss for the skating community in the fatal mid-air crash over Washington, D.C.
The collision between a Black Hawk helicopter and jetliner Wednesday night killed 67 people, and 14 of them were from the skating community. This included two teen skaters and their mothers, as well as two former world champions, who were coaches.
In a Friday morning interview on the Today show, Hamilton, 66, became emotional as he spoke about the tragic incident.
“It’s been overwhelming,” he said. “My phone has just blown up. It’s beyond the skating community. So many people see this tragedy and the loss of these brilliant young skaters that have poured their lives into building an identity in our sport.”
Hamilton, who is seen as the voice of the sport as a commentator, said he was in Wichita, Kansas, for the U.S. skating world championships. The skaters were returning from a development camp in Kansas that coincided with the competition.
“I got to see so many of these skaters and coaches, and it’s like a reunion every time we go,” he said. “For this to happen just days after those championships were over, it’s just devastating, shocking. It just doesn’t make any sense.”
“I can’t wrap my head around the last 36 hours,” Hamilton added, his voice cracking as tears welled in his eyes. “It’s just been devastating. The loss is just beyond description. My heart is shattered.”
Two teenaged skaters who died in the crash, Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, had been described as the “future of the sport” by an ice skating official. They were members of the Skating Club of Boston.
Their coaches, Russian skating legends Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, also died in the crash. The married couple won a world championship together in pairs skating in 1994.
Hamilton won an Olympic gold for the United States in ice skating in 1984. Between 1981 and 1984, he won four straight U.S. championships.
Since retiring from the sport, he has remained one of its highest profile advocates in America.
