sport.wikisort.org - Athlete

Tai Reina Babilonia (born September 22, 1959) is an American former pair skater. Together with Randy Gardner, she won the 1979 World Figure Skating Championships and five U.S. Figure Skating Championships (1976–1980). The pair qualified for the 1976 and 1980 Winter Olympics.[1]

Tai Babilonia
Babilonia in 1979
Personal information
Full name	Tai Reina Babilonia
Country represented	United States
Born	(1959-09-22) September 22, 1959 (age 63) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height	1.59 m (5 ft 3 in)
Former partner	Randy Gardner
Former coach	John Nicks
Skating club	Los Angeles FSC
Retired	1980
Medal record Representing United States Pairs' figure skating World Championships 1979 Vienna Pairs 1978 Ottawa Pairs 1977 Tokyo Pairs

Career

Babilonia and Gardner began skating together at eight and ten years old when skating coach Mabel Fairbanks needed a young pair team for a skating show in Culver City, California.[2] Their coach from 1971 until 1980 was John Nicks. The pair became five-time U.S. national champions and won the gold medal at the 1979 World Championships.[3][4] They were medal favorites at the 1980 Winter Olympics but were forced to withdraw due to an injury to Gardner.[1][2][5]

Babilonia was the first figure skater of partial African American descent to compete for the United States at Olympics and win world titles. She is also part Filipino on her father's side and part Native American.[1][6]

In 1990, a biographical film of her rise to fame was aired on television, On Thin Ice: The Tai Babilonia Story.[7]

Babilonia appeared in the 2006 Fox television program Skating with Celebrities, partnered with Olympic decathlon gold medalist Bruce Jenner.

Babilonia and Gardner also appeared on an episode of Hart to Hart "Silent Dance" (season 5 episode 16) in 1984.

Personal

Babilonia was inspired at the age of six to begin ice skating after watching Peggy Fleming on television. Babilonia has a son named Scout with former husband Cary Butler.[8] She was engaged in 2005 to actor and comedian David Brenner, but they never married before their breakup in 2011.

Competitive highlights

(with Gardner)

Event	1973–74	1974–75	1975–76	1976–77	1977–78	1978–79	1979–80
Winter Olympic Games			5th				WD
World Championships	10th	10th	5th	3rd	3rd	1st
U.S. Championships	2nd	2nd	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st
Nebelhorn Trophy	1st
Coupe des Alpes	3rd
WD = Withdrew

References

External links

• "Skate Canada Results Book - Volume 1 - 1896 - 1973" (PDF). Skate Canada. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 22, 2010.
• "Skate Canada Results Book - Volume 2 - 1974 - current" (PDF). Skate Canada. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2009.

На других языках

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[de] Tai Babilonia

Tai Reina Babilonia (* 22. September 1960 in Los Angeles) ist eine ehemalige US-amerikanische Eiskunstläuferin, die im Paarlauf startete.

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- [en] Tai Babilonia

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[ru] Бабилония, Тай

Тай Рейна Бабилония (англ. Tai Reina Babilonia; 22 сентября 1960 года в Лос-Анджелесе, Калифорния, США) — американская фигуристка выступавшая в парном катании. В паре с Рэнди Гарднером — пятикратная чемпионка США (1976 — 1980) и чемпионка мира (1979).

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