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Submitted by Alan Jacobsen

Over the past 43 years I have followed the careers of many skaters, both male and female. In my opinion Sarah is the most refreshing and elegant young lady to grace the ice since such legends as Janet Lynn and Dorothy Hamill. Her application of her 10 years of ballet training, into most of her presentations, is what places her above and beyond all the rest. I thought Dick Button, when commenting on Sarah during her exhibition number at U.S. Nationals, stated it perfectly when he said " Well, you know, the nice thing about Sarah Hughes is that she has got a good combination of everything in this sport......She's athletic, she's musical, she's got timing, she's also got presence on the ice, and SHE'S GOT A VERY ELEGANT AND GENTLE KIND OF QUALITY" (emphasis added).

    I like that last part best because it, also, tells us something about, Sarah, the person not just, Sarah, the skater and serves to point out what could be easily called an anomaly. On the one hand you have, Sarah, the bubbly, exuberant teen-ager, who goes to a regular school and does some of the same things that ordinary teen-age girls do and on the other hand you have, Sarah, the lady who seems as though she matures four or five years the instant that she steps on to the ice. I find her, very much, a part of what is still right and good about young people and, indeed, about America itself.

    Back to discussing strictly Sarah's skating I'm not saying that she's perfect in every element of a performance. She still need to work on spotting some of her spins. Sometimes they tend to travel a bit. And I agree with Peggy Flemming when she says that Sarah need to hold some of her elements, such as her spirals, a little longer and give each move equal importance. These things will come in time so those of us who love her skating must not be impatient.

    In the meantime how grand it will be to enjoy each and everyone of her efforts and triumphs, as they unfold over the next few years, and I, for one, will be applauding jubilantly if I can see her standing upon the top step of the podium at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.

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