No relation.
Figure skater Elizabeth Kwon knows she'll be clarifying the Kwan/Kwon association for a long time, but she doesn't mind. The spritely 12-year-old understands that to be compared to Michelle Kwan -- skating's reigning national and world champion and Olympic silver medalist -- is a good thing."I look up to Michelle Kwan, because I really like the way she skates and her consistency," Kwon told The Deseret News from her home in Virginia, just days before coming to Salt Lake City for the 1999 State Farm U.S. Championships.
But the similarity in their names isn't the only thing that binds the two together. Kwon, with her infectious giggle and endearing modesty, is skating her way to the top of her sport. Having won the novice division at nationals last year, she makes her debut in the junior ladies division this week.
Her biography released through the United States Figure Skating Association states: "In 10 years Kwon would like to be a two-time Olympic champion."
"Well, that too," Kwon giggles, nervously. But her approach to skating is remarkably cerebral. Balanced, even.
"At the end of my skating, I wouldn't want to regret anything I did or what I took pride to do. I want to say I really enjoyed skating for most of my life and didn't regret it."
Examining the roster of athletes competing in her division, Kwon quickly rattles off names of skaters she says will provide stiff competition. She names Sara Wheat, who finished ahead of her at the Eastern Sectional Championships; Ann Patrice McDonough, who placed first at the Midwestern Sectionals; and Sasha Cohen, winner of the Pacific Coast Sectionals.
"I know it will be pretty competitive. But it's really exciting, too, because it's my first year in juniors. I just want to compete well and have fun."
Nationals this year is also important to Kwon because she'll be able to come to Salt Lake City, the site of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. She's set her sights firmly on Utah, and on the path that will bring her back as an Olympic team member.
"It's going to be hard work, in competition and during training sessions. I just have to keep concentrating at this nationals and next year when I move up to seniors. Just to make it to 2002 would be great."
Kwon says she is working on all the aspects of her sport. She already has the double axel, triple toe loop and triple salchow in her jump arsenal. Next year, she hopes to add the triple loop, lutz, and flip. For fun, she practices the triple axel.
Artistry, too, is an integral part of the package. Working with her coach, Nick Purna, and her choreographer, Brian Wright, Kwon says she's coming to Salt Lake City with two new programs. Both are full of firsts: her short program is her first try at a tango, with intricate footwork sequences and more challenging jumps. Her long program is a venture into storytelling, with Kwon playing the part of a doll that comes to life.
At the end of the day, though, Kwon reiterates her desire to be "a normal kid." She still attends public school, goes shopping at the mall and to movies with friends and lives at home with her family. She seems to know, even at 12, that skating is a sport, an extension of playtime.
She sounds, eerily so, like her homophonious hero Michelle Kwan.
"Skating is just something I love to do. I think that's important, because in skating most people leave out their childhoods. My parents don't want me to do that and regret it in the end."