Inducted into the San Jose [California] Sports Hall of Fame in 1998. I might have come back and won, but thats not the way I wanted to win it.. Afterward, at a press conference, she did not take responsibility for her failure to win, instead blaming her coach of 10 years. BUDAPEST, Hungary -- Former world figure skating champion Debi Thomas married two weeks ago and kept the news a secret - even from her coach. Thomas started skating at the age of five. If that isnt an example of greatness, I dont know what is. The truth is, she said, she did not lose the gold medal that night. She is the 1986 World champion, the 1988 Olympic bronze medalist, and a two-time U.S. national champion. Sign Up Log In Messenger Facebook Lite Watch Places Games Marketplace Facebook Pay Oculus Portal Instagram Bulletin Local Fundraisers Services Voting Information Center Groups Groups Directory Locations Page Categories People Takin selfies with friends and new friends at #WOFLovedTour pic.twitter.com/kMCdLTxlUt, Debi Thomas (@Orthodeb) October 10, 2015, Posted by Debi Thomas onWednesday, November 2, 2016, In 1986, Thomas won the US National and World Championships, culminating in her being awarded Athlete of the Year from Wide World of Sports, the first female athlete to win while still attending college full-time, since Tenley Albright during the 1950s. There she would have a rematch against Witt, in what would be called the Battle of the Carmens, because both skated to the music of Bizets opera Carmen. Recapping the news, results and highlights from The Times team of reporters who covered the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games. No longer an amateur, Thomas said she might consult McGowan at times in future. View the profiles of people named Brian Vanden Hogen. After looking forward for so long to participating in the Olympics, she said that she was not able to enjoy it once she was there. A small donation would help us keep this available to all. Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter. Brian felt like it was his fault, she said. Ogden said he believes her fans can relate to her better than if she had won the gold medal. I wanted the Olympics to be the performance of my life, Thomas said. We would like to show you a description here but the site won't allow us. Ever since her second marriage, Debi Thomas has been residing in Terre Haute, Indiana and is a practicing physician in the same city. She also made Debi admit that there had been domestic violence in her relationship, and criticized her for feeling just frustrated and not sad or angry about having a bed-bug infestation and living in such conditions. And although she prepared with two college degrees to face the inevitable downfall that some young athletes meet in their adulthood, nothing went according to her plans. Graduated from Northwestern Medical School (1997), Graduated from Stanford University with a degree in engineering, On the cover of Time magazine (February 15, 1988). Figure Skating and a World Figure Skating Championship (1986). If she hit it, it would inspire her. She is the 1986 World champion, the 1988 Olympic bronze medalist, and a two-time U.S. national champion. However she did not get serious and begin taking lessons until she was nine years old. BRIAN VANDEN HOGEN DIRECTOR A proven leader who optimises operational performance through infrastructure and operational planning, capital works and facilities management, Brian excels in project delivery, operational performance and business contingency planning and solutions. During her medical career she had difficulty working with other doctors and went from clinic to clinic, never staying longer than one year. According to a February 2016 online article in The Washington Post, she had declared bankruptcy, let her medical license expire, and was living with her fianc in a trailer in rural southern Virginia (see Miscellaneous links). The first black skater to win a U.S. Who would not crack under that kind of treatment? Winning both of these titles in the same year earned Thomas the ABCs Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year award in 1986. During this time, she was studying a pre-med course at Stanford University, and it was considered unusual for a competitive figure skater to attend college at the same time because of the combined work load. For her personal life, it is known that Thomas married Brian Vander Hogen in 1988 but their marriage ended in divorce. In 1985, Debi came second at the U.S. He has also appeared in several independent films, including director Matthew Leutwyler's Road Kill, Dead and Breakfast, and Unearthed. After being detained, a psychological evaluation gave Debi a bipolar disorder diagnosis. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. People are so obsessed with material things, but I only care about knowledge., Debi Thomas and Jamie Looney on "Iyanla: Fix My Life" | Source: YouTube/OWN. WIKITREE PROTECTS MOST SENSITIVE INFORMATION BUT ONLY TO THE EXTENT STATED IN THE TERMS OF SERVICE AND PRIVACY POLICY. I wasnt mentally focused on hitting that program. Human Capital/Human Resources leader with strong experience as both an internal HR business partner and an external human capital consultant to senior leaders. Figure Skating championships, Isabeau Levito battles through the pressure to win U.S. figure skating title, Elliott: Mikaela Shiffrin has more wins than any woman in skiing. She said that he convinced her to drop out of Stanford last winter, move to Boulder, Colo., and devote all of her energy to preparing for the Olympics. Bud Greenspan's Favorite Stories of Winter Olympic Glory, The Official 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics Video, Herself / American Figure Skater Bronze Medalist. Vander Ark played bassist Ricki Bell, of the fictional band Blood Pollution. If ever the word champion fit a figure skater, it was Debi Thomas. I spoke up at the time and reminded her that Mr. Iacocca could afford to be mellow because as a white man his leadership was accepted readily, while in the case of Ms. Thomas, she would be considered a loser no matter what she managed to achieve in life, which was already plenty for several lifetimes. Figure Skating Championships in Denver, 1988 | Photo: GettyImages. As it turned out, after landing on both feet after the second triple jump, she did not care whether she recovered. CONTENT MAY BE COPYRIGHTED BY WIKITREE COMMUNITY MEMBERS. Are Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue Dating? 1. There has been little desire to do that on the part of advertisers. Her Calgary experience humanized her to a certain extent, he said. Press Esc to cancel. Her Bio: Spouse, Net Worth, Family, Siblings, Cancer. That same year, Thomas earned the top spot at the World Championships. All Rights Reserved. The couple has one son, Christopher Jules, who was born in 1997. The gold medal within her grasp, needing only good, not great, scores to win the long program at the Olympic Saddledome and finish ahead of defending champion Katarina Witt of East Germany and Elizabeth Manley of Canada, Thomas gave a disappointing performance and finished third. Your email address will not be published. S. he then won bronze in the world championship and retired from amateur skating. Geneagraphie - Families all over the world : Reigning Deposed Extinct. 1997), who plays defensive tackle for California. ''I've had too many things on my mind that I want to accomplish,'' she said. They dated for 1 year after getting together in 1986 and married on 15th Mar 1988. Relationship Status In terms of her personal life, Thomas married Brian Vander Hogen in 1988, however, their marriage ended in divorce. She is now engaged to Jamie Loonie and they have two children together, residing in southwest Virginia. On March 15, 1988 Debi Thomas married, Brian Vander Hogen in Boulder, Colorado. He said that she did not mean disrespect to Witt or Manley. I had several patients with severe vertigo and was looking to use some of the desensitization techniques that have since come into practice. In 1988, Thomas competed at the Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada. My husband will travel with me on parts of my upcoming skating exhibitions tour. Here I was at the Olympics, and I didnt feel like I was at the Olympics, she said. Debi Thomas is a figure skater and physician, and the first African American woman to win a medal in the Winter Olympics.Thomas was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, in 1967 and first started skating around the age of five.However she did not get serious and begin taking lessons until she was nine years old. Thats not what I needed to hear, she said. Facebook gives people the. That same year, Debi was named ABCs Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. She became the only woman to reach the top 22 of the Q score athlete standings, and was later inducted into the US Figure Skating Hall of Fame. I begged my mom to let me start skating.. Less forgivable was the fact that Thomas, whose greatest attribute besides her athleticism was her competitiveness, all but quit on the ice, going through the motions after it became apparent to her that she was not at her best. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); Type above and press Enter to search. Figure Skating Hall of Fame and, in 2002, served as a representative for the U.S. Olympic committee at the winter games in Salt Lake City,[2]. As the first black skater to achieve international, or even national, prominence, she was a champion, however reluctant, of minorities. She said that the relationship did not interfere with her Olympic effort. Later in the year, she was given the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Candace Award for Trailblazing. She first got married to Brian Vander Hogenbut got divorced, and later she married to Chris Bequette. McGowan, who now coaches at a rink outside Detroit, has been reluctant to respond to Thomas comments. Thomas went on to become a practicing orthopedic surgeon specializing in hip and knee replacement. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. Months before the Olympics, Thomas debated whether she should try it so soon into her routine. Debi Thomas at her home in Fountain Valley, July 6, 2006 | Photo: GettyImages. The song is on album Underneath, by The Verve Pipe. But you cant make someone do something they dont want to do. Thomas said she has to go back home and work hard for her exams, so she can enter medical school. The business side of skating really took its toll I think. By the time she sent her application to Stanford University, Debi had described herself as invincible., American figure skater (and future Olympian) Debi Thomas, Palo Alto, California, 1987 | Photo: GettyImages. In June 2005, she graduated from the Orthopedic Residency Program at Charles R. Drew University in Los Angeles. It sort of blew it for me., Elizabeth Manley, Katarina Witt and Debi Thomas at the 1988 Winter Olympic Games on February 27, 1988 at the Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada | Photo: GettyImages, Less than a month after the Olympics, Debi married Brian Vander Hogen, who was a student at the University of Colorado, on March 15, 1988. Debi Thomas on "Iyanla: Fix My Life" | Source: YouTube/OWN | Photo: GettyImages. Debi Thomas at the 1988 Winter Olympic Games on February 27, 1988 at the Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada | Photo: GettyImages. Debi Thomas at the U. S. Figure Skating Championships, Kansas City, Missouri, January 31, 1985 | Photo: GettyImages, My mother introduced me to many different things, and figure skating was one of them, Debi told ABC Sports. I didnt really care if I won or not. Debi married her second husband, sports attorney, Chris Bequette, in 1996, and they welcomed a son, Christopher, in 1997. She later married Chris Bequette, a sports attorney in 1996, and they had a son before divorcing. In fact, Thomas began a relationship shortly after arriving in Boulder with a University of Colorado student, Brian Vanden Hogen. She again blamed her coach, Alex McGowan, saying that he distracted her with his remarks before she went onto the ice. I went for the opening ceremony, then went back home for a week to train. She is the spokeswoman for their reading campaign. Even though she gave them a reason not to in Calgary, people still seem to like her. In 1986 she won the U.S. National ladies figure skating title, becoming the first African American woman to win a non-novice title. Yet, almost a year ago to this day, on the next-to-last night of the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada, Thomas, by her own admission, neither skated nor behaved like a champion. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. But she sacrificed whatever she had to assure that her daughter could pursue her goals. Her only deal is with MacMillan books. If you compare what I made before the Olympics and what Im making now, Im doing pretty well, Thomas said. The first African-American to win a medal at the Winter Olympics (1988). School was my way of getting away from things. The two met at the University of Colorado when Thomas moved there last year to train. BUDAPEST, Hungary -- Former world figure skating champion Debi Thomas married two weeks ago and kept the news a secret - even from her coach. Debi became the first black athlete to win any medal at the Winter Olympics, and she then won the World Professional Championships, and again two years after that. Debi and Jamies only source of income were the social security checks that he received after the death of his wife, and the little commissions they did working with a gold company called Karatbars. No other woman finished among the top 22. However, when the big day came at the Olympics, Debi didnt give her best, something that she admitted years later. Even though she said that she wanted to be known as a skater, not as a black skater, she could not deny that she felt responsibility as a role model. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Mikaela Shiffrin wins gold in giant slalom for seventh world title, Bass chief of staff says hell avoid Olympics issues for a year. Unfortunately, Thomas was bested again as Witt took the Gold, and Elizabeth Manley from Canada took the Silver. Brian Vanden Hogen girlfriend, wife list. According to a February 2016 online article in The Washington Post, she had declared bankruptcy, let her medical license expire, and was living with her fianc in a trailer in rural southern Virginia (see Miscellaneous links). She was also the first African American to earn the U.S. national titles in ladies singles figure skating. 'At the moment though, it's such a relief that it's all over, I don't have those butterflies in my stomach any more.'. She also opened a GoFundMe to raise money to start a YouTube show about realitynot a reality showwhere she wanted to shed light on the truths she and Jamie discovered about the global economic system. They began dating steady a year ago and married on her husband's 23rd birthday. In Colorado, all I had to do was skate and skate and skate. The couple resides in sout-west Virginia in what is rumoured to be a somewhat difficult relationship. Deborah Janine Thomas, daughter of McKinley Thomas and Janice Skelton, was born in 1967. She later married Chris Bequette, a sports attorney in 1996, and they had a son before divorcing. Everyone in your support group has to try and understand what youre going through. When asked if she had told her coach Alex McGowan, she replied: 'Why would I tell him?'. She is best known for being a former figure skater, who won the World Figure Skating Championship in 1986, the Olympic bronze medal in 1988, as well as the US National Championship twice. But those people dont understand who I am. If I had a test, I could only skate two hours a day instead of six. She said that while she should have been focusing on her routine, particularly the triple jump combination, he was telling her about the average scores given to Witt and Manley, advising her that there was room for her to score better, and encouraging her to win the gold medal for America. Inducted into the U.S. I lost that feeling. Strong ability to adapt to complex . Van der Meer was born in South West Africa as Dennis Douglas van der Merwe, the fourth child of Maria Dorothea van der Merwe (ne Hagen) and Isak Jacobus van der Merwe, a minister of religion. They have also lived in Denver, CO and Westminster, CO. Brian is related to Tracy Renee Szobody and Eric James Olson as well as 3 additional people. Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 2000. Debi Thomas is a part of US Black history. She won the senior title in the U.S nationals, and the gold medal in the world championship, describing that last victory as probably one of the best experiences that Ive ever had in skating.". She moved in with Jamie into his trailer, filed bankruptcy, and let her medical license expire. Less than a month after the Olympics, Debi married Brian Vander Hogen, who was a student at the University of Colorado, on March 15, 1988. Debi became a practicing orthopedic surgeon, and in 2006, she was offered an orthopedic fellowship at the Dorr Arthritis Institute in Los Angeles. 20072023 Blackpast.org. It was like being at Skate Canada again. She is an actress, known for Nutcracker on Ice (2009), American Gladiators (1989) and Win, Lose or Draw (1987). She was a champion of the underprivileged, which she did not mind so much because it allowed her mother to take some credit. Clipping found in Green Bay Press-Gazette in Green Bay, Wisconsin on Feb 20, 1998. debi thomas brian vanden hogen As of mid-2018, sources inform us of a net worth that is at $20,000, earned mostly through success in professional figure skating, and from her work as a physician, however, divorces and working in relatively poverty-stricken areas as a physician have limited the size of her bank account. Before beginning medical school, she said that she will take a year off from school to either start a family or skate professionally. In 1996, she married Chris Bequette, a sports attorney, and they had a son before divorcing. Bud Greenspan's Favorite Stories of Winter Olympic Glory, The Official 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics Video, Herself / American Figure Skater Bronze Medalist. Debi first stepped into a skating rink at age 5, curious about the art of skating after going with her mother to an ice show. ''I just want to get on with my life. The first African-American to win a medal at the Winter Olympics (1988). Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. And continued: I dont care about living in a trailer. Speaking about her personal life, Debi Thomas has been married twice. Thomas was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, in 1967 and first started skating around the age of five. She started seeing Jamie Looney, a single father of two who lived in a trailer and soon realized he had troubles with alcohol and prescription narcotics. Olympian mentality is rough because you just get frustrated with how everybody does everything, Debi explained of her behavior. That is so technically difficult that no other woman even attempted that in her long program. Thanks to her mother, Debi started training in figure skating, and she was inspired by the ice skating show Mr. Frick. Required fields are marked *. The main sum of this amount of money is coming from her professional career as a figure skater. S he then won bronze in the world championship and retired from amateur skating. The 8th Annual Black Achievement Awards (1987)as Herself, The Official 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics Video (1988)as Herself / American Figure Skater Bronze Medalist, Bud Greenspan's Favorite Stories of Winter Olympic Glory (2002)as Herself. She didnt complain about me when she won national championships in 1986 and 1988 or the world championship in 1986, he said. Debi Thomas on the Empowered Patient Series | Source: YouTube/AHIMAonDEMAND. I got sick of skating. Then, on the podium for the awards ceremony, she ignored the rules of sportsmanship, failing to acknowledge Witt, the gold medalist, and Manley, the silver medalist, even when they tried to congratulate her for winning the bronze medal. Vander Ark acted in the film Rock Star in 2001. In Denver, 1988 | Photo: GettyImages years later began a relationship shortly arriving! Married to Chris Bequette, a Sports attorney in 1996, and website in this browser for next... The orthopedic Residency Program at Charles R. Drew University in Los Angeles,. Bell, of the underprivileged, which she did not mind so much it. Deposed Extinct he has also appeared in several independent films, including Matthew! 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