Sarah Kawahara (born September 18, 1954) is a Canadian

figure skater Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, with its introduction occurring at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic d ...

and

choreographer Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...

who has won two

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

Personal life

Born September 18, 1954 in Vancouver, Canada, Kawahara is of

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

ancestry and lives in California. Her father is Hideo Kawahara (1920/1921-2011). She married actor

Jamie Alcroft Jamie Alcroft (born January 18, 1949) is an American comedian and voice actor known for his voice-over work in movies, TV shows and video games and was half of the comedy duo Mack & Jamie. Biography Early life and education Alcroft is of Englis ...

. They have three children together: Alysse Alcroft, Hayley Kiyoko Alcroft and Thatcher Alcroft.

Career

Kawahara was coached by Osborne Colson. She joined the

Ice Capades The Ice Capades were traveling entertainment shows featuring theatrical ice skating performances. Shows often featured former Winter Olympic Games, Olympic and United States Figure Skating Championships, US National Champion figure skating, figur ...

at age 17 and skated with them for seven years. In 1997, she became the first skater to win the Best Choreography Emmy Award, receiving the award for Scott Hamilton Upside Down. She won her second Emmy in 2002 for choreographing the opening and closing ceremonies of the

2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 (; Gosiute dialect, Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; ; Shoshoni language, Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), were an international wi ...

. Kawahara has choreographed for numerous competitive skaters, including synchronized skaters. She was a coach and choreographer for the film ''

I, Tonya ''I, Tonya'' is a 2017 American biographical sports film directed by Craig Gillespie and written by Steven Rogers. It follows the life and career of American figure skater Tonya Harding and her connection to the 1994 assault on her rival Nan ...

'' and for the television series ''

Spinning Out ''Spinning Out'' is an American drama television series, created by Samantha Stratton, that premiered on Netflix on January 1, 2020. In February 2020, the series was canceled after one season. The series stars Kaya Scodelario as Kat Baker, a yo ...

''.

Work as a choreographer

Films

* ''

Blades of Glory ''Blades of Glory'' is a 2007 American sports comedy film directed by Will Speck and Josh Gordon, written by Jeff Cox, Craig Cox, John Altschuler and Dave Krinsky. It stars Will Ferrell and Jon Heder as a mismatched pair of banned figure s ...

'' * '' Go Figure'' * ''

TV specials

*''An Evening on Ice'' *''Concert on Ice'' * ''Nancy Kerrigan, Special Dreams on Ice'' * Reflections on Ice: Michelle Kwan skates to the Music of Mulan * Michelle Kwan skates to Disney's Greatest Hits (2000) * Michelle Kwan, Princesses on Ice * Scott Hamilton and Friends * Scott Hamilton Upside Down

Touring shows

* ''The Wizard of Oz on Ice'' * ''The Spirit of Pocohontas'' * Hercules on Ice * Anastasia on Ice * Holiday on Ice *

Stars on Ice Stars on Ice is a touring figure skating show produced by IMG. It was co-founded in 1986 by Bob Kain, IMG executive, and Scott Hamilton, the 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist in men's figure skating. The production is a theatrical show featuring a ...

Champions on Ice Champions on Ice was a touring ice show in the United States. The show featured a large cast of both professional and Olympic-eligible figure skaters along with novelty acts such as skating acrobats. The shows were focused primarily on solo pe ...

Disney on Ice Walt Disney's World on Ice is a series of touring ice shows produced by Feld Entertainment's Ice Follies And Holiday on Ice, Inc. division under agreement with The Walt Disney Company. Aimed primarily at children, the shows feature figure ska ...

Skaters

* Scott Hamilton *

Kurt Browning Kurt Browning (born June 18, 1966) is a Canadian figure skater, choreographer and commentator. He is the first skater to land a ratified quadruple jump in competition. He is a four-time World Champion and Canadian national champion. He comp ...

Ilia Kulik Ilya Alexandrovich Kulik (; born 23 May 1977) is a Russian figure skater. He is the 1998 Olympic Champion, the 1995 European Champion, the 1997–1998 Grand Prix Final champion, and the 1995 World Junior champion. Career Kulik began skating ...

Michelle Kwan Michelle Wingshan Kwan (born July 7, 1980) is a retired American competitive figure skating, figure skater and diplomat who served as List of ambassadors of the United States to Belize, United States Ambassador to Belize from 2022 to 2025. In ...

Kristi Yamaguchi Kristine Tsuya Yamaguchi (born July 12, 1971) is an American former competitive figure skater, author and philanthropist. A former competitor in women's singles, Yamaguchi is the Figure skating at the 1992 Winter Olympics, 1992 Olympic champion, ...

Dorothy Hamill Dorothy Stuart Hamill (born July 26, 1956) is a retired American figure skater. She is the 1976 Olympic champion and 1976 World champion in ladies' singles. Early life Hamill was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Chalmers and Carol Hamill. Her fat ...

Robin Cousins Robin John Cousins MBE (born 17 August 1957) is a British former competitive figure skater who was BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1980. He was the 1980 Olympic champion, the 1980 European champion, a three-time World medalist (1978– ...

Charlie Tickner Charles Frederick Tickner (born November 13, 1953, in Lafayette, California) is an American figure skater. Tickner won the gold medal at the 1978 World Figure Skating Championships, skating to music from Georges Bizet's ''Carmen'' and Jules Mass ...

John Curry John Anthony Curry, (9 September 1949 – 15 April 1994) was a British figure skater. He was the 1976 European, World and Olympic Champion. He was noted for combining ballet and modern dance influences into his skating. Early life Curry was ...

Christopher Bowman Christopher Nicol Bowman (March 30, 1967 – January 10, 2008) was an American figure skater. He was a two-time World medalist (silver in 1989, bronze in 1990), the 1983 World Junior champion, and a two-time U.S. national champion. He compete ...

Surya Bonaly Surya Varuna Claudine Bonaly (born 15 December 1973 in Nice, France) is a French retired figure skater and coach. She is a three-time World silver medalist (1993–1995), a five-time European champion (1991–1995), the 1991 World Junior Champ ...

* Chen Lu *

Nancy Kerrigan Nancy Ann Kerrigan (born October 13, 1969) is an American former figure skating, figure skater. She won bronze medals at the 1991 World Figure Skating Championships, 1991 World Championships and the Figure skating at the 1992 Winter Olympics, 19 ...

Tai Babilonia Tai Reina Babilonia (born September 22, 1960) 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 ...

/ Randy Gardner *

Ekaterina Gordeeva Ekaterina "Katia" Alexandrovna Gordeeva (; born 28 May 1971) is a Soviet and Russian figure skater. With her late husband Sergei Grinkov, she is the 1988 and 1994 Olympic Champion, a four-time World Champion (1986, 1987, 1989, 1990), a th ...

Sergei Grinkov Sergei Mikhailovich Grinkov (; 4 February 1967 – 20 November 1995) was a Soviet and Russian pair skater. Together with his wife Ekaterina Gordeeva, he was the 1988 and 1994 Olympic Champion and a four-time World Champion (1986, 1987, 1989, ...

Oksana Baiul Oksana Serhiyivna Baiul-Farina (; born November 16, 1977) is a Ukrainian retired competitive figure skater. She is the 1993 world champion and the 1994 Olympic champion in ladies' singles. Baiul is the first Olympic Champion from Ukraine t ...

Marina Klimova Marina Vladimirovna Klimova (; born 28 June 1966) is a former competitive ice dancer who competed for the Soviet Union and the Unified Team. With skating partner and husband Sergei Ponomarenko, she is the 1992 Olympic champion, the 1988 ...

Sergei Ponomarenko Sergei Vladilenovich Ponomarenko (; born October 6, 1960) is a Russian former competitive ice dancer who competed for the Soviet Union and the Unified team. With skating partner and wife Marina Klimova, he is the 1992 Olympic champion ...

* Victor Petrenko *

Pang Qing Pang Qing (; born December 24, 1979, in Harbin, Heilongjiang) is a Chinese retired pair skater. With her husband Tong Jian, she is the 2010 Olympic silver medalist, the 2006 and 2010 World Champion, a five-time Four Continents champion (20 ...

Tong Jian Tong Jian (; born August 15, 1979, in Harbin, Heilongjiang) is a Chinese retired pair skater. With his wife Pang Qing, he is the 2010 Olympic silver medalist, 2006 and 2010 World Champion, a five-time Four Continents champion (2002, 2004, ...

Beatrisa Liang Beatrisa "Bebe" Liang (born March 31, 1988) is an American retired figure skater. She is the 2006 Four Continents bronze medalist, 2006 Nebelhorn Trophy champion, and 2007 U.S. national pewter medalist. Career Liang was coached by Tiffany C ...

Miami University Synchronized Skating Team The Miami University Synchronized Skating Team is a senior-level synchronized skating team from the United States. Their homeclub is Miami University, in Oxford, Ohio. They were the U.S. national champions in 1999, 2006 and 2009. They became the ...

in their World Silver Medal (2007) routine.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kawahara, Sarah Canadian female figure skaters Figure skating choreographers Primetime Emmy Award winners Place of birth missing (living people) Living people Canadian sportspeople of Japanese descent Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States 1954 births 20th-century Canadian sportswomen