Bonnie Kathleen Blair (born March 18, 1964) is a retired American speed skater. She is one of the top skaters of her era, and one of the most decorated athletes in Olympic history. Blair competed for the United States in four Olympics, winning five gold medals and one bronze medal. Blair made her Olympic debut in Sarajevo in 1984 where she finished eighth in the 500 meters. At the time, Blair trained in both short-track and long-track speed skating. She won the 1986 short-track world championship. Blair returned to the Olympics in 1988 competing in long-track at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary. There she won her first Olympic gold medal in the 500 meters and a bronze medal in the 1,000 meter. Blair won two gold medals in the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville and her final two Olympic gold medals at the 1994 Lillehammer games. Blair continued competing through 1995 when the World Championships were held in Milwaukee, finally retiring in March 1995. After retiring from speed skating, Blair became a motivational speaker. She has been inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame, the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame, and the United States Olympic Hall of Fame. Early life and education Blair was born in Cornwall, New York to Charlie and Eleanor Blair. She was the youngest of six children. Her godmother is Canadian speed skater Cathy Priestner. The family moved to Champaign, Illinois when Bonnie was a toddler. Already a hobby for her siblings, Bonnie first tried skating at age two. She participated in her first skating meet at age 4. Early on, Blair competed in "pack style," or short track speed skating, where several skaters race on the ice at once. At age 7, Blair won her age group at the Illinois Speed Skating Championship. She attended Jefferson Middle School and later Centennial High School in Champaign In addition to skating, Blair was also a cheer leader and a member of the student council. It wasn't until 1979 when Olympic medalist Cathy Priestner Faminow became Blair's coach that Blair switched from pack style to long track speed skating in which skaters compete for the fastest time. At age 15, Blair tried out for the national team, earning a spot on her first attempt. With her increased focus on the 1984 Olympics, Blair went to train in Europe. To finance the expense of training in Europe,