Fleming was born in San Jose , California , the daughter of Doris Elizabeth ( née Deal ) and Albert Eugene Fleming , a newspaper journalist and former U.S. Marine . She began skating at age nine when her father took Peggy and her three sisters skating . In 1961 , when Peggy was twelve years old , her coach William Kipp was killed in the crash of Sabena Flight 548 along with the rest of the United States figure skating team while en route to the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships . Fleming was subsequently coached by Carlo Fassi . Her unusual style led to five U.S. titles , three World titles and the gold medal in the 1968 Olympics in Grenoble , France
Sabena Flight 548
Sabena Flight 548
Peggy Fleming