Peggy 's mother played a memorable role in her daughter 's Grenoble Olympic medal , as she chose a color for the skating costume , chartreuse , named after the liqueur of that color produced by neighboring Carthusians in their founding monastery , which also gives the name " chartreuse " to the region , thereby perhaps inspiring local French audience support for Peggy 's virtually flawless performance . Her award in Grenoble was singularly important for the American athletes and the nation as a whole , for this was the only gold medal that the U.S. Olympic team won in the 1968 Winter Olympics . It signaled a return to American dominance in the sport of women 's figure skating following the unprecedented tragedy of the 1961 Sabena plane crash
Sabena plane crash
Sabena Flight 548
Peggy Fleming