Olympic great Nancy Kerrigan fights through tears as she talks about victims in tragic plane crash

Nancy Kerrigan spoke astatine an affectional quality league connected Thursday aft six radical with ties to the skating nine wherever she competed died successful an hose calamity adjacent Reagan International Airport adjacent Washington, D.C.

Kerrigan is 1 of the decorated members of the Skating Club of Boston, on with Dick Button, Tenley Albright and Paul Wylie.

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Former Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan, right, is embraced portion arriving astatine The Skating Club of Boston with chap Olympic skater Tenley Albright, left, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, successful Norwood, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

The Olympic metallic medalist battled done tears arsenic she spoke to reporters. Albright stood beside Kerrigan.

"Much similar everyone present has been saying, I’m not definite however to process it," she said, adding that her husband, who is her agent, kept getting calls to bash interviews. "I didn’t consciousness similar it was close to beryllium location and bash interviews for this. . . . We conscionable wanted to beryllium present and beryllium a portion of our community."

The Skating Club of Boston identified Jinna Han and Spencer Lane arsenic the 2 athletes who were killed successful the crash. Their mothers and 2 coaches were besides identified arsenic victims.

"I’ve ne'er seen anyone emotion skating arsenic overmuch arsenic these two, and that’s wherefore I deliberation it hurts truthful much. . . . Anytime I’ve been capable to beryllium present and ticker them grow, the kids present truly enactment hard. Their parents enactment hard to beryllium here, but I consciousness for the athletes, their skaters, their families, anyone who was connected that plane, not conscionable the skaters, due to the fact that it’s conscionable specified a tragic event.

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Bodies prevarication connected the crushed adjacent to exigency vehicles, adjacent the tract of the clang aft American Eagle formation 5342 collided with a Black Hawk chopper portion approaching Reagan Washington National Airport and crashed into the Potomac River, extracurricular Washington, U.S., connected January 30, 2025. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

"We’ve been done tragedies earlier arsenic Americans arsenic people, and we are strong, and I conjecture it’s however we respond to it, and my effect is to beryllium with the radical who I attraction astir due to the fact that I needed support. So, that’s wherefore I’m here."

Kerrigan hoped the families would find the courage and the spot to instrumentality the adjacent steps.

The Skating Club of Boston CEO Doug Zeghibe added that Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, and Jin Han, the parent of Jinna, and Molly Lane, the parent of Spencer, had been identified arsenic the different victims. He announced it successful a connection earlier successful the day.

"Our athletics and this Club person suffered a horrible nonaccomplishment with this tragedy," Zeghibe said successful a connection posted to societal media. "Skating is simply a tight-knit assemblage wherever parents and kids travel unneurotic six of 7 days a week to bid and enactment together. Everyone is similar family. Of the skaters, coaches and parents connected the plane, we judge six were from The Skating Club of Boston. We are devastated and wholly astatine a nonaccomplishment for words.

Emergency effect units respond to the clang tract of an American Airlines level and Black Hawk chopper connected the Potomac River successful Arlington, Virginia, connected Thursday, January 30, 2025. The commercialized formation from Wichita, Kansas, collided with a subject chopper past night. (Leigh Green for Fox News Digital.)

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"These athletes, coaches, parents were returning from U.S. Figure Skating’s National Development Camp, pursuing past week’s U.S. Championships successful Wichita. This campy is for young competitory skaters of time with the committedness to beryllium a champion of tomorrow. The nine sent 18 athletes to vie astatine the U.S. Championships. It sent 12 athletes to the National Development Camp."

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