Bonnie was born on March 18, 1964 in Cornwall, New York. Right from the start, Bonnie was very skilled at skating, and began entering speed skating races when she was just four years old. In 1986, she won the world short-track title for speed skating in Chamonix, France. Then, in 1987, she created a world record in a 500 meter speed skating race. Also in that year, she won her first world sprint championship, and her brother was diagnosed with a brain tumor. So, Bonnie began her fundraising for the American Brain Tumor Association.
On February 22, 1988, at the Olympics in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Bonnie won a gold medal in the 500m and a bronze metal in the 1000m. At the Olympics in Albertville, France, in 1992, she won a gold medal for both the 500m and the 1000m. She also received both gold medals again at the Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, on February 23, 1994. Also in that year, she won the world sprint title and the 500m and 1000m World Cup races. Then, in 1995, she won the world sprint title and the 500m and 1000m World Cups again. Also in 1995, she broke her own 1000m speed skating record on her birthday, March 18,
Bonnie Blair was not just a speed skater, for she did many others things that helped the world. In 1993, she helped distribute necessities after the flood that hit the midwest. She contributed $5,000 of her bonus money to Olympic Aid for Bosnia. She also helped fundraise with Olympic Aid-Atlanta in order to help war victims all around the world.
Today, Bonnie is now retired from speed skating, her last race having been on March 18, 1995, when she broke her own 1000m record.
