Figure-skating stars perform for audience, not for competition

Tara Lipinski may not be headed down the road less traveled, but it is a new highway of her career.

In fact, as the Olympic gold medalist talks over the cell phone, that literally is true as she drives herself to a rehearsal for "Stars on Ice."

She is one of the top-billed stars in this cast of figure-skating stars that will make its annual stop in Pittsburgh on Sunday.

It is Lipinski's fourth year with the entertainment production. It is the first time without tour founder Scott Hamilton, who retired from the road.

"I love it. I really do. It's like no other show," Lipinski, 19, says. "It gives you a chance to perform for your fans and not have the pressure of competition. Fans get to know you a little better."

While Hamilton will be missed, she says, there is a "fresh and young feel" to the cast, a blend of veteran and younger skaters. That's what Hamilton said he wanted for "Stars On Ice."

It is a bit strange with the skating ambassador gone, Lipinski admits. "Ever since I've been on tour, Scott's been here. He's been such a huge impact on it. I hope to carry through and make him proud," she says. "What I learned from him is how special a tour like this is. It gives you your life, and you get back to entertaining."

Lipinski's education on the ice came rather rapidly.

She is the youngest Olympic, World, National and World Professional Figure Skating champion in history. She began her move up the ranks at age 14, when she won the National and World titles in 1997 and the Champions Series finals in 1997 and 1998.

In 1998, at the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, she surprised the world by becoming the youngest person to win an individual gold medal in any Winter Olympic sport. She was 16.

Then, she surprised some people by announcing she was retiring as an amateur.

Lipinski says she never second-guessed her decision.

"For one, it was just my personality. My parents never pushed me," she says. "I only want to do things that I'm passionate about and love to death to do forever. I felt I really accomplished everything I wanted to and have had a lot of things leading me to that decision."

As an amateur, she was feeling the results of hip problems. "New injuries would last me another four years. Triple triples (jumps) would be impossible on my body, and the situation I was living in with my parents also was difficult. I knew I was ready to move on and try new things and have more goals to set."

Lipinski says it was not difficult to return to the Winter Olympics this year without skating. She was a spectator and did on-air work for NBC.

"Mentally, it didn't even cross my mind that I wouldn't be skating," she says. "With my hip surgery, it would have been physically impossible for me to have done the jumps. So I eliminated that from my mind, and I got to look at what I had done and accomplished. And I'm grateful I'm still able to skate on tour and prolong my career after having the surgery."

The reality of making it to the Olympics in Japan did live up to the dream, she says.

"Even before I won, I was in heaven just being there. It was beautiful," she says. Winning opened the door to new opportunities, she says.

"A lot of people think you turn pro for money. They don't realize you can make just as much now as an amateur (through endorsements and other avenues)," she says.

The transition to the professional world was fairly easy, she says. "I didn't realize at the beginning, though, how much I had to learn about entertaining," she says.

Now it's all about skating for the audience, not the judges, every night. "It's fun," she assures.

"Stars On Ice" has a solid reputation because of the talent and the effort the skaters put into it, she says, adding that figure skating remains appealing to many because of its mix of athleticism and artistry. "More than other sports, it gives a chance to see that person's personality," she adds.

Lipinski has kept her plate full since turning pro. In 1999, she won the World Professional Championships, the youngest person ever to do so.

She was the anchor for the U.S. team in CBS' "Ice Wars" competition in 1998 and 1999.

She is active off the ice, too. Lipinski has a co-starring role in the independent feature "The Metro Chase," a family comedy about an 8-year-old American boy who is separated from his 18-year-old sister as they arrive in Paris.

Lipinski plays "Natalie," an American studying in Paris, who helps the sister find the boy.

She has had other acting roles, including appearances on CBS' "Touched By an Angel" and a recurring role on the soap opera "The Young and the Restless."

She has enjoyed star billing in an episode of Nickelodeon's "Are You Afraid of the Dark," co-star billing in the movie "Ice Angel," which aired on the Fox Family Channel, and numerous guest appearances in TV series.