Only With Passion: Figure Skating's Most Winning Champion on Competition and Life [BARGAIN PRICE] (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Two-time Olympic figure skating gold medalist Witt (b. 1965) offers advice to a young skater (a composite character) on love, career and succeeding as an athlete. Using this platform, Witt discusses her training, competitions and business decisions (including her Playboy layout), and while she claims to discuss her relationships, too, she's quite vague on that front. Despite Swift's help, the writing is stilted and stiff. The glimpses into Witt's life in the Communist former German Democratic Republic are too infrequent; the few tidbits she offers, though, are fascinating. For example, she discovered by reading her Stasi file that the government had arranged for her boyfriend to be stationed in the army far away from her, so as not to distract her from her skating. Witt relates the incident with amusement; she's proud of the GDR and unafraid to defend it. The opinionated Witt deserves credit for being an inspiration to young female athletes and, perhaps, to all young women as they try to get ahead. She's unapologetic in her desire for success, even in sacrificing having a family, which she argues, refreshingly, isn't a sacrifice at all. Athletes, and figure skaters specifically, will most appreciate the lessons Witt shares.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"She's unapologetic in her desire for success.... Athletes, and figure skaters specifically, will most appreciate the lessons Witt shares." -- Publishers Weekly, 8/22/05 --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: PublicAffairs (January 29, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586484273
• ASIN: B00127OGKU
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,840,345 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Sadly boring. , November 30, 2005

By	Melissa Garland "melissag915" (O'Fallon, MO United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Only With Passion: Figure Skating's Most Winning Champion on Competition and Life (Hardcover)

Always projected as a fascinating ice princess, I was hoping for something more interesting. Very little in terms of an intimate portrait and advice on becoming a champion skater.

Christine Brennan did a better job capturing intimate glimpses of Witt in a few pages in "Inside Edge" compared to this entire book. I wanted to read more about growing up in GDR, how her friendship with Roz Summers developed, the controversy of the government spying on her, more biographical information about HER and her skating. The impression given is that she was a machine told what to do and she did it - including this book. True skate fans, skip this one.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars What a bore, December 19, 2005

By	Tina Avon - See all my reviews

This review is from: Only With Passion: Figure Skating's Most Winning Champion on Competition and Life (Hardcover)

I am a big figure skating fan. I have read every skating book out there.

I thought Katarina's story would be interesting. While not my favorite skater, her background would certainly be worth the read.

I was wrong. For one thing, this book seems to be set up in a way where Katarina is giving advice to a fictious up and coming skating star. Never quite sure if this girl actually exists or not.

Also, this book is preachy and....boring, boring, boring.

Where are the great skating stories, the background info on skating in Germany?

What about Katarina's fears and thoughts on life in general.

None of this in this book.

Skate right by this one.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars FOR RABID FIGURE SKATING FANS ONLY..., October 30, 2005

By	Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

This review is from: Only With Passion: Figure Skating's Most Winning Champion on Competition and Life (Hardcover)

This book contains the musings of Olympian figure skater, Katerina Witt, who has won gold medals in two consecutive Olympics, four world championships, and eight national championships. She ruminates on the rigors of athletic competition and on the life lessons she has learned along the way. Turning forty years old this December, she offers some fairly general advice to the young on what it takes to be a top athlete. She does so from the perspective of what she has discovered in her own quest to be the best.

There is very little that is truly intimate about this book, as it is, for the most part, quite banal, although Ms. Witt does offer some relatively minor revelations about her life. Still, the tone throughout the book remains remote and dispassionate, notwithstanding the title of the book. There is some commentary about other figure skating greats but nothing the least bit controversial or eyebrow raising. It is clear that Ms. Witt reserves her passion for the ice, as there is none infused in this somewhat tepid book. Only those who are rabid fans of figure skating will get a modicum of enjoyment from this book.