San Bernardino County history – Welcome to San Bernardino County

*Derek Parra won two medals at the 2002 Winter Olympics (photo credit: https://www.teamempowerhour.com/derek-parra).*

With the 2024 Summer Olympics scheduled to take place from July 26 to August 11, we are highlighting Olympic athletes who have close ties to San Bernardino County.

Meet Derek Parra

Derek Parra was born in San Bernardino and graduated from Eisenhower High School in Rialto. As a teenager, he discovered his passion for roller skating at the former Stardust Roller Rink in his hometown. After years of roller skating, he switched to inline skating and went on to earn 18 gold medals by 1996.

Recognizing that his path to the Olympics was contingent upon him switching to ice skating, he decided to make the change, but it wasn’t easy. On his first attempt, he did not qualify for the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

After extensive training, he decided to give it another try. Not only did he qualify for the 2002 Winter Olympics, but he earned a gold medal in the 1,500-meter race and a silver medal in the 5,000-meter race. He continued to compete until deciding to retire in 2006. He is now the director of sports at the Utah Olympic Oval.

Meet Michelle Kwan

Michelle Kwan is a two-time Olympic medalist, five-time world champion and nine-time U.S. champion figure skater. Born in California, she trained at the Ice Castle International Training Center in Lake Arrowhead and graduated from Rim of the World High School before going on to earn advanced college degrees.

She received the James E. Sullivan Award, given to American’s best amateur athlete, in 2001—the first figure skater since Dick Button in 1949 to win the award. In 2003, the U.S. Olympic Committee named her Sportswoman of the Year, an honor she went on to win 14 more times.

She has won the Readers’ Choice Figure Skater of the Year award seven times. In 2003, the U.S. Figure Skating Association renamed this award the “Michelle Kwan Trophy.” She is in the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame and the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame.

Additional County Update News – July 25, 2024