Athlete profile: Nikki Stone

Posted: Tue February 3, 1998 at 5:00 PM ET

Athlete notes

In 1995, Stone was at the apex of her sport -- the world champion and World Cup champion...but training prior to the 1996 season, she suffered a serious back injury that sidelined her in the last month of competition, costing her a second aerials World Cup crown...that was irrelevant as the injury -- diagnosed as internal disc disruption -- was initially so painful that many doctors thought she would not jump again...thus, Stone's Renaissance last year was amazing to many people involved in the sport and really satisfying to herself..."The injury was devastating to me with the thoughts of maybe not jumping again," says Stone, who placed 10th at the 1997 World Championships. "I trained so hard during the summer to build the muscle around my back, to be strong enough to protect the disc, and it worked"...even though the back will never completely healed, Stone says, "I'm really getting comfortable jumping with a little soreness in my back. It's there but it's out of my mind"...she was "almost content with just being there to compete last season"...but Stone won't be in Nagano just to compete, drawing on unfulfilled memories of Lillehammer where she finished 13th in the qualifying, just missing the finals..."My approach to the Olympics will be different this time," says Stone. "I know that I'm capable of medaling or even winning now"...Stone began this season by winning the first World Cup ever held in the Southern Hemisphere in August in the Australian winter...Stone unveiled two triple jumps, accumulating the highest ever two-jump score in a woman's competition...after nailing the first jump Stone and coach Wayne Hilterbrand considered backing down a little in difficulty, taking the conservative route to win..."But we agreed we're not here to win, just here to practice these things for the Olympics," Stone said after her sEventsh career victory. "I'm really pleased I increased the difficulty on both jumps from last year"...as Earth, Wind & Fire once sang, `Very Superstitious,' so is Stone, like many other aerialists...and Japan is not a bad place for her luck...she has enjoyed numerous results in Japan, including her first ever World Cup win in 1992..."I'm excited that Olympics are in Japan, I usually do well there... knock on wood," she laughs before explaining her pre-Events routine...after putting her blue socks on, she kisses her good luck necklace before every jump...other than that, she makes sure to "basically do what worked the last time"...being superstitious is a part of dealing with the "fear," which Stone loves overcoming..."It's actually a part of the fun"...Stone is clearly enjoying the sport nowadays, but when she failed to make the finals at 1994 Lillehammer Olympics, her motivation went way down, to the point where she considered retiring..."I wasn't having fun at the beginning of the 1995 season," says Stone. "I talked with coach Hilterbrand about retiring"...Stone was told to give 110 percent on the next World Cup, even if it was going to be her last...and what a turn around it was...she ended up winning that competition, going on to the giant victory at the World Championships later in the season...Stone realized that the important thing was to enjoy what she does...now she concentrates on the details of her own jump, trying to perfect it, instead of worrying about how her foes are doing...she is known around the circuit for the height of her jumps, which enable her to complete triples (spins, somersaults, twists)...Stone was on skis by the time she was three years old in New Jersey...she was a gymnast also (which explains her airs) until 16...she started freestyle skiing when she was 15, concentrating on aerials at the age of 18...a former 4.0 psychology student, Stone wants to get into broadcasting after retiring from freestyle skiing...when not flipping in the air, Stone enjoys wakeboarding, Rollerblading, rock climbing, and playing tennis...Stone's parents come to some of her competitions, even to Europe...her sister rowed crew at Cornell...