Hamill, Dorothy
Figure Skating
b. July 26, 1956, Chicago, IL
The favorites for the 1976 Olympic figure skating championship were Dianne de Leeuw of the Netherlands, who had beaten Hamill in the 1975 world championships, and Christine Errath of East Germany, the 1974 world champion.
However, Hamill took the lead in the compulsory figure program, increased with a perfect score of 6.0 on her short program, and turned in a solid free skating performance to win the gold medal. She also won the world championship later that year.
The U. S. champion from 1974 through 1976, Hamill developed a new move, a spin that turns into a sitz-spin, which became known as the "Hamill camel." The bobbed hairstyle that she wore during her Olympic performance started a brief fad.
Hamill retired from competition after 1976 and skated with the Ice Capades. She married Dean-Paul Martin, son of singer Dean Martin.