Motivation Quote by Nancy Kerrigan

The plainness is the point: Kerrigan’s line is an anti-myth, a refusal of the feel-good narrative that Olympic talent arrives gift-wrapped. “I worked also” functions like a corrective, quietly pushing back against the way elite athletes get packaged as either prodigies or princesses. The phrasing is almost stubbornly ordinary, and that ordinariness carries the argument. A paper route and waitressing aren’t glamorous details; they’re proof of a life lived on a schedule, with cold mornings, aching feet, and bosses who don’t care about your triple jump.

The subtext is class, delivered without slogans. Figure skating has long been coded as expensive and refined, a sport where the backstage costs (ice time, coaching, costumes, travel) imply a certain kind of family. Kerrigan’s mention of jobs smuggles in the economics: someone had to help cover the gap. It’s a small list that signals a bigger reality, the hustle behind the sequins. Even the “also” matters; training is already a full-time job, so paid work becomes a second shift.

Context sharpens the intent. Kerrigan’s public story was defined by spectacle and conflict, where media attention drifted toward scandal, image, and personality. This line yanks the camera back to labor. It’s not a plea for sympathy; it’s a claim to legitimacy. She’s asserting that discipline wasn’t just performed on the ice, it was learned in the everyday grind that most people recognize instantly.