Brian Boitano, American Figure Skater – Bio, Net Worth, Is He Gay?

Quick Facts

Brian Boitano gained fame among sports buffs and the international community for the first time when he outsmarted celebrated Canadian figure skater Brian Orser at the 1978 World Junior Figure Skating Championships to win the bronze medal. Early in his career, the figure skater was primarily known as a jumper and one of those people who played influential roles in pushing the technical envelope of men’s skating.

Brian broke records in the world of skating in the year 1982 by landing a triple Axel jump, becoming the first American to achieve such feat. As a professional figure skater, Boitano has dominated and won several competitions. He has also made appearances in a handful of film and TV shows.

Brian Boitano’s Bio

This American figure skater’s full name is Brian Anthony Boitano. His parents gave him the name after his birth on 22nd October 1963, in Mountain View, California, in the U.S. Brian is an American belonging to the Native American racial background.

His mom Donna Jean Boitano and dad Louis Boitano also have another son named Mark Boitano, whom they raised together with Brian in Sunnyvale, California. As per his education, the professional figure skater graduated from Marian A. Peterson High School which is situated in Sunnyvale, California.

Brian Boitano developed a penchant for skating after viewing an episode of the touring ice show Ice Follies at the age of eight. Overwhelmed by the show, he immediately got himself skates and began acquiring skills in skating before he eventually debuted on the international scene at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships, where he won the bronze medal.

The ice skating icon became the first American to land a triple Axel jump in 1982 and 1984, he bagged a silver medal that made him eligible for the 1984 winter Olympics at the United States Figure Skating Championships. He placed 5th at the Olympics and subsequently came third at the World Championships and the winner of the United States Figure Skating Championships in 1985.

Brian emerged the winner of the national championships as well as the world championship in the year 1986. The following year, the American skating legend’s form pulled apart leading him to lose the first place in the world championships. Unfazed by the disappointment, Biotano went ahead to originate his unique jump which he dubbed the ‘Tano triple Lutz’.

The figure skater’s career got an impressive boost in 1988 when he came first in the United States Figure Staking championships. Brian came sixth at the 1994 Winter Olympics after returning to competition in the year 1993. Boitano was honored for his laudable contributions in figure skating in 1996 when he was inducted into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame.

His success as a figure skater has paved ways for other meaningful opportunities outside the sports world. Apart from appearing in the 2009 TV series What Would Brian Boitano Make? which aired on Food Network in 2009,  Brian Boitano has also had stints in the German dance film Carmen on Ice (for which he won an Emmy Award); the Super Bowl XXVI halftime show “Winter Magic”, Hell’s Kitchen (reality series), on the TV show Giada at Home, on Top Chef Masters Season 4 Episode 3 (as a guest judge), on HGTV (in a series titled “The Brian Boitano Project”), among others.

What Is The American Figure Skater’s Net Worth?

Brian Boitano turned pro after the 1988 season and since then his financial status has been on the upward side. The figure skater made the bulk of his wealth from his prosperous career as well as his business – he has a skating shoe production company which is based in California, precisely in San Jose.

Currently, the California native has an estimated net worth of $18 million. He also gives back to society by donating part of his wealth to numerous charity organizations in the U.S.

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Is Brian Boitano Gay?

Brian Boitano is openly gay. He is very proud of his sexuality and has been vocal about the rights of the LGBT community. The figure skater came out of the closet five days after he was assigned to spearhead a delegation of the 2014 Winter Olympics which took place in Russia. He mentioned during an interview in January 2014 that it was never his intention to publicly out as gay until the delegation announcement.

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