Olympic champion gets own Barbie doll
Kristi Yamaguchi, a figure skating star from the Bay Area who in 1992 became the first Asian American to win an individual gold medal, has inspired a Barbie doll in her image.
The doll is part of Barbie’s Inspiring Women Series, released by toymaker Mattel in time for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May.
“It’s a huge, huge honor,” Yamaguchi told the Associated Press. “I think a lot of pride comes along with it, not just recognizing the Olympic achievement, but also being recognized during AAPI Month and following in the footsteps of some incredible women that I idolize — Anna May Wong, Maya Angelou and Rosa Parks. It’s hard to see me put in the category with them.”
Yamaguchi was previously depicted as a doll decades ago when she appeared in the touring show “Stars on Ice.” But being included in the Barbie line holds much more significance for the Olympic champion from Fremont. She said she is “just so tickled pink.”
The doll captures Yamaguchi, a bestselling children’s book author and clothing designer, as she appeared at the Olympic Games in Albertville, France, at just 20 years old. It features her sparkling black-and-gold brocade outfit, designed by Lauren Sheehan, with the gold hair ribbon and the red-and-white bouquet Yamaguchi held atop the podium.
“It looks like me for sure,” Yamaguchi said. “You know, the eyes and just the shape of the face. And then, of course, the hair, for sure. I mean, it has the bangs that are the ‘90s.”
What Yamaguchi finds most impressive about the limited edition doll is its ability to impress her daughters, aged 18 and 20, especially after the blockbuster “Barbie” movie last year.
“When they found out I was getting a doll, they were kind of flabbergasted and being like, ‘What? Like Mom, like how do you qualify? But that’s way too cool for you,’ ” Yamaguchi said.
The nation has come a long way since 1992 when Yamaguchi, a fourth-generation Japanese American, failed to secure the same number of endorsement deals as fellow Olympic gold medalists due to her Asian heritage. But there was one exception: Kellogg’s featured Yamaguchi’s photo on a Special K cereal box.
“When kids see themselves or
see someone who inspires them, then it just opens up their world and their imagination to what’s possible,” she said.
Previous honorees in the Barbie Inspiring Women series, which looks to great women from history, include jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, educator Jane Goodall, investigative journalist Ida B. Wells, artist Frida Kahlo and aviator Amelia Earhart.
Yuan Yuan Tan, the youngest principal dancer in the history of San Francisco Ballet and the first Chinese dancer to reach that position in a major Western company, was also honored by Mattel as part of the Barbie Global Role Models series in 2018. But those dolls were one of a kind and not for sale.*
The Kristi Yamaguchi doll, priced at $35, is available at mattelcreations.com, while supplies last. The doll may also be available at select Target and Walmart locations, and online via Amazon.