| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Tai Reina Babilonia | ||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented | United States | ||||||||||||||||||
| Born | September 22, 1959 Los Angeles, California |
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| Former partner | Randy Gardner | ||||||||||||||||||
| Former coach | John Nicks | ||||||||||||||||||
| Skating club | Los Angeles FSC | ||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Tai Reina Babilonia (born September 22, 1959 in Los Angeles, California) is a retired American pair skater. With partner Randy Gardner, she was the 1979 World Champion and the 1976-1980 U.S. national champion.
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Babilonia & Gardner began skating together when Babilonia was eight years old and Gardner was ten by Mabel Fairbanks. Their coach from '72 till '80 was John Nicks. The pair were five-time gold medalists at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships and won the gold medal at the 1979 World Figure Skating Championships. They were medal favorites at the 1980 Olympics but were forced to withdraw due to an injury to Gardner.
Babilonia was the first figure skater of partial African American descent to win U.S. and World titles. She is also part Filipino on her father's side and part Native American.[1]
Babilonia appeared in the 2006 FOX television program Skating with Celebrities, partnered with Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner (Decathlon).
Babilonia has a son, Scout Gabriel (born in January 1995), with her ex-husband Cary Butler, whom she married in 1992 and divorced in 1997.[2] more personal and professional info at www.taibabilonia.com
(with Gardner)
| Event | 1973-74 | 1974-75 | 1975-76 | 1976-77 | 1977-78 | 1978-79 | 1979-80 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Olympic Games | 5th | WD | |||||
| World Championships | 10th | 10th | 5th | 3rd | 3rd | 1st | |
| U.S. Championships | 2nd | 2nd | 1st | 1st | 1st | 1st | 1st |
| Nebelhorn Trophy | 1st | ||||||
| Coupe des Alpes | 3rd |
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