Sarah Hughes took home gold in the ladies’ singles figure skating event at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. It was Hughes’ first, and only, Olympic medal prior to her 2003 retirement. However, Hughes marked the first time that an America had seen back-to-back gold medallists in the event since 1960.
After retiring, Hughes became a lawyer and earned degrees at two Ivy League schools. After doing her undergraduate studies at Yale, she headed to Penn for law school. In 2022, she began postgraduate degrees in business and education at Stanford. In a related effort, Hughes has supported Figure Skaters in Harlem for over a decade. The program provides academic tutoring for girls in Harlem. Now, she’s looking to further help the communities where she grew up.
Hughes Declares Congress Campaign For NY-4
On May 15, Hughes submitted paperwork to run as a Democrat in the Congressional race for New York’s 4th District. Hughes is originally from Great Neck, a town that sits in the neighboring 3rd District, which is currently represented by the embattled George Santos. However, the 4th District is also under Republican control. Anthony Esposito flipped the district after Democrat Kathleen Rice retired. The Democrats had held the district since 1997. Hughes is one of three Democrats who have already filed to run next year.
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In an email to NBC, a representative for Hughes explained why she had chosen to run. “Born and raised on Long Island, Sarah is concerned about where we’re headed, whether it’s rising prices, public safety and gun violence, or threats to women’s health. She’s putting the pieces into place to make an announcement in the next few weeks.” According to all major political forecasters, the district is a toss-up. However, Hughes is not the only figure skater to have gone into politics. Two-time Olympic medallist Michelle Kwan currently serves as the US Ambassador to Belize.
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