Nikki Stone

With one month to go to the appearance of the world’s best athletes competing to reach their dreams of winning a 2014 Winter Olympic medal, there is no time like the present to set our sights on ...

Through my experience in interviews from local radio stations all the way up to nationally televised interviews on shows like Late Night with David Letterman and international Olympic coverage, ...

Just the other day, I was playing a game with my 5-year-old daughter that asked a number of philosophical questions. The purpose of the game was to get young children to think a little more ...

When I was applying to colleges, I didn’t have the grade point average or SAT scores of my scholarly sister, Laura. My high school guidance counselor asked me why I wasn’t applying to more ...

A few years ago, I had a friend approach me about having awful nerves before an upcoming speech. She had been asked to speak for a charitable cause she was closely connected with. My friend was ...

If you are anything like me, you have high hopes of achieving a lofty New Year’s resolution but as the days and weeks pass by, your resolve starts to dissolve. Typically, these resolutions are ...

I am terrified of heights, something few people would imagine of an aerial skier who launches herself high in the air at every competition. I would literally go in the woods and lose my lunch ...

In light of all the catastrophic issues so many are dealing with after Hurricane Sandy, I thought it was a good time to reflect and give ourselves some perspective on what’s most important. I ...

Many people think that because I took part in an individual—versus team—sport, there wasn’t a teamwork element. I absolutely guarantee that I wouldn’t have my Olympic medal if I didn’t know how ...

The year before my second Olympics, my coach put together a training log for me that included a lot of aerobic work such as step classes, running and biking. I was an aerial skier, so coming from ...

As the athletes head to the Olympic Games in London in a short few weeks, most of them realize they have one shot at success. Some Olympians have a few hours to pull off the feat of bringing home ...

With just over three months to the Summer Olympics in London, many people are picking their favorites to win bronze, silver and gold. As I recall my own experiences leading into my second Olympic ...

Experienced athletes often like to say that we are so confident, we could execute a maneuver or skill with our eyes closed. Aerialists have to perform each new trick hundreds of times into a pool ...

I dedicate my post this week to a lady who lived her life in a way that many can only dream of. Sarah Burke, you are an icon, a hero, an inspiration, and a class act. When my flame is ...

Through some of my volunteer work, I had an opportunity to speak at a United Nations Development Program meeting in Dakar, Senegal, several years ago. While there, I met a young woman from Mali ...

After my second Olympic Games, I was invited to visit several children’s hospitals. I still remember my first tour of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital just outside Boston. As an ...

When I qualified for the Freestyle Skiing World Cup tour, I began competing with athletes from all over the world. As an unknown skier my first year on the tour, I had no sponsors so my parents ...

When I started college, I had just broken onto the World Cup skiing scene, so I decided to pursue both ventures at the same time. The prospect of trying to find success in both skiing and ...

With so many people starting college or new jobs and positions, I thought it an appropriate time to share a story about my first year on the Freestyle Skiing World Cup tour. No matter how much ...

It’s been a long and heartbreaking week with the tragic passing of a friend and ex-teammate. The hardest part is seeing how challenging this has been to his family, best friends, and supportive ...

In the past I’ve talked about the pride of being an American walking into the Opening Ceremonies at an Olympic Games. I explained how I was caught up in the hype of the cameras and fanfare until ...

A couple weeks ago I attended a fundraising event for a charity called Right To Play. I immediately fell in love with the organization after hearing about how their programs impacted children ...

I hate failing. Obviously, no one likes to fail, but one event made me see that I actually feared failing so much that I missed key opportunities. When I first made it onto the U.S. Ski Team, ...

Because I won my Olympic gold medal in Nagano, Japan in 1998, the country has always held a powerful and touching place in my heart. Like many, I was really shaken by the scary sights of the ...

How often are you driven by how much you can or will make? How many times are you encouraged by how many zeros precede a decimal point? How often is your eye drawn to the big dollar sign listed ...

There is a saying by John Burroughs: “Leap and the net will appear.” I put that concept to the test during my second World Cup competition overseas. The fog moved in and we could barely see ...

To kick off the New Year, I wanted to share a story about a man who everyone should resolve to be like. Shortly after my retirement from aerial skiing, I was elected to the U.S. Olympic ...

My impressions of the Olympic spirit were forever changed on August 5, 1984, at the very first women’s Olympic marathon. I had long ago become an Olympic junkie, and my admiration of world-class ...

As we’re quickly approaching Thanksgiving, I thought I should share my thoughts on giving thanks in a way you might never have thought of. Let the season inspire you to show your appreciation to ...

It was at a World Cup in Madaro, Japan, that I first learned how important a positive attitude can be. The day was warm and the conditions on the aerial hill were deteriorating. The sunny ...

Several years ago I was invited to a charitable conference called the Glocal Forum. The forum was a nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion of international intercity relations in ...

Through my work with Right To Play, I met an amazing gentleman named Safari. Safari lived through the Rwandan genocide of 1994, where nearly a million people were killed, including many of his ...

Things didn’t go exactly as I planned in the 1994 Olympics. But I can say that I truly cherish the memories and the friendships I forged with my fellow Olympians. I’m still honored that Prince ...

Several years ago, I served as a board member of a program with the United States Olympic Committee, where eight Olympic medalists helped mentor future potential medalists. We would play ...

Most of us don’t know the best way to really win an argument. My husband once pointed out to me that I wasn’t really listening to his point of view when we were having an argument. I realized he ...

ERIK WEIHENMAYER & JEFF EVANS First Blind Climber and his Climbing Guide to Summit Everest (Story from When Turtles Fly: Secrets of Successful People Who Know How to Stick Their Necks Out by ...

Because I was afraid of injuries, doing triple flips fifty feet in the air was no easy feat for me. I’d be a fool not to have fears. I think that most people would be fearful of the prospect of ...

After my second Olympic Games, I was invited to visit several children’s hospitals. I still remember my first tour of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital just outside Boston. As an Olympian, I ...

Not long after seeing my first hero Nadia Comaneci win the Olympics, I enrolled in a gymnastics class myself. I made great progress, and eventually my babysitter invited me to join her high ...

For all those fighting the good fight let me share my story of overcoming one of the greatest adversities I’ve ever endured: coming back from a spinal injury that very nearly ended my skiing ...

For all those fighting the good fight, let me share my story of overcoming one of the greatest adversities I’ve ever endured: coming back from a spinal injury that very nearly ended my skiing ...

This past weekend I was invited to an event for a charity that has been near and dear to my heart for a long time, Right To Play. Many of you may have heard about Right To Play as it was also the ...

I remember thinking that sports celebrities had it made. They somehow didn't fail like the rest of us. I, on the other hand, had a slew of failures. My parents would remind me that it wasn't a ...

I have a friend who’s always been afraid of fully committing to a relationship. I would tease him that he wasn’t a risk-taker like I was. I risked flipping and twisting 50 feet through the air ...

Continued from last week’s blog entitled "How Does a Girl Who Is Afraid of Heights Start a Risky Sport Like Aerial Skiing? Part I" *********************************** …I should have known by ...

It didn’t matter if it was Monopoly, minigolf, gym class, or the gymnastics state championship, competition was always filling my soft inside. It got my heart pumping and made me feel really ...

Do to the overwhelming response from my last blog, I wanted to share another activity that I’ve used with the regional Biggest Loser contestants in the motivational weekly session that I run with ...

We all know the show The Biggest Loser, but did you know that a pilot program is taking the show regional? America is slowly realizing that fad diets just aren't cutting it and even if they work ...

Knowing how our country really needs some strong inspiration right now, I wanted to share one of my favorite contributor’s story from my new book, When Turtles Fly: Secrets of Successful People ...

Who would think an Olympic Gold medal aerial skier would be afraid of flying? Let me share my post-9/11 experience and the risk I learned to take. To be successful, you need to... Be ...