Elvis Stojko

Elvis Stojko, MSC MSM (born March 22, 1972) is a Canadian figure skater. He was a three-time World champion (1994, 1995, 1997), two-time Olympic silver medallist (1994, 1998), and seven-time Canadian champion (1994, 1996–2000, and 2002).

Stojko was born on March 22, 1972, in Newmarket, to a Hungarian mother and Slovenian father. He was named for Elvis Presley, of whom his parents were fans. His father arrived in Canada on a boat in 1955 and his mother, Irene (Hungarian: Irén), fled the Soviet invasion of Hungary in 1956. Stojko grew up in Richmond Hill, Ontario. There is a hockey arena named after him in Richmond Hill.

Stojko competed in the 2005 WKA Canadian Championships and placed first in the Chinese martial arts division. He settled in Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico in 2001. On June 20, 2010, he married Mexican figure skater Gladys Orozco in Las Vegas. They resided in Ajijic until June 2014, when they relocated to Toronto. They now live on 140 acres near Bowmanville.

On October 3, 2021, Stojko was revealed to have been named in the Pandora Papers by the CBC.

At the 1991 World Championships, Stojko became the first person to land a quadruple-double jump combination. He later said he had studied VHS tapes of Kurt Browning, Brian Boitano, Alexander Fadeyev, and Jozef Sabovčík to help him master the quad.

At the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, he finished 7th despite skating a technically strong routine, but a month later he made his first appearance on a major international podium when he placed third at the 1992 World Championships behind winner Viktor Petrenko and Kurt Browning. In 1993 at the World Figure Skating Championships he finished second, once again behind Kurt Browning.

At the 1994 Canadian Championships in Edmonton, Stojko defeated Kurt Browning in the free skate to win his first national title. At the 1994 Winter Olympics in Norway at the Hamar Olympic Amphitheatre, he skated well enough in the short program to place second, putting him in good position heading into the free skate, after three of the pre-Olympic favourites (Brian Boitano, Viktor Petrenko & Kurt Browning) had disappointing short programs. Stojko had a strong performance in the free skate, despite popping a planned triple axel combination (which he later replaced by doing another triple Axel combination spontaneously) and won the silver medal. Stojko entered the 1994 World Championships in Chiba, Japan, as the favourite and won his first world championship with a performance that included another quadruple jump.

For Stojko's free skating program this season, he used music from the soundtrack of Dragon, the 1993 film biography about Bruce Lee. He was able to demonstrate his interest in karate and tai chi by incorporating movements from his extensive study of the disciplines into the program.