Three-time Olympic medalist and World Figure Skating
Hall-of-Famer Serguei Ponomarenko was arrested on suspicion of
driving under the influence of alcohol in Morgan Hill.
Three-time Olympic medalist and World Figure Skating Hall-of-Famer Serguei Ponomarenko was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol in Morgan Hill.
Ponomarenko, 49 of Morgan Hill, was arrested by California Highway Patrol officers who saw his vehicle weaving erratically on U.S. 101 about 6:40 a.m. Saturday, according to CHP officer Jaime Rios. He was traveling north on the freeway, and CHP pulled him over for a traffic stop just north of Cochrane Road.
He was arrested and booked into Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of DUI.
Ponomarenko won three Olympic medals for ice dancing with his wife and partner Marina Klimova. In 1984, the pair won a bronze medal for the Soviet Union at the Sarajevo Winter Olympics; a silver at the 1988 games in Calgary, also for the Soviet Union; and a gold in 1992 at the Albertville games, for the Unified Team.
The pair are the only figure skaters in Olympic history, in any discipline, to have ever won medals of all three colors, according to their official Web site, www.klimova-ponomarenko.com.
They have also won three ice dancing World Championships and four European Championships. They turned professional after the 1992 World Championships, and were inducted into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 2000. They now coach young figure skaters at Sharks Ice in San Jose.
The couple live in northeast Morgan Hill.
