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Maria Garcia
- 2006 Olympic Team member
- Fourth overall at U.S. Short Track National Championships (2005)
- World Team member (2003, 2004)
- First overall at U.S. Junior Short Track Championships (2000, 2001, 2002)
- Initially took the ice as a figure skater and made the switch to short track in 1996
- First tried speedskating after her mother saw a flyer advertising a local club for only $3
- Considers her coach her strongest influence
- Speedskating sponsor is actor/comedian George Lopez
- Enjoys playing with her pitbull, Tyson, and figure skating
- Favorite foods are Mexican food and licorice
- Favorite movie is “The Cutting Edge"
- Youngest of three children
- Plans to attend Santa Monica College and eventually become a sports psychologist, while continuing to train for the 2010 Olympic Team.
Garcia trains at Glacial Gardens in Lakewood, California. Unlike the rest of her 2006 Olympic Short Track teammates, she trains at a local club instead of at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs or the U.S. Olympic Education Center in Marquette, MI. She was considered to have good chance of making the 2002 Olympic team, but an injury just two weeks before the Olympic Trials left her sidelined and watching the Games on television.
On her initial thoughts about speedskating: “I actually hated speedskating when I first tried it,” she remembers. “I did it for a month before returning back to figure skating. It was four years later when I tried speedskating again and decided to stick with it.” USOC
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Height: 5'1"
Born: 20-Sept-85
Hometown: Carson, CA
Resides: Carson, CA
Sport: Speedskating
Event: Short Track
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