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Michelle Kwan makes a wish come true

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Leaning against the cinder-block wall of a small locker room, their skates at their feet, the two women chatted as if they had been friends all their lives.

They talked of small things and big dreams, of dreams delayed or denied and entwined in the thread that united them at East West Ice Palace in Artesia last week.

Leah Smith is a pediatric heart-transplant survivor who adopted five-time world figure skating champion Michelle Kwan as her idol after she saw Kwan perform in a brilliant blue dress more than a decade ago.

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Smith, born with an underdeveloped left ventricle, was 11 days old when she received a transplant at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. The life expectancy in such cases then was 10 years, said her mother, Joan Smith.

Leah’s new heart gave her life, but her mother believes that Kwan and figure skating gave her a purpose. Leah, now 17, is a home-schooled high school senior who takes college classes and is preparing her solo routine for a skating show back home in Fort Wayne, Ind.

She must go for checkups every six to eight weeks and for a biopsy once a year, and her mother said tests have shown signs her body might be rejecting the heart. Leah lives every moment fully, whether she’s skating, studying, ballroom dancing or advocating for organ donation.

“Michelle has been her inspiration in order to keep staying physically fit and active,” said Joan Smith, whose blue eyes are very much like her daughter’s.

Kwan has come to personify dignity in the face of shattering disappointment. She was the picture of class when she narrowly finished second to Tara Lipinski at the 1998 Olympics and was stoic again after she finished third at Salt Lake City in 2002.

Her third try, three years ago at Turin, ended when a hip injury forced her to withdraw before she competed or could chat with Smith.

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“We were on line to get tickets for the medal ceremony and we were watching ‘The Today Show’ and they announced it,” Leah Smith said.

She and her mother went to Turin through the kindness of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which fulfills the desires of kids who have life-threatening medical conditions. However, her stay was funded only through the first week and the women’s final was near the end of the Games, so the Smiths were on their own then.

“We had to sleep in a hotel lobby only once. God kept showing us miracles,” said Joan Smith, who found a place to stay through the sister of a pastor at her church.

Leah never forgot her wish to meet Kwan. One thing and another kept them apart until last week when Marie Rinaldi, a Kwan family friend who has befriended the Smiths, paid for Leah and her mother to fly to California and get the skaters on the ice together.

The Smiths also visited Hollywood, the beach and a “Tonight Show” taping, where they got to meet “House” star Hugh Laurie, but their time with Kwan was the highlight of their stay.

Kwan gave them a tour of the rink, which her family owns, and gave Leah some gear from the Turin Games. Leah clutched a belt buckle with an Olympic logo as if it were a precious jewel. “I’ll wear it every day,” she vowed.

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Both glowed when they took the ice. To watch them skate was to see the power of hope and feel the incandescent spirit for which Kwan will be remembered even if she never wins an Olympic gold medal.

They dodged experts and beginners who clung to the boards, Kwan’s long black hair flying and Smith’s red-brown hair fanning out as she performed spins. Smith asked for help with her salchow jump while Kwan watched.

“I know what’s wrong,” Kwan said before demonstrating how Smith should lift her leg and hold her arms.

Smith was an awed and attentive pupil. Asked if the experience was all she had imagined it might be, she could manage only a nod.

“We’re trying to decide if we’re awake or not,” Joan Smith said. “This morning she woke up and told me, ‘You know you’re living a good life when your real life is better than you dreamed.’ ”

They skated for about an hour before time and tiredness ruled. Leah gave Kwan several presents, including a heart necklace, a bracelet, and a box of Junior Mints, which true fans know to be Kwan’s favorite candy. She asked Kwan to autograph some pictures and a book they leafed through together, pausing at a photograph of a short-haired Kwan.

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“Why did you cut your hair so short? I must confess I was very disappointed,” Smith said.

Kwan laughed, poking fun at her ‘do and telling stories behind many photos. She became serious when Smith asked if she will compete in the 2010 Olympics.

“It’s definitely possible,” said Kwan, 28. “I want to see how far I can train. I have to see how far my body will go. I could get in shape to do the Olympics, I could get in shape to do skating tours or I could get in shape to skate around with my little nieces. We’ll see. So far my body is reacting well after being off so long.”

Kwan may never realize her own desire, but she made Smith’s dream come true, and there is more value to that than any medal.

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helene.elliott@latimes.com

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

U.S. Figure Skating Championships

Where: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland.

At stake: Results determine places on U.S. team for the world championships in Los Angeles March 22-27. Based on finishes at the 2008 worlds, U.S. has earned three places for men and dance, two for women and pairs.

Defending champions: Men -- Evan Lysacek; women -- Mirai Nagasu; pairs -- Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker; dance, Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto (withdrew because of injury).

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Competition schedule: Today -- compulsory dance; Thursday -- pairs short program, women’s short program, original dance; Friday -- men’s short program; Saturday -- pairs, dance and women’s free skate finals; Sunday -- men’s free skate final.

TV: Saturday: Channel 4, pairs and ice dance final free skates, noon-3 p.m.; women’s free skate final, 9-11 p.m.; Sunday: Channel 4, men’s free skate final, 1-3 p.m.

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It all nearly came apart in a routine 2006 training exercise for Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker.

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