Kwan hasn’t forgotten the woman whose record she is chasing. Vinson Owen set the mark of nine U.S. titles.

In photographs Maribel Vinson Owen is forever young, forever smiling. Winner of a record nine U.S. figure skating championships in a 10-year span from 1928 through 1937 and co-owner of six pair titles, she passed to her two daughters her dark hair, intelligent eyes and affinity for skating. To one, she also passed her name.

Vinson Owen and her daughters, Maribel Y. and Laurence Owen, died in the plane crash that killed the U.S. figure skating team as it traveled to the 1961 world championships in Prague. Laurence, 16, had recently won the U.S. singles title, and Maribel, 20, had teamed with Dudley Richards to win the pairs title. Vinson Owen was the duo’s coach.

Might the daughters have eclipsed their mother? Tragedy robbed them of that chance. No other American woman had come close to Vinson Owen’s record before Michelle Kwan, who this week will vie for her ninth title. U.S. Figure Skating President Chuck Foster, who skated with Maribel Y. Owen and was coached by Vinson Owen, considers Kwan a worthy heir to Vinson Owen’s legacy.

“Maribel was a very determined skater and so is Michelle,” said Foster, who teamed with the younger Maribel to win the 1955 U.S. junior pair title and finish third at the 1956 U.S. senior pair championships.

“I’m delighted to see Michelle follow that line. I would love to see her win. She would be a fitting champion. Records are made to be broken, and it puts Michelle in the same league as Maribel, who was also a very fantastic competitor.”

Kwan learned of Vinson Owen’s feats and longevity through stories told by Frank Carroll, who studied with Vinson Owen and coached Kwan for nearly a decade.

“I feel a sense of cosmic connection,” Kwan said. “It’s amazing how long I’ve been in this sport. I wake up thankful I can still do triple jumps.”

She was joking, but the competition at Portland’s Rose Garden Arena will be the 13th time she has competed in the U.S. senior championships. She was not yet 13 when she finished sixth in 1993, and she hasn’t missed the podium since, winning the last seven titles. She has won five gold medals, three silver and one bronze at the world championships as well as silver at the 1998 Nagano Olympics and bronze at Salt Lake City.

Her impact on the sport can’t be quantified by a medal count. The onetime jumping bean from Torrance has blossomed into a poised young woman whose artistry and grace have set the standard for her generation.

“She’s been the star, without a doubt, for the past 10 years now,” Foster said. “She’s done a magnificent job. She’s a magnificent competitor and a terrific role model. We’ve been lucky to have her.

“Other people have had an opportunity to do better than she did, but she took on all comers. Nobody walked through the door or stepped up to the plate. And she’s 24. She hasn’t even reached her prime.”

As she prepares to perform her short program Thursday and her long program Saturday, Kwan is reaching a convergence of past, present and future.

Her appreciation of history and Vinson Owen’s legend makes this a “special” year for her, she said, but she must focus on the here-and-now of performing her short program for the first time in competition. If she finishes among the top three and wins a berth in the world championships in Moscow in March, she must reconfigure her routines to suit the new scoring system that will govern that competition and the 2006 Turin Olympics.

The Code of Points, adopted after the judging scandal that marred the pairs event at Salt Lake City, gives skaters cumulative scores based on fixed values for jumps and spins, and rewards programs that are balanced, diverse and intricate. Although the old 6.0-based system will be in effect in Portland because U.S. Figure Skating has not yet adopted it, the new system has already influenced Kwan’s approach.

“It is very difficult. It’s like teaching an old dog new tricks,” she said during a conference call with reporters last week. “Whether I welcome the Code of Points doesn’t matter. It’s how you follow the rules and how they judge you.”

Kwan hasn’t competed under the system because she skipped the Grand Prix series this season. Her coach, Rafael Arutunian, believes she can rise to that challenge -- and any other.

“Why do you have doubt? She can do anything she wants to do, the quality of skater like Michelle,” he said by phone from her Lake Arrowhead training base. “She has no technical problems, and any system would work well for her.

“Many generations have changed, and she is still here. It depends how much she wants to do it.”

Kwan finished third at the 2004 world championships behind Shizuka Arakawa of Japan and compatriot Sasha Cohen. Arakawa did a triple-triple combination jump in her victory, but Kwan hasn’t landed a triple-triple in competition since 2002. Arutunian said Kwan has practiced three variations -- triple toe-triple loop, triple lutz-triple toe and triple toe-triple toe -- but “strategy” will dictate if she attempts one this week.

Kwan accepts the technical demands but wants to remain true to herself.

“I have to make sure I’m keeping the integrity of my own skating and not being pushed a certain way,” she said. “I have to keep my mind open. It’s a lot to be thinking about.”

If anyone can adapt, Foster said, she can. “She’d have to work to maximize what she needs to do,” he said, “but no matter what the system is, fine skating is fine skating.”

With the Turin Games 13 months away, Kwan acknowledged she has been thinking about a third Olympic berth.

“How could I not? It’s just a magical competition,” said Kwan, who narrowly lost to an exuberant Tara Lipinski at Nagano in 1998 and finished third to Sarah Hughes of the U.S. and Irina Slutskaya of Russia at Salt Lake City.

“But that’s not what I’m striving for. That’s not what I’m competing for. It’s the everyday process.”

That she has been at the elite level for so long surprises her, she said, but there’s really little incentive to leave. The professional circuit has dried up, and she can retain her Olympic eligibility and remain financially secure by skating on the Champions on Ice tour. Unlike Lipinski, who has chronic hip problems, Kwan has had few injuries. Unlike Hughes, who struck gold at 16 and had little to gain by continuing to compete, Kwan hasn’t won the sport’s biggest prize.

The longer she endures, the more records she will surpass. “It is kind of a strange feeling,” she said, “because I still think of myself as a little 13-year-old on the ice, competing with Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan. Now it’s the opposite. I’ve seen all spectrums.

“I’ve never seen myself as a legacy. I want to skate for the fun and respect of the sport.”

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Schedule

U.S. Figure Skating Championships begin Wednesday with the opening ceremonies and the Senior Pairs Short Program at the Rose Garden in Portland:

THURSDAY

* 10:30 a.m. -- Junior Pairs Free Skate.

* 1:20 p.m. -- Junior Free Dance.

* 3:30 p.m. -- Senior Men’s Short Program.

* 7:30 p.m. -- Senior Ladies Short Program.

FRIDAY

* 10:20 a.m. -- Junior Men’s Free Skate.

* 3:40 p.m. -- Senior Free Dance.

* 7 p.m. -- Senior Pairs Free Skate.

SATURDAY

* 11 a.m. -- Senior Men’s Free Skate.

* 4 p.m. -- Senior Ladies Free Skate.

SUNDAY

* 2 p.m. -- Chevy Skating Spectacular.

TV SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES PACIFIC)

* Thursday: ESPN2 -- 8 p.m.-10 p.m. (Pairs Short, Original Dance, Men’s/Ladies Preview).

* Friday: ESPN2 -- 7:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. (Men’s and Ladies Short Programs).

* Saturday: Channel 7 -- 1-3 p.m. (Free Dance, Men’s Free Skate Live); 5-8 p.m. (Pairs Free Skate, Portions of the Ladies Short Program, Ladies Free Skate Live).

* Jan. 23: Channel 7 -- 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Exhibition).

U.S. FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS

A look at the leading medal contenders:

WOMEN

* Michelle Kwan, 24 -- Eight-time U.S. champion needs one more title to tie Maribel Vinson Owen for most in U.S. skating history. Already owns the mark for longest winning streak in U.S. women’s history, seven consecutive. ... Free skate to “Bolero” was choreographed by Christopher Dean. ... Skated in two invitationals, but skipped Grand Prix series. Limited schedule hasn’t hurt in the past, but she would go to the world championships without skating under the new points-based judging system.

* Sasha Cohen, 20 -- Missed the Grand Prix series because of a lingering back injury and was third at both invitationals in which she competed. Left East Coast last month and returned to California, where she’s reunited with former coach John Nicks. But the two had less than three weeks to work together before nationals. ... Free skate to “Pas de Deux” from “The Nutcracker” should be a prime showcase for her.

* Jennifer Kirk, 20 -- Finished eighth in her first invitational, withdrew from Grand Prix event because of injury and finished 10th at Cup of Russia. Rebounded with fourth-place finish at second invitational. ... Switched coaches last summer, now training with former Kwan coach Frank Carroll. ... Won her first medal at nationals last year, a bronze. ... A former ballerina, she danced in the Boston Ballet’s production of “The Nutcracker” four times. And she can still jump with the best.

* Kimmie Meissner, 15 -- First senior nationals makes her a bit of a dark horse, but don’t count her out. Won the U.S. junior title last season with a program that included two triple lutzes -- one in combination with a triple toe loop -- and had all the other triples. Won the novice crown in 2003. ... Second at junior world championships last spring and finished third at this year’s junior Grand Prix final. ... Finished fifth at International Skating Classic, her first competition with the elite skaters.

MEN

* Johnny Weir, 20 -- Hasn’t slowed since surprise victory at nationals last year. Won two Grand Prix events, beating former U.S. champions Tim Goebel and Michael Weiss at NHK and topping world silver medalist Brian Joubert at Trophee Eric Bompard. Second to world champion Evgeni Plushenko at Cup of Russia. ... Qualified for Grand Prix final but withdrew with sprained foot. ... After years of inconsistency, former world junior champion coming into own. Still working to perfect quadruple jump, but rivals Plushenko for artistry and quality of skating. ... Endearingly quirky, not afraid to wear unusual -- some call them garish -- costumes or speak his mind.

* Tim Goebel, 24 -- Olympic bronze medalist got his boot troubles figured out and started strongly with a win at the International Skating Classic and a second at NHK Trophy. Then decided in November to switch coaches, moving cross-country to train with Audrey Weisiger in Virginia. Muscle spasm in side of his back forced him to withdraw at Trophee Eric Bompard and kept him out of second invitational. ... Hasn’t had full season since 2002 because of a variety of injuries.

* Michael Weiss, 28 -- Three-time U.S. champion shows no signs of quitting. ... Won bronze medal at Skate America and was fourth at NHK Trophy. ... Quad and triple axel must be more consistent to score big in new international judging system. ... Has always delighted in bringing edgier side to the sport and does it again with free skate to medley of Led Zeppelin and Metallica.

* Evan Lysacek, 19 -- Made the jump to senior Grand Prix circuit this year, finishing fifth at Skate America and Cup of Russia. Second at Marshalls World Cup of Skating invitational, topping world champion silver medalist Brian Joubert. ... Won his third silver medal at junior world championships last spring.

PAIRS

* Rena Inoue and John Baldwin Jr. -- Defending champions hoping to improve on last year’s struggle. Made three major errors in free skate and were sure they’d cost themselves spot on world team. Were stunned to find they’d won title.

* Tiffany Scott and Philip Dulebohn -- Olympians trying to regain form that produced 2003 U.S. title.

* Katie Orscher and Garrett Lucash -- Surprise silver medalists at last year’s nationals.

DANCE

* Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto -- Defending U.S. champions have made stunning climb in world rankings and now have little American competition. ... Always a crowd favorite, their free dance to gypsy music is a delight. Check out his boots.

* Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov -- Won U.S. silver medal last season after finishing third previous two years.

* Morgan Matthews and Maxim Zavozin -- Two-time U.S. junior champions making the jump to senior ranks this year.