Michelle Kwan Gives Birth to First Child, Shares Photo and Baby's Name

01/06/2022 08:39 am EST

Former Olympic figure skater Michelle Kwan is "overjoyed" to be a mom! The 41-year-old former figure skater announced that she welcomed her first child, a baby girl named Kalista Belle Kwan, following a "challenging...journey to motherhood." The new mom shared the exciting news on Instagram, where she not only revealed her newborn's name, but also shared the first adorable picture of her bundle of joy.

In sharing the news, Kwan wrote in the post, which also included a montage video documenting her growing baby bump throughout her pregnancy, that she was "overjoyed and tears of happiness are streaming down my face as I share the news of the arrival of Kalista Belle Kwan!" Dubbing little Kalista "a perfect miracle," Kwan went on to share that she "always wanted to be a mom," adding that she had a hard time picturing what she might look like yet it seems like she's been in my life forever." She added that it had "been a challenging journey to motherhood (not to mention a very long labor!!!) and I'm glad I never gave up." She said she is "grateful to have had the support of so many during this time, including doctors and nurses who looked after me, friends that shared their stories, and of course, my family & my [heart] who I could not live without."

Prior to Wednesday's birth announcement, Kwan had not shared that she was expecting, sharing that she chose not to do so due to her preference to keep her personal life private. In the post, Kwan explained, "As people closest to me know, I'm always full of surprises and tend to keep my personal life private. And, I've wanted to share this happy news for many months but each milestone seemed to be exciting and daunting at the same time." She went on to share that "each step of the way, I knew that there was still more time needed until I could hold her in my arms."

Kwan concluded her post with a message to her fellow mothers and those struggling to conceive, writing, "I want to send my best to all the moms out there (as we all know, moms rule the world!). And, I wish anyone trying to conceive in any which way (ivf, iui, surrogacy, adoption and naturally) all the success and love. You're not alone on this path and I'm pulling for you."

Kwan's exciting news was met with a flurry of congratulatory messages for the new mom, with one person commenting, "Congratulations Michelle! You're going to be a wonderful mother!!!" another person wrote, "This is so wonderful!!! Congrats to you and your beautiful family." Kwan did not provide details about the baby's father. She was previously married to Coast Guard Lt. Clay Pell, who filed for divorce in 2017 after four years of marriage.

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