Amid the twisted metal and smoldering rubble of Sabena Flight 548 was a copy of the latest edition of Sports Illustrated, its edges charred to tattered flakes.
Still clearly visible on the cover, though, was Laurence Owen, a 16-year-old with a pixie cut and a future as bright as her red skating dress. A year after finishing sixth at the 1960 Olympics, she had just won her first U.S. title and was a favorite for the upcoming world championships, causing SI to declare her "America's most exciting girl skater."
That promise was cut short on Feb. 15, 1961, when she and the rest of the U.S. team were killed in a plane crash while on their way to the world championships in Prague. Eighteen skaters, six coaches, and 10 judges, officials and family members died a few miles short of the Brussels airport, along with the other 27 passengers and crew of 11.