John Zimmerman IV was born in 1973 in Birmingham, Alabama. He started skating at age 3 in a shopping mall. During his eligible competitive career John represented the Birmingham Figure Skating Club. John partnered with Stephanie Stiegler from 1995 through 1998, and won a US National Bronze medal with Stephanie in 1997. During this time John and Stephanie trained at Lake Arrowhead with Peter Oppagard. In 1998 John formed a partnership with Kyoko Ina, and they trained under renowned coaches Tamara Moskvina and Igor Moskvin in Hackensack, NJ. It was while training in Hackensack that John started training alongside Olympic Gold medallist Artur Dimitriev. John credits Artur as being the skater he most admires, and was excited to have some of his choreography done by Artur. John had shoulder surgery in 2000 for a nagging injury and recovered fully in time for the 2001 season.

Of ice John enjoys spending time outdoors and sports such as rock climbing, mountain biking, soccer and roller blading. At one time John competed seriously in baseball as well as skating, but he gave up baseball to pursue his competitive skating ambitions. His favorite sport as a spectator is auto racing. Although he is now based in New Jersey, John retains close ties to his hometown of Birmingham, where a bridge near his high school has been named after him. And he is still a loyal fan of the University of Alabama sports teams!

John takes marketing and business classes at Bergen Community College when he can fit them into his schedule. John was married in the summer of 2003 in Rome to his longtime love, Italian skater Silvia Fontana. John also teaches skating clinics around the country with Silvia, and was one of the Stars on Ice cast that taught at clinics during the 2005 tour.

John has also started a modeling career, and can be seen in photo shoots for Barney's and various designers. John and Silvia appeared on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy in 2004, and have made appearances for Am/FAR, amongst other charities. They recently bought a home in New Jersey, which they share with their two cats.

Zimmerman and Ino

Kyoko and John were paired in the spring of 1998, and made their competitive debut at the World Team Challenge pro-am event in October 1998. In their first season together, Kyoko and John finished 5th at Skate America, 2nd at US Nationals, and qualified for the Grand Prix Finals and World Championships. During their eligible career they trained under renowned coaches Tamara Moskvina and Igor Moskvin at the Ice House in Hackensack, NJ.

Their competitive eligible career reaped many awards and accolades: 3 US National titles, several Grand Prix medals, and a bronze medal at the 2002 World Championships. However, their proudest competitive moment was their 5th place finish at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, performing two electric programs that were both met with standing ovations. Their bronze medal at the World Championships a few weeks later was the first World medal by a US pair since 1998.

Kyoko and John's height differential works to their benefit in their creative trademark moves such as the "candle lift" and" besti squat" spread eagle. Kyoko's flexibility and athleticism coupled with John's theatrical flair creates a dynamism on the ice that thrills audiences around the world.

John and Kyoko turned professional after the 2001/2002 competitive season, and joined the Stars on Ice tour in Winter 2003. As a professional pairs team, they tour the US and Canada for 5 months out of the year, as well as participating in various made for television skating shows and professional competitions. They were featured in an issue of Rolling Stone modeling Capezio clothing, and often participate in Charity functions for the Make A Wish Foundation, among other charities.