Four Unlikely Ice Queens Of The Sixties

They called them the Swinging Sixties. In the era of peace, love, incense and peppermints, five talented women - Carol Heiss, Sjoukje Dijkstra, Petra Burka, Peggy Fleming and Gaby Seyfert - reigned atop the Olympic and World podiums. In a sea of stories, the tales of many talented young women who competed during the period have been sadly overlooked. Today on the blog, we'll revisit the stories of four talented skaters from four different countries who deserve a place in our memories.

MIWA FUKUHARA

Junko Ueno, Carol Heiss and Miwa Fukuhara at the 1960 Winter Olympics

"Beauty is universal, thus the products which serve beauty should also be universal." - Arinobu Fukuhara

Born December 13, 1944 in the metropolitan ward of Ōta in Tokyo, Japan, Miwa Fukuhara trained under Japanese skating legend and 1936 Olympian Etsuko Inada in her youth. The granddaughter of Arinobu Fukuhara, who founded the Apothecary Shiseidō - yes, that Shiseido - in the late nineteenth century, Miwa medalled thrice at the Japanese Championships in the late fifties before finally winning her country's national title in 1960 at the age of fifteen. 

Miwa placed a disappointing twenty first at the 1960 Winter Olympic Games in Squaw Valley but while attending Waseda University and studying western history, she stepped up her game considerably in a short amount of time. She won the Japanese title five consecutive times from 1962 to 1966 and at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innbsruck, placed an incredible fifth. Her result was the best finish ever by a Japanese skater at the Olympics at the time. Miwa was actually in fourth place after the figures at those Games but a disappointing ninth place effort in free skating was what dropped her a spot in the standings. Still, she placed ahead of Peggy Fleming, Christy (Haigler) Krall, Wendy Griner, Hana Mašková, Gaby Seyfert and many other skaters who would make major impacts on the sport in the years that followed. One particularly interesting footnote regarding Miwa's career is that she excelled moreso in figures than free skating: certainly a debunking of the stereotype of Japanese skaters struggling in that discipline of skating during her era.

After winning the Winter Universiade in 1964 in Špindlerův Mlýn, Czechoslovakia and again in Sestriere, Italy in 1966 and amassing five top ten finishes at the World Championships, Miwa turned professional. She won the World Professional Championships in Great Britain and toured with Holiday On Ice. In the late seventies and early eighties starred in the Viva! Ice World shows alongside Nobuo Sato and Minoru Sano at the Prince Hotel in Tokyo. She has coached a number of top Japanese skaters including Junko Yaginuma and Nozomi Watanabe and has acted as head coach at the Meiji Jingu Skating Rink in Shinjuku. Although her family may be in the business of selling beauty that's only skin deep, Miwa's work in creating beauty has left an impression on the sport that will never fade.

ELENA SCHNEGLOVA

Born August 2, 1950 in Moscow, Elena Lvovna Schneglova was only fourteen years old when she placed third at the Soviet Championships behind none other than Tamara Moskvina in 1965. A product of the demanding Soviet sports program, she trained at the Young Pioneers Stadium in Moscow under the watchful eye of Tatiana Tomalcheva. After Tamara Moskvina shifted her focus entirely to pairs skating, Elena emerged as one of the top female Soviet skaters of the late sixties. She won her country's national title in both 1966 and 1968, the Prize Of Moscow News in both 1968 and 1969 and was a competitor at four European Championships, five World Championships and the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. In participating at those Games, Elena and Galina Grzhibovskaya were the first two Soviet or Russian women in history to ever compete in women's figure skating at the Olympic Games. After a twelfth place finish at the 1970 World Championships, she faded into obscurity but her confident style and high flying double Axel certainly demanded the attention of audiences at a time when Soviet women's skaters were making their first impressions on the Olympic stage. At a time when talented young women in the Soviet Union were ushered into pairs skating, she was a unlikely star in singles.

RHODE LEE MICHELSON

Photo courtesy "Skating" magazine

Born March 9, 1943 in Long Beach, California, Rhode Lee Michelson started skating when she was eight years old. After taking lessons from World Champion Jean Westwood, she began working with Jean's ice dance partner Bill Kipp. Rhode Lee was a skater ahead of her time, tackling difficult double Axels and even triple jumps in practice at a time when many of her competitors were quite content skating programs with a much easier degree of difficulty. She also had a reputation as a bit of a 'bad girl'. She mowed down skaters in practice sessions, stayed out late, talked back to her coach and wasn't the least bit shy around the boys: certainly not the typical 'ice princess' of her era. In her wonderful 2010 book "Indelible Tracings", Patricia Shelley Bushman noted, "Club officials rationalized that she would be getting into more trouble if she weren't skating and grudgingly accepted her as a lovable rascal."

Despite not having the typical 'dainty' physique or skating style of many of her contemporaries, there was a certain something about Rhode Lee's style that was majestic in its own way. Though she struggled with school figures, she was a fearless free skater and commanded the attention of audiences and judges alike. After winning the 1958 U.S. novice ladies title, she moved her way up the ranks and placed third and second in the junior women's events at the U.S. Championships in 1959 and 1960. At the 1961 U.S. Championships in Colorado Springs, she climbed all the way from last place to third with a gutsy free skate that featured two double Axel's near the end of her program. After an injury forced her to withdraw from the 1961 North American Championships in Philadelphia, she boarded Sabena Flight 548 enroute to her first World Championships. Along with the rest of the 1961 U.S. Figure Skating Team, her coach Bill Kipp and countless others, she perished on that ill-fated flight. We will never know what trajectory Rhode Lee's career might have taken had she not have boarded that plane, but she lives on in skating's collective memory as one of the most intriguing and exciting young skaters of her era.

SANDRA TEWKESBURY

Photo courtesy "Skating" magazine

"He won the lottery and died the next day." - Alanis Morissette

Born on Valentine's Day in 1942 in Chatham, Ontario, Sandra Gail Tewksebury joined the Chatham Figure Skating Club when it was formed in 1949 and took from coach Leona Beryl Goodman. A precociously talented young skater, she passed the Canadian and American silver dance tests and the Canadian, British and American gold tests in school figures when she was only a pre-teen. In early 1957, she won the senior women's title at the Niagara Invitational Figure Skating Competition in Detroit and finished third in the junior women's event at the Canadian Championships in Winnipeg. It was clear to anyone who was paying attention that the prodigious youngster from Chatham was going places.

Making the hop, skip and jump into the senior ranks in 1959, she won the Western Ontario Sectional Championships and the bronze medal at the Canadian Figure Skating Championships in Noranda, Quebec behind Carole Jane Pachl and Karen Dixon. At the subsequent North American Championships in Toronto, she placed in the top five in her international debut and was the top Canadian woman at that event. At the World Championships in Colorado Springs, she placed an impressive tenth, again the top finisher among the three Canadian women entered. Not bad for a sixteen year old who hailed from a skating club that had never produced a medallist at the Canadian Championships until she came on the scene.

All seemed lost for Sandra when at the 1960 Canadian Championships in Regina, she finished off the podium in a disappointing fifth place. The "Montreal Gazette" reported that at those Nationals, "Miss Tewkesbury, skating for the last several months with a bandaged foot to support weak ligaments, messed up a high-factor figure in the first part of the program and never recovered." She was not named to the 1960 World team but CFSA officials had faith in the injured young skater and gave her a winning lottery ticket of sorts: a coveted spot on the 1960 Winter Olympic team.

At the Squaw Valley Olympics, seventeen year old Sandra started the school figures in twelfth, worked her way up to eighth and dropped to tenth place after the free skating. Considering her result at the Canadian Championships, being the top Canadian woman in that event, placing in the top ten in one of her first international competitions and defeating sixteen other skaters - including future World Medallists Wendy Griner and Nicole Hassler - was nothing to sneeze at.

Sandra retired at seventeen, married a former newspaper ad man named Gary Ritchie and took a job teaching skating at the Guelph Figure Skating Club. Driving alone on a highway just outside of Guelph on June 5, 1962, her car collided with a vehicle driven by forty seven year old James Nichol of Rockwood. Both were taken to a Guelph hospital: Nichol with minor injuries and Sandra with critical injuries after being pinned in her car. Nichol survived; Sandra and her unborn child were pronounced dead five hours after being admitted. She was only twenty years old at the time of her untimely death. Inducted into Chatham Sports Hall of Fame 1986 and the Skate Canada Western Ontario Section Hall Of Fame in 2015, Sandra's death is a tragedy often forgotten in correlation with the timing of the Sabena Crash that claimed the lives of Rhode Lee Michelson and the entire U.S. Figure Skating team only a year before. In talking about her story, we can keep the memory of a brilliant young star gone far too soon alive.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Australia's Pioneering Pair: The Jackie Mason And Mervyn Bower Story

Australia made its debut at the Winter Olympic Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany in 1936, when Ken Kennedy, a speed skater, formed the country's team of one. He didn't even have a coach with him. It wouldn't be until the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo that Australian figure skaters would make their first appearance. It was an inauspicious debut. Adrian Swan finished in tenth place among the men and neither of the women's competitors that year managed to make the top ten. It wouldn't be until the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, Australia that an Australian pairs team would first compete in the Games and the story of how those two skaters made that happen is truly an incredible one.

Born January 12, 1934 and November 27, 1936 respectively, Mervyn John Bower and his partner Jacqueline 'Jackie' Mason both hailed from Sydney, Australia. They burst on the scene in 1950, winning their first of an incredible twelve Australian national titles. As was the case with many promising Australian skaters at the time, they divided their training time between Australia (where they trained under the watchful eye of Cubby Lyons and Jackie's mother) and Great Britain. While in England, the duo actually became the first Australian couple to earn the National Skating Association's gold test in pairs skating. They also twice earned medals at the British Championships, finishing third behind Jennifer and John Nicks in 1952 and Joyce Coates and Anthony Holles in 1956.

At the 1952 World Figure Skating Championships in Paris, France, Jackie and Mervyn made history once again by becoming the very first Australian pairs team ever to compete at the World Championships. They placed a disappointing ninth, but if eighth place ordinals from the Austrian, German and Swiss judges softened the blow, words of encouragement and praise from none other than Dick Button himself bolstered their resolve to continue.

Balancing their travels between England and Australia and Jackie's studies at the Kambala School in Rose Bay, New South Wales wasn't an easy task but the team stayed together through thick and thin. Jackie even began training as a judge while she was still competing. Fending off challenges year after year from other Australian teams like Gloria Aiken and Bob Watson, they kept their eye on their next goal: being the first pairs team to represent Australia at the Winter Olympic Games.

In early 1956, Jackie and Mervyn sailed from Australia to Italy aboard the S.S. Himalaya. A train ride later, they were Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy and ready to make their Olympic debut on the ice of the Stadio Olimpico Del Ghiaccio. They weren't even on the ice for five minutes when disaster struck. The January 25, 1956 issue of "The Argus" reported, "The two skaters were on the ice... for less than two minutes when Mervyn, on a back glide, crashed into the wooden rim of the rink, fracturing an ankle bone." Doctors advised Mervyn not to skate on his swollen, fractured left ankle for at least ten days and despite initial optimism, four years of hard work and steady improvement went out the window when the team was reluctantly forced to withdraw. Determined to make the most of their trip to Europe, they bravely competed in the 1956 World Championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen despite Mervyn's injury. They finished eleventh and last, despite the efforts of an obviously patriotic Australian judge who placed them in a tie for sixth with Americans Lucille Ash and Sully Kothman... when no other judge had them higher than ninth.

Rather than give up on their Olympic dream, the pioneering pair from Sydney decided to stick it out for the long haul. At the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, they triumphantly made a return to international competition and earned their rightful place in the history books as the first Australian pairs skaters to compete at the Games. They finished twelfth of thirteen teams competing, right behind future two time Olympic Gold Medallists Ludmila and Oleg Protopopov and Americans Maribel Yerxa Owen and Dudley Richards and Ila Ray and Ray Hadley, who tragically perished in the Sabena Crash the following year.

Ice cream on ice!

In July 1960, Jackie married John Kendall-Baker, the manager of the Prince Alfred Park outdoor rink in Sydney. Mervyn was the couple's usher. After her marriage, she continued to compete with Mervyn for another four years, though not internationally. Mervyn ultimately turned to professional skating, performing in Pat Gregory's shows on The Tivoli Circuit and later opening a gift business called Baskets With Love. Jackie went on to become an international figure skating judge. Among her international assignments were the women's event at the 1979 World Championships and the pairs events at the 1980 Winter Olympics and 1981 World Championships. Both Jackie and Mervyn were among the first group of inductees to Ice Skating Australia's Hall Of Fame in 2004. Jackie's daughter, Simone Moore, was a former national level competitor in the late seventies and early eighties. She grew up to become the youngest Australian judge ever appointed to judge internationally and was a survivor of 2007 Merinda tragedy. Mervyn passed away in 2013; Jacqueline on April 9, 2020. In a March 29, 2007 interview in "The Australian", Jackie spoke about some of the unique challenges of being an Australian skater competing internationally in the fifties and sixties. She lamented that the long sea voyages from Australia to Europe were one of the greatest setbacks, owing to lost training time. "You can't skate on a ship," she aptly noted. Water, water all around and not a drop to skate on... isn't that how the old saying goes?

The time that this team dedicated - over a decade of their lives - to putting Australian pairs skating on the map was simply incredible. Whether they won a medal or not, they deserve our respect for sticking with it and pursuing their dreams. That's what it's all about, isn't it?

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

The 1967 Canadian Figure Skating Championships

Photo courtesy Cynthia Miller

Lester B. Pearson was Canada's Prime Minister, the cost of a dozen eggs was thirty eight cents and Aretha Franklin was busy rehearsing her soon to be number one hit "Respect". From January 25 to 29 of that year - 1967 - Canada's best figure skaters gathered in Toronto, Ontario to compete for laurels at the Canadian Figure Skating Championships.

A gaggle of great champions at the Varsity Arena. Photo courtesy Valerie (Jones) Bartlett.

The event, which was sponsored by the University, Leaside and Lakeshore Clubs, had been scheduled to be held at the Maple Leaf Gardens, but due to a scheduling conflict was moved to the Varsity Arena and Lakeshore Lions Memorial Arena at the last minute. Judges sat on chairs on the ice throughout the competition and skaters from the B.C. Section cleaned house when it came to medals. Let's take an in-depth look at how things played out!

Photo courtesy Cynthia Miller

THE NOVICE AND JUNIOR EVENTS

Patrick McKilligan

Multiple panel judging was used for the novice and junior singles events. Four foot eight Patrick McKilligan, the younger brother of senior pairs skaters Betty and John McKilligan, might have been the smallest of the eleven novice men's competitors, but what he lacked in size, he made up for in strength. Capitalizing on the mistakes of the two young men placed above him in figures, he moved up to claim the gold medal with a free program that featured Axels in both directions, a double flip and Lutz.

Sandra and Val Bezic (left) and Louise (Lind) and Barry Soper (right). Photo courtesy "Skating magazine.

Louise (Lind) and Barry Soper, students at the University Of British Columbia who had only been skating together for three months, were unanimously first in novice dance. Also unanimously first were novice pairs champions Sandra and Val Bezic. At ten and fourteen, Sandra and Val dreamed representing Canada at the World Championships in both singles and pairs like another famous Canadian sibling team, Constance and Bud Wilson. Despite a fall in her free skate, Mary McCaffrey took the gold in the novice women's event, ahead of Cynthia Miller and Diane Hall. Another McCaffrey - Jill of the Burnaby Skating Club - was the winner of the free skate, but was only able to move up to fifth after placing an unlucky thirteenth in figures.

Mary Jane Oke and Victor Irving (left) and Donna Taylor and Bruce Lennie (right). Photo courtesy "Skating magazine.

With first place ordinals with five of the seven judges, Mary Jane Oke and Victor Irving topped Mary Petrie and Bob McAvoy in junior pairs. The junior dance title went to Donna Taylor and Bruce Lennie. Bob Emerson moved up from second after figures to claim the junior men's title, besting early leader David Coffin - who landed two double Axels - four judges to one. Only three ordinals separated the top four skaters in the junior women's event. With a dazzling free skate that included a double flip and Lutz, Heather Fraser of the Victoria Figure Skating Club managed to close the gap on Diana Williams' thirty point lead over her in figures to clinch the title.

THE PAIRS COMPETITION

Betty and John McKilligan. Photo courtesy Toronto Public Library, from Toronto Star Photographic Archive. Reproduced for educational purposes under license permission.

In a practice prior to the compulsory pairs program, siblings Betty and John McKilligan got their skates tangled following a lift, with Betty severing a tendon in her right toe. Though she was walking with a limp and grimacing in pain, the talented pair managed to soldier through both of their programs in Toronto. Though Betty struggled on some of the side-by-side jumping passes, the talented twosome was still ranked first by six of the seven judges. Another sibling team, Alexis and Chris Shields, were disappointed to be placed second after being in the runner-up position to the retired Susan and Paul Huehnergard the previous two years. They took solace in the fact that no less a skating authority than Donald B. Cruikshank had them ranked first. Anna Forder and Richard Stephens rounded out the three pair field, impressing the audience with a reverse overhead lift and showing great improvement.

Valerie (Jones) Merrick recalled an important historical footnote that related to the pairs event: "Mr. [Sheldon] Galbraith brought his video replay equipment to these Championships. This was the first time there was instant replay equipment. This was perhaps an indication of what future judging would include with the current judging system... Up until the summer of 1966, Mr. Galbraith used 8mm and 16mm films that took time to be developed before we could analyse and study our work.  Mr. Galbraith was so happy when we were able to analyse an element instantly. His first video equipment was an Ampex 3/4 inch reel to reel recorded.  The recording unit was very heavy and had to be carried by two people, usually two of Mr. Galbraith's pair skaters. This equipment travelled with us to our practices at Canadians and North Americans in 1967. During the figure event in Canadians I had the opportunity to watch my skate as soon as the marks were given.  This was truly the beginning of a very electronic based IJS that we watch today. There was a controversy regarding a circular step in the senior pairs event. After the marks were awarded, he was asked to replay that portion to the referee of the event to clarify if the circular step performed was indeed a complete 360 degree circle. It did not affect the scores."

THE ICE DANCE COMPETITION

Joni Graham and Don Phillips. Photo courtesy "Skating" magazine.

After the compulsory dances, the four teams who competed were separated by only nine points. In the absence of the previous year's champions Carole Forrest and Kevin Lethbridge, the leaders were 1966 junior champions Joni Graham and Don Phillips, who represented the Kerrisdale Figure Skating Club in British Columbia. With a showy free dance, Graham and Phillips managed to defeat the previous year's bronze medallists, Judy Henderson and John Bailey of the Weston Skating Club, five judges to two. Wayne Palmer, who'd finished second the year prior with Gail Snyder, took the bronze with his new partner Maureen Peever in another five-two split with fourth place finishers Dale Newmarch and Bryce Swetnam of the Capilano Winter Club.

THE MEN'S COMPETITION

Donald Knight

1967 marked the fourth year in a row that Donald Knight, Dr. Charles Snelling and Jay Humphry stood on the podium together at the Canadian Championships. Though the faces were the same, the skating the fourth time around was a little bit different. Previously, Knight (who'd won the previous two years) had been regarded as somewhat of a figure specialist who relied heavily on his early leads to coast to victory... a male Trixi Schuba if you will. Things were much the same in that regard at this particular event. Knight won the school figures, some eighty five points ahead of Humphry and one hundred and thirty three ahead of Snelling. However, his free skate in Toronto showed a remarkable improvement over the ones he'd given the three previous years. He wisely chose to leave the triple Salchow out of his program and landed two double Axels and two double Lutzes in his clean and confident performance. He earned a huge ovation from the six thousand spectators and unanimous first place marks from the seven judges. Not only did Knight win his third consecutive Canadian title, but he won the free skate for the first time. Humphry missed a triple toe-loop early in his free skate but managed to retain second position ahead of Snelling, who received his lone second place vote from judge William Lewis, one of his earliest rivals. David McGillvray, who finished fourth due to his placement in figures, landed a triple toe-loop in his free skate. Toller Cranston, Steve Hutchinson and Joey Summerfield rounded out the seven man field.

THE WOMEN'S COMPETITION

Valerie Jones and Donald Knight receiving the Minto and Devonshire Cups from Bert Penfold. Photo courtesy Cynthia Miller.

"There are so many things I still have to learn," Petra Burka told reporter Margaret Phillips. She was referring to her evolution as a skater since turning professional and leaving the Canadian women's crown up for grabs. Burka's logical successor was Valerie Jones, who had been her runner-up at the Championships the two previous years in Calgary and Peterborough. Though Jones surprised no one when she took a strong lead in the figures, she faced considerable competition in the free skate from fourteen year old Karen Magnussen, who had almost beaten Burka in the free skate the year prior in Peterborough when she made her senior debut.

Women's medallists. Photo courtesy Valerie (Jones) Bartlett.

Jones landed two double Lutzes and flips but omitted her double Axel in the free skate. She recalled, "I skated a free program that included a vocal at the end, which was the first time a vocal was used for a competitive program. There was no rule other than the time requirements for programs at that time. I think everyone was very surprised. I didn't really hear any great concern at Canadians... I think Mr. Galbraith was held in high regard here. There were more questions about the vocal in Montreal [at the North American Championships] with the Americans. I remember Tina Noyes saying to me at the first practice 'you aren’t really skating to a vocal are you?'. There was a quite a bit more discussion when we got to Europe.  The only rule was that Ladies had to skate to four minutes of music plus or minus ten seconds. There was no specification as to what form of music. The normal program selection for skaters at that time was classical music that began with fast music, then a slower tempo/lyrical piece and then a quicker tempo for the last piece. Mr. Galbraith decided to be a bit radical with me and chose a very slow opening that began to build in tempo in the middle and then end with the vocal.  His strategy was perhaps not the best!  I didn't help by making mistakes during my skate in Vienna. The ISU made a clear statement when they created the rule forbidding vocals in competition after Vienna. I must add that I was quite protected during the events from hearing any negative remarks about my music. I guess my little bit of history was that I was responsible for a rule that lasted almost fifty years and it was the last free skate in a World competition outdoors. I drew last to skate and the ladies were the last event."\

Left: Karen Magnussen. Right: Valerie Jones. Photos courtesy Toronto Public Library, from Toronto Star Photographic Archive. Reproduced for educational purposes under license permission.

Karen Magnussen again electrified the crowd in Toronto, landing three double Axels before skipping a fourth when she came too close to the boards and earning four 5.9's for her effort. She won the free skate, but when the marks from figures were factored in, Jones was the unanimous winner. The bronze medal went to Roberta Laurent of the Cricket Club, who faltered on both a double Axel and double Lutz. She was beaten in the free skate by Linda Carbonetto, who skated a performance that rivalled Magnussen's and featured the competition's only triple jump - a Salchow. 

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Acting And Axels: The Thornton Coolidge Story

The son of Dr. Algernon and Amy (Lothrop Peabody) Coolidge, Jr. and Amy (Lothrop) Peabody Coolidge, Thornton Kirkland Lothrop Coolidge was born October 11, 1906 in Boston, Massachusetts.
His father was a highly respected laryngologist who served as the Dean of Harvard University's Graduate School Of Medicine and the Chief of the Department Of Laryngology at Massachusetts General Hospital. Thornton and his two older siblings in a Victorian brownstone home on Commonwealth Avenue in Boston, in the affluent Back Bay neighborhood. The family's needs were attended to by a live-in cook, waitress and chambermaid. The Coolidge's were devout Episcopals and parishioners at Boston's historic Trinity Church.

Thornton's father, Dr. Algernon Coolidge

Educated privately at Milton Academy, Thornton was first encouraged to pursue figure skating seriously by George Henry Browne, the headmaster at Browne and Nichols School. He joined both the Skating Club Of Boston and Cambridge Skating Club and began taking lessons from Willie Frick. In the mid twenties, Mr. Frick paired Thornton with Maribel Vinson, a talented skater five years younger than him. Thornton was Maribel's first partner... and his only pairs partner.

Together, the talented duo won the Cambridge Skating Club's pairs title and U.S. junior pairs title in 1927. The following two years, they were America's senior pairs champions and in 1929, Maribel and Thornton claimed the bronze medal at the North American Championships ahead of Dorothy Weld and Richard L. Hapgood, losing out to Canadian siblings Constance and Bud Wilson and their training mates, Theresa Weld Blanchard and Nathaniel Niles. When Thornton and Maribel won their second U.S. title that same winter, one Associated Press reporter wrote, "This pair, repeating their victory of last year, excelled in speed, executed their figures in perfect unison and then produced a number of rhythmic movements that were judged [to be the best]."

Maribel Vinson and Thornton Coolidge

Unlike Maribel, who of course went on to dedicate her entire life to figure skating, Thornton hung up his skates "for good" in 1929. He'd graduated with a Bachelor Of Arts from Harvard University the previous year, devoting much of his free time to the  Pierian Sodality, Harvard Glee Club and Harvard Musical Club while attending the ivy league school. His true aspirations centered around acting and singing, and he went to Europe to study theater abroad. He happened to be in London in 1931 when Maribel came over to visit the Richmond and Park Lane rinks. She wrote in "Skating" magazine, "Unfortunately he had to be out of town during most of my time here, but we skated at Park Lane one day and gave an impromptu exhibition of our old pair, which we had not skated for two years. We were so amazed at our nerve that we nearly perished of laughter, but outside of that and a couple of complete lapses of memory, it really wasn't so bad, considering! Thornton seems to be skating quite well and certainly is amazingly adaptable. I hope to see him at St. Moritz for a week, unless his singing duties are too pressing."

Thornton ultimately returned to America and began acting in a series of plays at the Henry Street Theatre and Carmel Summer Theatre in New York. In 1933, he appeared at The Rockridge Indoor Theatre, acting alongside a then up-and-coming Tyrone Power. In 1934, he played Beau Brummell in the play "Mad Lover", based on the life of Lord Byron, at the Punch and Judy Theatre in Chicago. In 1935, he acted alongside Noël Coward in the Millbrook Theatre's presentation of "The Vortex", a controversial three-act play about sex and drugs in England during World War I. His final effort, in January 1936, was an English adaptation of Georges Berr and Louis Verneuil's French play "Mon crime".

Photo courtesy Boston Public Library

Less than three months later, Thornton returned to Boston, where he passed away on April 8, 1936 at his parents home at the age of twenty nine after a three week illness. His older brother had died in his twenties as well, and we can only speculate as to what the future might have held for this ambitious and talented young man whose life was cut short.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Figurno Pŭrzalyane: Exploring Bulgaria's Fascinating Skating History

During his reign as Prince Of Bulgaria from 1879 to 1886, Alexander of Battenburg opened an ice rink on a frozen marsh outside of Sofia. A nephew of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, he learned to skate as a child with the instruction of a private tutor and developed a lifelong affection for the exercise. When he officially opened the rink, he purportedly declared, "Long live our skating rink!"

Alexander of Battenburg, Prince Of Bulgaria

In 1901, an instructional book was penned offering instructions to Bulgarian skaters and following World War I, the sport enjoyed a boom of popularity in the country in the roaring twenties. One of the earliest documented skaters of great talent in the country was a lawyer named Miloslav Bogdanov, who went by the pseudonym Dr. Diodono when travelling abroad. In the Bulgarian newspaper "24 Chasa", George Kanazirski-Verin recalled him as "tall, skinny, always unshaven [and] extremely nervous... The lawyer felt safe only on the ice. He is the first Bulgarian who tried to bring together skating and art... He tried jumps, pirouettes and loops. On the ice at Eagle Bridge he slithered tirelessly from early morning to late night, made some dangerous figures, [and] though they lacked grace, [he] still raised eyebrows among numerous audiences around the lake."

A month after a skating society was formed in Sofia in January 1929, the country held its first figure skating competition a lake in the Knyaz-Borisova gradina park in Sofia by the light of kerosene lanterns. Visits from a troupe of touring ice acrobats and Olympic Gold Medallist Nikolay Panin helped further boost interest in the sport in the years that followed. Although thousands took to the ice in the Bulgarian capital prior to World War II, like in Yugoslavia a lack of artificial ice rinks and expert instruction ultimately slowed the development of the sport to a snail's pace during and after the War.

However, on September 6, 1949, the Bulgarian Skating Federation was established as part of the Bulgarian Committee of Physical Culture And Sports and five years later, the first Bulgarian Figure Skating Championships were held on a frozen cycling track in Sofia. In 1960, the country's first artificial rink was constructed at the Druzhba Stadium in Dobrich. A meeting between Bulgarian and Yugoslavian authorities in 1965 led to the development of the country's first international competition, the Sofia Cup. Two years later, the Bulgarian Skating Federation became a member of the International Skating Union.

Commemorative pin from the 1991 European Championships in Sofia

Although Bulgarian skaters did participate in international competitions in the late sixties, it wouldn't be until 1979 when Margarita Dimitrova would become the first skater from Bulgaria to compete at the European Championships. She placed an unceremonious twenty eighth of twenty nine competitors. In 1984, ice dancers Hristina Boyanova and Yavor Ivanov became the country's first skaters to compete at the World Championships and Winter Olympics. Their results were sadly equally disappointing.

By the nineties, Bulgaria was marking its mark on the skating world. It played host to both the 1991 and 1996 European Championships and Ivan Dinev, the late Viktoria Dimitrova, Zvetelina Abrasheva, Sofia Penkova and Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviyski gave the country representation in the figure skating competitions at three consecutive Olympic Games. At the 1999 World Championships, Ivan Dinev became the first Bulgarian skater to land a quadruple jump in international competition.

Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviyski at the Bulgarian Federation's fiftieth anniversary in 1999

In 2003, Denkova and Staviyski became the first skaters from Bulgaria to medal at both the European and World Championships. In 2006, they again made history as the country's first - and to date, only - World Champions. Although Bulgaria may be a relative 'new kid on the block' as compared to many other European countries in the skating world, the country's skating history is nothing short of fascinating.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Demorest The Drunk Skater

The date was February 9, 1869, the place the Brooklyn Rink in New York and the event in question the Championships Of America. E.T. Goodrich and Frank Swift were both scheduled to compete, and in the days preceding the competition, weather and ice conditions had been favourable... but on the morning of the ninth, a wicked rain storm kicked up and a decision was reached to postpone the competition. Unfortunately, as there were no phone tree's or Twitter back in those days, not everyone was aware of the event's cancellation .So in the cold February rain, hundreds of Brooklyn residents flocked to the rink anyway. They took their skating seriously back in those days, didn't they?

Goodrich and Swift had both made the damp trek to the Brooklyn Rink despite the competition's cancellation, so they gave short exhibitions of their specialities... figures with names like grapevines, Mercury scuds and locomotives. Afterwards, the soggy ice was opened for skating to the general public, which included members of both the New York and Brooklyn Clubs. While many troupers took to the ice, others were content to continue to watch the best skaters from the sidelines.

An 1860's skating carnival in Brooklyn. Photo courtesy Museum Of The City Of New York.

Among those in attendance was a nineteenth century ice comedian named Jimmy Demorest who took it upon himself to lighten up a rather dreary situation. The February 20, 1869 issue of the "New York Clipper" explained how it all went down: "Apropos of Jimmy, an amusing incident occurred during the evening, of which he was the hero. Demorest's abilities as a comic skater coming to the ears of Mr. M. Chichester, superintendent of the rink, that gentleman procured an old suit of clothes for our hero, and proposed that he should go on the ice as a drunken man. To carry out the joke, it was determined to let no one in the secret, not even the policemen who had been detailed to preserve order on that particular evening. Accordingly, Jimmy rigged himself in a private room, got out of the window, and was let into the rink by a back door. Swift had just left the ice, the music had ceased, when a little stir at the lower end of the rink and several voices in angry dispute attracted attention to that direction. Presently a loaferish looking, half tipsy sort of chap tumbled on the ice, and commenced to gyrate in the most comical manner. The spectators laughed at the antics of the stranger, while others cried 'Put him out!' Superintendent Chichester, who was conveniently at hand, started after the intruder, but the fellow was too spry for him, and after several ineffectual attempts to lay hands on him, which were provocative of much merriment, Chichester called on the police officers to remove him. The metropolitans advanced on the chap with an air which seemed to convey that they had an easy job on hand. Demorest had, in the meantime, been 'wobbling' round, part of the time in the water and again trying to preserve his balance, his amusements all the time being of the most amusing character. As the over-vigilant guardians of the peace advanced with drawn clubs, Demorest dodged them very successfully, much to their chagrin. Finally, the farce being played out, Jimmy left the ice, and much to the surprise of the spectators and greatly to the disgust of the officers, slipped his coat and hat off and proceeded to the gentlemen's room. As he passed through the crowd and the people began to realize the fact that they had been sold, Demorest was greeted with applause."

This wasn't the only 'sell' back in those days. Back in 2015, we explored the story of how Callie C. Curtis donned his finest drag and successfully pulled the wool over the eyes of audiences and judges alike by entering women's skating competitions. Early American skating history in particular is peppered with many accounts of confidence tricksters such as these - rink owners and event organizers working with skaters - to manufacture publicity stunts which drew in spectators. In this particular case, it seemed to work!

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

#Unearthed: An Inside Look At An Olympic Journey

When you dig through skating history, you never know what you will unearth. In the spirit of cataloguing fascinating tales from skating history, #Unearthed is a once a month 'special occasion' on Skate Guard where fascinating writings by others that are of interest to skating history buffs are excavated, dusted off and shared for your reading pleasure. From forgotten fiction to long lost interviews to tales that have never been shared publicly, each #Unearthed is a fascinating journey through time. This month's #Unearthed comes to you from a now defunct online magazine devoted to (mainly Canadian) figure skating history called "Skating Through Time", which was online in the late nineties. Enjoy reading the late Sheldon Galbraith's chronicle of his time coaching the late Olympic Gold Medallist Barbara Ann Scott!

Barbara Ann Scott. Photo courtesy Library And Archives Canada.

"AN INSIDE LOOK AT AN OLYMPIC JOURNEY" (SHELDON GALBRAITH)

The first time I saw Barbara Ann Scott was in Montreal during school figures of the Canadian Championships of 1941.

I was in Montreal skating with the Ice Follies - a travelling professional ice show. I was working under Fran Claudet's watchful eye doing a shadow pair with my brother Murray Galbraith and skating in three group numbers. Little did I know that only 5 years later, after a stint in the US Naval Air Corps as a flight instructor, I would be called upon to coach Barbara Ann Scott at the Minto Skating Club in Ottawa, Canada. Barbara Ann was a delight to train. Her goals were to attain the highest degree of skill the opportunities afforded. Hard work was not a problem - for Barbara it was a labour of love.

When I first arrived at the Minto club my teeth were chattering with the cold. Barbara Ann was going about her figures as if it was just another day at the office! All around me the steel beams inside the corrugated walls of the building were covered with white frost! Such were the training facilities of the time! Amazingly, even with these types of rinks, North American skaters were generally known in Europe as "hot house skaters" -- some hot house! I should explain why I was so cold - on my flight from San Francisco I had abandoned my luggage in order to make connections in Chicago. I had no winter clothing for rinks such as this one. Barbara Ann's mother, Mrs. Clyde Scott noticed my lack of proper attire and took me shopping to purchase the necessary warm clothing.

It was only a few weeks later I would accompany Barbara Ann to the 1947 European Championships. The Minto Club now had to arrange for a leave of absence as I had just been hired as the Club's coach! It was Barbara Ann’s faith and trust in me as her coach that made this trip possible and allowed me to learn first hand what world class skating was about. Barbara Ann Scott was already a world class skater!

The official Canadian figure skating contingent sent to Europe in 1947 consisted of only four persons. Mrs. Clyde Scott as chaperone,
Mr. Donald Cruikshank as judge and team manager, who would join us later, Barbara Ann Scott and myself - Sheldon Galbraith as coach. Betty Caldwell, a friend of Barbara Ann’s would accompany her on the trip. This close knit group managed to deal with the problems encountered and lend support to the project.

The flight over the Atlantic Ocean was in a converted Lancaster bomber used by Trans-Canada Airlines and it took us 17 hours to fly to Prescott, Scotland! Heavy fog delayed the flight for an additional 8 hours or so. We finally arrived in London, England over a full day after our original departure from Montreal.

We stayed overnight in London and set out the next morning for another days travel through Zurich and Landquart to arrive at our final destination, Davos Dorf, Switzerland. Due to the haste of our departure from Canada we had overlooked some rather important details - money in foreign currencies! We had not cashed our travelers checks - so had no Swiss Francs for the train fare.The Belvedere Hotel manager, Toni Morosani, met us at the train station and paid our fare. The Belvedere hotel itself was only heated on two floors and one wing as tourist travel had been greatly curtailed by currency restrictions and the effect of World War II.

Mr. George Hasler, the president of the Schlittschuh club of Davos and the secretary of the ISU, made us feel welcome and invited Barbara Ann to use the facilities of the club for her training. The early morning training took place at Davos Dorf because the sun came up from behind the mountains an hour earlier than in Davos Platz. Barbara Ann’s hair and scarf were ringed with frost from her breath being frozen onto her clothing. Such was the morning practice period.

The ice was so hard and slow on some mornings, that I had to rub my flight boots over her tracings (ala curler’s brooms) to bring her home to figure center. She kept right at it until the glide eventually came. All this was good training for what was yet to come in the European Championships.

She soon attracted many of the towns' people and their children. After training was over for the day, Barbara Ann would play with them doing spirals, shoot the duck, follow the leader and a mild form of crack the whip. She genuinely loved children and they naturally took to her. Someone new to play with!

It was here at Davos that the first major post war European Championships were held. The Championships of both 1947 and 1948 were open to North Americans, there was the feeling that too few skaters would be entered. However when the titles went abroad to North America - it became a closed event.

There were many obstacles placed in Barbara Ann's path - not by the competitors alone, but by judges (not in the competition) and some coaches getting into the act, however that is another story - it is suffice to say that these obstacles were overcome!

While training at Ottawa, it became evident to me that Barbara Ann was capable of deep concentration and effort. She would train the facet of the facet and come away with glee that she had accomplished her purpose.

To give you a picture of this lady's prowess and spirit - she was in third place at noon time on the first day of figures, at those European Championships of 1947.

The competitors skated 12 figures in the outdoor open air in those days of competition. The sky was clouded over with a milky cover and it was difficult to see one's tracing. Barbara Ann had to wear dark sunglasses, but even this was not enough, her eyes watered from the high altitude and snow glare. The judges also experienced similar problems when trying to view the tracings of her figures as well.

Barbara Ann found herself in 3rd place after the first three figures of the twelve to be performed. She needed to pull up. To accomplish this, after lunch was over, she skated her next counter figure under the balcony in front of the main building where everyone, including the audience, could see the result! The marks started going in her favour.

I remember remarking to Barbara; "you won that figure by 3.5 points". She said "that is not enough". The next figure - I said "you won that by 5.6! "That's not enough" was the answer. On the following figure I said "you are ahead now by 7.8" - the answer, once again- "that’s still not enough". On and on it went like this. She won by 42 points with only 7 judges and coming from behind! This girl's stamina and endurance with such a high degree of skill was remarkable.

On the second day the opposition were falling by the wayside. The weather had not improved, but the appreciation for her abilities and skills certainly had!

A short time later on a bright sunny day, Barbara Ann would perform her free skate and win the first of her two European Championship titles!

The spectators for this and all of the skating events were seated in the overlooking balcony of the main building and at each end of the ice surface high atop packed snow watered to freeze with boards set so that seats could be placed upon them. The huge ice surface was ringed with boardwalks for standing and seating space as well. On this day, because the weather had co-operated, the place was jam-packed!

Our trip to the 1947 World Championships took us back through Zürich and London then on to Copenhagen and our final destination Stockholm, Sweden.

The trip was marred by the tragic news that an airplane had crashed in Copenhagen while taking off all on board had been killed.

The opera singer Grace Moore and an entire soccer team perished in the accident. A locking block on the tailplane elevator (used to protect the linkages from being damaged by wind gusts when on the ground) had been left in place preventing the pilot from adjusting the climb attitude of the plane. Placement of this block was a normal procedure in parking airplanes at that time.

Upon our arrival at Stockholm, we found we were to be billeted at the Grand Hotel Saltsjebaden – 40 kilometers away from the training site.

We made immediate changes in our plans and decided to stay at the Continental Hotel in town to be closer. This posed a new problem – cancelled reservations had to be paid for. That was left to the Canadian Figure Skating Association (now called Skate Canada) and Mr. Donald Cruikshank.

Also staying at the hotel were Wimbledon tennis champions, Donald Budge and Bobby Riggs who were on a tour giving exhibitions. Later, when time permitted Barbara Ann and I went to see them play. That brought about a surprising situation. We arrived after a hurried dinner and found several seats on the 50-yard line empty! What a break! So we sat down to enjoy the match.

We soon found from the looks and stares of people in the audience that something was awry. We were in the Royal Box! We promptly moved and there were signs of approval all about us!

Dinners in Stockholm were the evening's entertainment and breakfast stretched out far too long for our liking, with the shortest being about two hours and a ritual in process!

Finally, everything started falling into place and we were on our way to the training site, an open air rink with a large ice surface surrounded by a 400 meter speed skating oval and seating on all sides and ends. We were told it held 27,000 people and was filled to capacity for speed skating events.

The ice rink caretakers were very proud and particular about their ice! To gain access to the figure skating area, one had to pass over the speed skater’s track. Once indoctrinated on the proper procedures, the figure skaters adapted to the caretakers rules and peace prevailed, but not for long...

Imagine our surprise upon arriving one morning to find the figure practice ice blocked by a sawhorse with a giant 7 foot guard standing beside it! This was to block off a large portion of the surface for the exclusive use of the Swedish Champion who had formerly been the European Champion, but had decided not to defend her title at Davos in the 1947 Championship that Barbara Ann Scott had won. This obstacle too was overcome!

During this training period many friends contributed their well wishes and support. Among them Howard Nicholson with whom I had trained for my gold test, gave special attention to preparing me to this task. ie. How to skate figures outdoors in the windy conditions. He also provided me with several famous names to call upon for help. People such as Per Cock-Clausen a well-known sportsman and skater from Denmark, Bror Meyer of Norway – who could have been world champion if he had retained his amateur status and Ulrich Salchow.

One day, while practicing figures, Mr. Ulrich Salchow, (of the jump named after him) former World champion and a group of three approached Barbara Ann's figure patch. He introduced himself and his friends to me. I then called Barbara Ann over and introduced her to everyone. Mr. Salchow was a very friendly man and made some complimentary remarks about Barbara Ann and the good word going around about her skating at the European Championships.

Barbara Ann Scott and Sheldon Galbraith. Photo courtesy Library And Archives Canada.

He also gave some sage advice and helpful hints on how to navigate the backward double three-paragraph figure. I asked Barbara Ann to skate the figure and include the technique Mr. Salchow had suggested. After several tries, she found the advice helpful, but the World Championship competition was too close at hand to change at this time, so we promised to include it in her practice routine when we got home. This was done as promised during the next summers training.

Soon after this meeting, the 1947 World Championships and Barbara Ann once again won the figure portion by a considerable margin.

On the night of the free skating program Barbara Ann skated a faultless program in the cold open air, then she came directly to me at the side of the rink and said " there - I think that was satisfactory!" Before I could say a thing she said " Uncle Joe, my hands are cold." She had skated the entire program in bare hands! (Mrs. Scott, Barbara Ann's mother, had bought me a Persian lamb hat to keep my head warm, it looked like one similar to what Joseph Stalin wore, thus the nickname "Uncle Joe".)

27 thousand fans were roundly giving their approval by stamping their feet! That was their way of acknowledging her performance! They mostly stood for it was too cold to sit.

At the end of competition in Stockholm we travelled back to London, England where there was to be an exhibition at the Wembley Pool Arena. Dick Button - an American skater that would go on to win the 1948 Olympic gold the following year, was also to perform. It was to a packed house of enthusiastic fans.

Early during the evening, in a backstage area, two persons approached me. One of the two offered me $500.00! Asking what it was for I was told it was for Barbara Ann (who was going to perform on the evenings program) I replied she is an amateur and cannot take money. They then said, "well it’s for you". I told them that I was a professional skater and if they wished to give me money I could skate for them as my skates were with me. My offer was not taken up. Then I volunteered that they could send the money to the Canadian Figure Skating Association and they left. To my knowledge nothing was every contributed.

In any event, we could not in any way allow something such as this to jeopardize Barbara Ann’s amateur standing in skating. Accepting the money would have imediately classified Barbara Ann as a professional skater no longer qualified to compete as an amateur.

Next was the long flight home and the drone of the engines of the airplane. One redeeming feature was we were being served Canadian food! We had not realized just how much we had missed during the stay in Europe.

In the very early morning darkness at Sydney, Nova Scotia (the plane had been diverted from Gander, Newfoundland). Barbara Ann had to deplane and greet the waiting crowds. Some of whom had been up all night. Continuing the flight to Montreal for a stopover in the hotel, Barbara Ann went through much of the same with many friends and well wishers offering their congratulations.

In Ottawa, there was a tumultuous parade and celebration with a presentation by the mayor of a new convertible from the citizens of Ottawa. The license plate was (47U1). Unfortunately, due to amateur rules, Barbara Ann could not accept the automobile. It was however, stored for the following year and given to Barbara Ann at that time. The competitive season was not yet complete. There was the North American championship to be held in Ottawa, and Barbara Ann had to defend her title.

Barbara Ann had many decisions to make regarding what appointments she could attend and still keep up her skating skills. Defending the North American title was accomplished, skating the Minto club carnival, attending the invitation of the Governor General at Government House, receiving the Lou Marsh award again for the Canadian athlete of the year, finally winding down to a well earned rest plus arrange for summer training and the coming Olympic Games.

With the coming of the European Championships, Olympics and World Championships in 1948, there were new problems to work out. The International Skating Union changed the loop school figure proportions. The loop had to fit into the diameter of the figure three times its length. This made the loop smaller than had been trained for and skated in earlier competitions and required greater dexterity on the part of the skater.

A new competitive free skating program also had to be developed and refined. This meant hours of finding suitable music, cutting the records, and fitting it into Barbara Ann's style. Locating certain key elements within the contents of the program requires a good deal of repetition to iron out the rough spots while obtaining the desired effect. There were also new exhibition free skate programs to be created and the same consideration for proper effect to be worked into the routine. Costumes and equipment were of prime importance. It seemed that they were never ready much ahead of time. Everything seems to require rushing at the last minute as perhaps a clearer focus comes into view.

An additional training concern was that the upcoming Olympics and the World Championships that would follow were to take place at high altitude. Davos was a mile above sea level and St. Moritz was about 6100 feet.above. Breathing and endurance would be important considerations in how the program unfolded. The 1948 European Championships were to be in Prague and altitude was not a problem.

After the thanksgiving holiday was over, we got down to finalizing all the various and sundry items that needed to be put in place and began to make preparations for our pending departure to Europe with its outdoor training and the European Championships of 1948. This trip would be the second time overseas and we would be better prepared with the details of travel and what it entails.

Our second overseas journey began with a departure from Montreal. As luck would have it the same pilot that flew us over on the first flight would once again be our Captain! This time I had Captain Bowker sign my short snorter - a dollar bill with the names of pilots who had crossed the Atlantic - this was a popular fad during World War I. The four of us on this phase of the trip consisted of Mrs. Scott, Barbara Ann Scott, a traveling companion of hers, Margaret McGuinness, and myself. I had also been appointed the Olympic coach for Canada. Besides Barbara Ann, the team included Marilyn Ruth Take, ladies singles, Wallace Distelmeyer and Suzanne Morrow, pairs. They would be coming on separate timetables from our group. The judge and team manager, Melville Rogers would follow to complete the 1948 Canadian Olympic figure skating team.

Davos, Switzerland was again to be home base for training. The rink at Davos Dorf where the sun came over the mountain at an earlier time in the morning would give the extra training hours that were needed when skating out of doors and only daylight with which to work. Later in the day training shifted to the Davos Platz area with it's many ice surfaces.

The skating went well and soon the day of departure for Prague arrived. The European Championship was to be held at a rink in downtown Prague. It was situated close by our hotel and was open air with artificial ice. This was to be an important factor because the weather turned warm. Rain, then warm winds and blowing dust from this industrial city added up to some difficult skating conditions for both the men and the ladies.

The men had wet ice that had to be squeegeed between figures. They could not see their tracings. The women had dry ice with dust and dirt blowing about plus a washboard surface upon which to skate their figures. This was due to the wet ice being squeegeed during the men’s figures, but only the water between the pipes was being removed. That water above the pipes was freezing and thus making the surface into a washboard.

Barbara Ann's hard work during her outdoor training paid off as she managed to display her talents and win the figure part of the competition. The free skating portion of the program took place during the evening, and the place was packed to capacity. She started her routine and was about one minute and fifteen seconds into it when the record-playing needle slid off the record. The phonograph records of the period were 78rpm and the needle vibrated sideways in its track to create the sound. The groove had been worn too much to hold onto its track.

These records were made with a thin layer of material poured onto a round aluminum platter. They were guaranteed for six plays and then only if you used a cactus needle! Barbara Ann's solo record was turned onto its reverse side where a backup copy was located. Barbara Ann returned to her starting place in due course and resumed her performance. It was a solid skate and she had successfully defended her title as European Champion! Amazingly due to the record problems, she had skated a total of five minutes and fifteen seconds!

Upon the conclusion of the European Championships, it was back to Davos and preparations for the Olympics in St. Moritz. The weather was again to act up and alter the practice schedule. Outdoor ice training is at the mercy of the weather. The fern winds as they were called, were causing a warming trend. This was to extend into the Olympic championship in St. Moritz as well.

Once during the warm winds, there was poor ice with spots of shale about so skating was canceled. Toward the afternoon when it had cooled off small figures could be performed and limited free skating. During one of these such periods, Barbara Ann made a bet with me - for a dime - that a double loop could not be performed. I tried but sunk into the ice too deeply and failed. Barbara Ann won the bet! She performed her double loop! Then she claimed I tried to let her win!

The figures of the 1948 Olympic games were held on the Kulm Hotel ice rink situated beside our hotel overlooking the speed skating oval and hockey rink in the valley below. The opening parade had wound its way down the path at the side of the rink to where the oath of amateurism took place in the large assembly area. The sky was overcast with bright ice reflection from thin clouds overhead. The weather was too warm so only one compulsory school figure was performed before skating was halted for the day. It was nail biting time for some and nerves began to show the tension. After some delays it was possible to get all the ladies school figures completed and once again Barbara Ann Scott had lead the field. One judge however, had put her in 5th place, but more of that later.

With the figures behind her Barbara Ann now trained to test her stamina and find the necessary orientation for the various parts of her free skating solo. With uneven mountain ridges and blunt hillsides on the sides and ends of the ice surface it was important to get this matter secured. The free skate was held in the stadium in the valley. On the final day of that part of the championship, Barbara Ann and I went down to the rink to see what the surface looked like and get oriented to the layout.

There had been two hockey games played at 34 degrees Fahrenheit and someone had tried to flood the ice! Now remember, this is natural ice and that is 2 degrees above freezing! There was going to be shale ice all over! The hockey boards were removed at this time, and it could be seen where most of the hockey players traffic was during the two games that had been played. A strip next to where the boards had been and the some of the public had stood was untouched and appeared to be the only safe and sure piece of ice.

This required a rather abrupt change in plans as to where certain contents of the free program could be skated with a reasonable chance for success. Moves were changed without rehearsal, some headings and alignment were altered so as to avoid the bad ice area. One skater, a friend of Barbara Ann’s confirmed the bad ice areas we had discussed earlier. This decided upon, Barbara Ann skated a faultless program whereas; other strong skaters had taken serious falls.

Barbara Ann was superstitious. No whistling in the dressing room. Skating boots had to go in such and such an order. She had to borrow something of value and wear it unseen for this event it was my skate and ski club pin of San Francisco given to me for passing my 7th test. It had 3 small pearls in it. She loved pearls.

Barbara Ann had that happy capacity and ability to take lessons or advice from other people. She would take the good that is there, and apply it. At times, when working with her, I would have some discussion of reasons and details, she would say "just tell me what you want me to do". Once I remember saying to Barbara Ann after she had completed a practice on an outer forward rocker figure "boy you were lucky to control that one." She said, " I didn't think it showed!"

Another time was in training back loop change loops during which I was looking very closely. I challenged, "you slid your blade over on that - referring to the tracing at the top of the loop - which was about 3/16ths of an inch from the original tracing. Now there was only one visible tracing. She replied "yes" That is all it was to her. The idea was to be on one line. So that is what she performed. and that is a sample of what it was like to teach Barbara Ann Scott!

I mentioned earlier of a Judge that had Barbara Ann in 5th place in the figure part of the competition. Somewhere in the background and after the Olympic championship event was over, plans were being set to invite Barbara Ann to a private and non-official demonstration of her school figures skills before a few officials and the judge in question. I was invited to attend this performance and even to participate.

In attendance was Per Cock-Clausen a noted Danish skater and four or five more interested persons – some of them judges. Barbara Ann was asked to skate the right forward double three change double three figure. Upon completion of the figure, one of the persons said "there she is flat" this meaning that she was not on a true edge coming back to her center for the next pushoff or thrust. At this I took my glove and brushed away the light bit of snow that had fallen since the ice had been cleaned. "Gentlemen," I said, "I have followed Barbara Ann Scott like a bulldog for two seasons, and never have I found her to be on a flat! Iin fact this girl can come to a stop on an edge, she has incredible control!"

At that one of the officials volunteered, "Well, she looks like she is on a flat!" To that I said, "Gentlemen, you are the experts, it is your job to judge what is actually being performed, not what it looks like!" With that I was invited to skate the same figure, which I did, not by any means as well or as tidy as Barbara Ann’s, but more robust as I needed the extra power to completely get around the two circles since my glide was not as efficient as Barbara Ann’s. Then some one person again volunteered, "But you don’t look flat!" Again with my glove I swiped away the fallen snow and said "But gentlemen, I am flat!" This was plain to see and came as a surprise to some of them. It had been a fair examination with truth seeking individuals and we respected their willingness to find out the full value of Barbara Ann's skill and talent.

In my skirmishes with two of the coaches on earlier occasions, I had repeatedly stressed – "Let the skaters decide the championship". Now perhaps that could happen. Everywhere in the world there are true sportsmen and women, they were now coming to the fore to protect the values of their sport. We would be able to see in the next two weeks for the 1948 World Championship was to be held not far away in Davos.

After the 1948 World Championships, was a European tour. Tours are nice because the pressure is off and everyone is enjoying the sights and company of people who love skating. While there is a necessary letdown after the three grueling competitions, the skating programs have been designed for just this condition which follows championship skating.

Copenhagen was the first stop on the tour and Paris was the second. It was here, during the performance, that Murphy's law came into play. One record Barbara Ann used was a commercial recording of "Ave Maria". It had a slight crack in it and Barbara Ann had hoped to get through using it long enough to purchase another copy. During the rehearsal at the Palais Des Sport a person wishing to be helpful at putting records on inserted herself. This unfortunately happened at a time when help was not requested nor desired. The record was picked up by its edge and the crack completed its course. Now it was a very audible sound and even could damage the needle. Such is life on a tour! Again this too was overcome but not without some pain. Barbara Ann loved that solo, it meant a great deal to her. In Prague the stadium was so packed that several people needing medical attention had to be passed overhead like logs to awaiting medics! No one could fall down! In Neuchâtel, Switzerland, Hans Gerschwiler's hometown, the people were standing on their automobiles, on rooftops, in the trees to watch the afternoon exhibitions! After years of dreary war news - here was a breath of fresh air and it was in the person of - Canada's own Barbara Ann Scott! It has been said that timing is everything and most certainly it was the right time for Barbara Ann!

Upon returning home to Canada, during the train ride from Montreal, the train was stopped a number of times at small towns so that school children that swarmed onto the tracks could greet their new heroine as their Principals gave words of greeting and congratulations! The season, however, was not yet over for Barbara Ann. There was the Canadian championship to be skated in Calgary to win back her title as the lady champion of Canada, which she had given up by going to Europe to train on the outdoor ice the year before.

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