San Antonio Public Library

Once a winter pastime for socializing and courtship, skating evolved into the wildly popular competitive sport of figure skating, one of the few athletic arenas where female athletes hold a public profile—and earning power—equal to that of men.

Renowned sports historian James R. Hines chronicles figure skating's rise from its earliest days through its head-turning debut at the 1908 Olympics and its breakthrough as entertainment in the 1930s. Hines credits figure skating's explosive expansion to an ever-increasing number of women who had become proficient skaters and wanted to compete, not just in singles but with partners as well.

Matters reached a turning point when British skater Madge Syers entered the otherwise-male 1902 World Championship held in London and finished second. Called skating's first feminist, Syers led a wave of women who made significant contributions to figure skating and helped turn it into today's star-making showcase at every Winter Olympics.

Packed with stories and hard-to-find details, Figure Skating in the Formative Years tells the early history of a sport loved and followed by fans around the world.| Cover Title Copyright CONTENTS Preface Acknowledgments Introduction CHAPTER 1. A Goddess, a Saint, and a Daring Princess CHAPTER 2. The Pioneering Years, 1662-1772 CHAPTER 3. The Defining Years, 1772-1869 CHAPTER 4. Toward an International Style CHAPTER 5. The Rise of International Competition CHAPTER 6. Skating Between the World Wars CHAPTER 7. Show Skating CHAPTER 8. What Lies Ahead Preface to the Appendixes APPENDIX A. Competitors at the World Championships, 1896-1939 APPENDIX B. Competitors at the European Championships, 1891-1939 APPENDIX Competitors at the North American Championships, 1923-1941 APPENDIX D. Competitors at the Olympic Winter Games, 1908-1936 APPENDIX E. Medal Counts by Discipline and Country APPENDIX F. Host Cities for the Championships APPENDIX G. World Figure Skating Hall of Fame (Pre-World War II Members) APPENDIX H. Thumbnail Sketches of World and Olympic Champions Notes Bibliography Illustration Sources and Credits Index | "As someone who has spent a lifetime on the ice, it is very meaningful to know who came before me and to better understand their contributions to my experiences on the ice. I think that goes for all skaters and skating fans. It's great fun to know how the sport we love came to this place. Without an appreciation for the past, the present loses value and the future means very little. Enjoy this book that chronicles skating's beloved history."—Scott Hamilton, gold medalist, 1984 Winter Olympics, and winner of four U.S. championships and four World Championships
"Jim Hines adds to his authoritative history of figure skating with a detailed review of the evolution of figure skating, from a national level to international competitions. A must-read for anyone who loves figure skating and history."—David Raith, Executive Director, U.S. Figure Skating
"Professor James Hines, the distinguished historian of the sport of ice skating, who is also a member of the International Society of Olympic Historians, has written a vital new work that has done much to recognize and record the vital role of women in the success of the sport over the past century and is, therefore, a valuable addition to the literature of the sport."—Benjamin Wright, Senior Past President of the USFSA and former chair of the ISU Figure Skating Committee
|James R. Hines is professor emeritus of musicology at Christopher Newport University. His books include Figure Skating: A History, The English Style: Figure Skating's Oldest Tradition, and Historical...

Figure Skating in the Formative Years

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