My article on English skating just came out! Here's the citation: Thurber, B.A. 2021. "The English Style: Figure Skating, Gender, and National Identity." Sport History Review. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1123/shr.2020-0023. Abstract During the second half of the nineteenth century, a unique style of figure skating developed in Great Britain. This style emphasized long, flowing glides… Continue reading English skating and national identity
Category: English style
The Waldrons
According to British Ice Skating's records, Miss B. Waldron finished third in the Challenge Cup, which functioned as the British National Championship in the English Style, in 1904. This seems exciting, because it makes 1904 the first year---and the only year before 1950 (I haven't seen records after 1949)---that two of the three medalists in… Continue reading The Waldrons
The cost of skating (in 1899)
In 1899, Frederick George Aflalo compiled a book called The Cost of Sport. It's an attempt to quantify how much you should expect to pay to participate in various sports. There's a short section on skating by Theodore Andrea Cook.