Figure Skating in the Formative Years: Singles, Pairs, and the Expanding Role of Women (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780252039065)

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.

Author: James R. Hines
ISBN-10: 0252039068
ISBN-13: 9780252039065
Publisher: University of Illinois Press
Language: English
Published: 03/20/2015
Pages: 232
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.10lbs
Size: 9.30h x 6.30w x 0.80d