| Figure Skating in the Formative Years: Singles, Pairs, and the Expanding Role of Women Contributor(s): Hines, James R. (Author) |
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ISBN: 0252039068 ISBN-13: 9780252039065 Publisher: University of Illinois Press OUR PRICE: $27.55 Product Type: Hardcover Published: March 2015 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Sports & Recreation | Ice & Figure Skating - Social Science | Women's Studies - History | World - General |
| Dewey: 796.912 |
| LCCN: 2015931455 |
| Physical Information: 0.8" H x 6.3" W x 9.3" (1.10 lbs) 232 pages |
| Themes: - Sex & Gender - Feminine |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: 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. |