On Thin Ice: A History of Ice Skating

A hobby that defies the laws of gravity, that allows the participant to look as graceful as a swan, yet has the potential to bring about some of the worst pain imaginable should be entered into with a fighting spirit. Ice skating is a make it or break it sport. Only a sharp thin blade separates this person from direct contact with the ice. The edges are there to guide, the toe pick there for balance, and the hollow there for when a person feels brave enough to test their luck in the hopes of accomplishing a spin or a jump. Figure skating techniques, methods, and equipment have significantly evolved from its primitive conception into the poised sport that is widely known today.

The concept of ice skating first began in approximately 1600 B.C. during the Scandinavian Bronze Age; however, the earliest evidence only dates ice skating back to 300 A.D. The only proof that still exists today about skating in its primitive form is archaeological evidence since all forms of written evidence did not survive or did not exist at all. The Netherlands appear to be the homeland of ice skating. The Dutch used the leg bones of larger animals as blades which were then secured with a strap around the skater’s foot. Then, the skater would fashion poles from tree limbs to push themselves around the ice.

Iron skates were first introduced in 200 A.D. Though this was a slight improvement over the previous gear, iron skates did not replace bone skates leaving bone skates the predominant mode of transportation over ice throughout the Middle Ages. The iron remained unsharpened which required the skater to employee the use of poles to push themselves across the ice. The skater could not maintain any sort of forward motion. This development left much to be...

... middle of paper ...

...The Manufacturing Process of Ice Skates, Quality Control." How Products Are Made. Made How. Web. 13 Feb. 2012. .

Levinson, David, and Karen Christensen, eds. Encyclopedia of World Sport. New York:

Oxford University Press, 1999. Questia. Web. 9 Feb. 2012. .

Ryan, Margaret. Figure Skating. New York: F. Watts, 1987. Print.

Whipps, Heather. "The 5,000-Year-Old Origin of Ice Skating | LiveScience."

LiveScience.com. Tech Media Network, 11 Jan. 2008. Web. 06 Feb. 2012.

.

Wilkes, Debbi. The Figure Skating Book: A Young Person's Guide to Figure Skating. Buffalo, NY: Firefly, 1999. Print.

Yamaguchi, Kristi, Christy Kjarsgaard-Ness, and Jody Meacham. Figure Skating for Dummies. Foster City, CA: IDG, 1997. Print.