Celebrating Black Excellence in Figure Skating | Page 3 | Golden Skate

Celebrating Black Excellence in Figure Skating

Skatesocs

Final Flight
Joined
May 16, 2020
Tell us what you remember about it - costume, theme, hairdo, early or late in her career, competition or exhibition - maybe we can help you find it.

Thanks for the offer! It was late in her career, definitely not in amateur competition, but I don't remember if competition or exhibition. I rewatched some of her pro skating, but didn't manage to find it. I think it was sensual, and she moves close to the ice in part of it? Maybe even ends on the ice.
 

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605
Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
... There are few black ice dancers I could find, so I'm glad to see representation in that discipline. ...

Another black ice dancer is Sara Buch-Weeke, who represented Denmark at 2020 Junior Worlds -- in her first season with partner Nicolas Woodcock (who is Canadian).


Sara was born in Copenhagen. Excerpt from her Q & A with Edges of Glory:

- Favorite Danish food?
I don't really have any Danish food favorites - my father is from Germany, my brother and I are from Ethiopia, and only my mother is from Denmark, so we don't eat traditional Danish food at home. My favorite food is traditional Ethiopian food!

https://www.edgesofglory.com/post/meet-sara-buch-weeke (Sep 2019)​


I hope someday that this program will lead to the next great African American skater. https://figureskatinginharlem.org/ ...

Perhaps by happenstance it will, but as a fan of the admirable work of FSH, I will make note that AFAIK, its core mission is not to discover or cultivate the next big individual skating talent (comparable to Debi Thomas). Nor is it even to steer its students to compete in singles/dance/pairs, although FSH does have synchro teams that compete.

For FSH, skating is a valuable part of an enrichment program that emphasizes personal growth, academics, and life skills.

ETA (on Jun 11):
Jordan Cowan's On Ice Perspectives IGTV video of a performance by FSH's preliminary synchro team:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBRiibyH5ga/ (filmed in Mar 2019)​


Just want to mention Mark Sadusky, senior pairs competitor with partner Brynne McIsaac.

Their first season together was 2019-20, when Brynne (formerly on Team USA in singles) was completely new to pairs.
At the 2020 U.S. Pairs Final, they just barely missed getting the TES minimum necessary to qualify for Nats.
 

GS Forum Staff

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 11, 2008
This is a great post!


For our global members who may not know, Black History month is celebrated in North America in Feb and Oct in the UK. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been revisiting many competitions, events, and historical moments as we await the outcome of the 2020-21 season.

We understand that given the current unrest in our society, many want to chime in with their opinions, comments, etc. However, this thread is meant to be a celebratory one and we ask that politics stay out of it and that it stays on topic (please see Guidelines).
Please continue to post links and interviews celebrating Black excellence in figure skating!:clap:
 
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FlyingFeather

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 4, 2018



Perhaps by happenstance it will, but as a fan of FSH's admirable work, I will make note that AFAIK, its core mission is not to discover or cultivate the next big individual skating talent (comparable to Debi Thomas). Nor is it even to steer its students to compete in singles/dance/pairs, although FSH does have synchro teams that compete.

For FSH, skating is a valuable part of an enrichment program that emphasizes personal growth, academics, and life skills.

True, it is not serious training. However, serious skaters come from casual skaters who do it for enjoyment. A FSH girl could grow up and host an ice skating birthday party for her daughter. A guest to that party could realize that she really likes skating and turn into a Gracie Brown. (Sorry... I couldn't resist the pun.:slink:)
 

ladyjane

Medalist
Joined
Jun 26, 2012
Country
Netherlands
They did and do. I remember her too, she was great. And Surya is just so wonderful...
 

hanyuufan5

✨**:。*
Medalist
Joined
May 19, 2018
I don't think I saw it here, so here's Starr Andrews's free skate from Junior Worlds 2020. Loooove that step sequence, and her jump landings are so pretty even when underrotated.

Also, I remember seeing Surya's backflip live! I was very young and ran to tell my mom how cool I thought it was as soon as the program was over. I was amazed because I had never seen a backflip on ice before (and had no idea at the time that that was because it isn't a legal move). I'm just lucky I couldn't do one even off ice, because I started skating soon after that and probably would have tried it to copy it. :laugh:
 

Weathergal

Medalist
Joined
May 25, 2014
Aaron Parchem, who was a US Pairs skater with Stephanie Kalesavich then Marcy Hinzmann, whom.he went to the Olympics with.
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
Oh, i remember her. France had quite a few black skaters, didnt they?

Yes they have, and still do! France is a wonderful example of the influence a skater’s success can have on future representation. Arguably they have had more elite black female skaters than any other country, and I would bet that Surya was a role model and inspiration for many of them.
 

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605
Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
I didn't even know about this skater:

Louisa Warwin, who competes for Norway. Here is her IG post on the difficulties she faced as a Black skater:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CBQQdvclGH9/

Representing her native country of Norway, Louisa Warwin won a bronze medal at her very first international, which was in Iceland in Feb 2020.

Interestingly, she also has been competing in the USFS qualifying season for a number of years. (She is part of the @laeliteice training group in SoCal.)

In the 2019-20 season, she qualified for U.S. sectionals for the first time (by winning the bronze at regionals).
At the age of 26. :cool:

ETA (on Jun 12):
Oops, my mistake: Louisa actually won the pewter at regionals.
BTW, she represented SC of Nevada in USFS qualifying.​


Surya has actually done some skating lessons in Harlem three years ago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJ0D-IXjH9I&t=121s

Very cool.

If I right remember Evan Lysacek had a project in Harlem, too.

Lysacek has been involved with Figure Skating in Harlem for years.

Other prominent U.S. skaters too. Timothy Goebel immediately comes to mind as another example.

Meryl Davis was a leader in expanding the FSH model and establishing Figure Skating in Detroit.
 
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