Aaron's Skating highlights
Skating is extremely popular around the world and skating plays a large part in the Olympics. The most popular skating sports are figure skating, hockey and speed skating.
Figure skating
Since 1908 figure skating championships took place within the scope of Olympic Games. In those days there were no independent Winter Olympic Games.
Figure skating as we know it today traces its origins directly back to an American, Jackson Haines. Jackson Haines leapt into the limelight with his mastery of skating and dance just after the American Civil War. In 1863 and 1864, he won the Championships of America but he continued to receive cool receptions from his fellow countrymen who preferred a stiff and rigid style to Haines' more artistic approach.
Louis Rubenstein, of Montreal, Canada was one of the first individuals who recognized the merits of the international style and the need for organization in a sport which had largely existed as an informal collection of skating clubs. In 1914, George H. Browne organized the first "International Figure Skating Championships of America"
Speed skating
Speed skaters use longer blades on their skates than figure skaters, and race around a track. The history of speed skating involves mostly northern European countries including the Netherlands where it was invented. The first known skating competition is thought to have been a 15-meter race that took place in England in 1763.
Competitions sprung up across the northern part of Europe shortly thereafter, but the first official speed skating events were not held until 1863 in Oslo, Norway. In 1889, the Netherlands hosted the first World Championships, bringing together the Dutch, Russians, Americans and English.
The International Skating Union (ISU) was founded in 1892 in Scheveningen, Netherlands, and has governed speed skating since its inception.
