Ballet & Steel: The Art of Figure Skating

In the old days, skating was a way of travelling, rather than a recreational activity. Instead of circumnavigating lakes, to save time, people made improvised skates using available materials in nature that facilitated travelling over ice and allowed them to cross the frozen lakes. Not until the mid-1800s was today’s figure skating style established by Mr. Haines, the founder of figure skating.

Compared to regular skates, figure skates are distinctive due to their “toe picks,” which were invented by Haines in the 1870s. Figure skating jumps are mesmerizing. Six types of figure skating jumps are now practiced and are divided into two categories; namely, toe jumps and edge jumps. Figure skating spins are just as elegant and fascinating. The three basic spin positions are the upright spin, the sit spin, and the camel spin.

The International Skating Union (ISU) is the governing body that standardizes the rules and regulations of the ice skating discipline. Figure skating made its Summer Olympics debut in 1908 and officially became part of the Winter Olympics in 1924.

In addition, several very successful figure skaters are vegan, such as Canadian Larkyn Austman, who turned vegan in 2015 at the age of 17. By the age of 20, she had already won medals at national and international competitions. Vegan Canadian skater Meagan Duhamel switched to the vegan diet in 2008, after which she won two champion titles in 2015 and 2016, then gold in the team event and bronze in pairs at the 2018 Pyeong Chang Olympics. As she says, “I think now more and more we’re seeing athletes thrive as vegetarians and as vegans, and I think we’ll continue to do so in the future.” US national champion, five-time US/Canadian gold medalist, world-renowned entertainer and choreographer Craig Heath has always skated with a positive attitude and high energy sustained by a vegan diet.

The brand “Edea” manufactures vegan skates, carrying two vegan models, the Ice Fly and the Piano. Also, the “Riedell” brand of skates can be custom made with vegan materials!