Classic/Vintage Figure Skating Videos

[SynchroSk8r114]

Inspired by the triple axel thread, I thought it'd be fun to post some other classic or vintage skating videos. Here's just a few I found on YouTube. Please share any other skating greats that you may find! It's amazing to think how far our sport has come...enjoy! :D

Ulrich Salchow - 1911:
Creator of the salchow shows off his signature jump...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwcC66lPgRM

Karl Schafer - Fritzi Burger:
(Used a translator to get the description of this video, which was originally in German) - Karl Shepard with the Axel Paulsen jump and Fritzi Burger's sitspin...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x46htB4s_30

Sonja Henie - Early Skating Video:
Poor quality, but shows her spinning and a brief interview...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXL3XWLLXd4

1936 Olympic Highlights:
Features highlights of the '36 Winter Olympics and skaters such as Cecilia Colledge, Sonja Henie, Etsuko Inada, Karl Shafer, Maxi Herber and Ernst Beier, among others...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=citALtAj-jY

Sonja Henie - Beauty on Ice:
From one of Sonja's many movies...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klMrtM8-QuE

1932 Olympic Games Practice:
Practice session from the '36 Winter Olympics...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbKPGT_2ppE&NR=1

1908 Olympic Pairs (London) and 1928 Sonja Henie:
A brief black and white clip of the pairs event and more Sonja...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vx8ybkfze2U&mode=related&search=

Reflections on Ice - Compulsory Figures:
Making the classic ladies of figure skating (Henie to Flemming), who demonstrate laybacks and other spins...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmSv6R7PTJg

Linda Fratianne's Compulsory Figures at the 1980 Olympics:
Linda demonstrates her figures...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayqoSnmThBM&mode=related&search=

Carol Heiss at the 1957 U.S. Nationals:
Carol Heiss skates her long program...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scyysv40DDg

Tenley Albright - 1953 Nationals
Tenley Albright competing at the 1953 Nationals...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scyysv40DDg

Corps de Patineus (from Australia) - 1985:
A taste of synchro in 1985...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJbPyG6IzJU

[Morgail]

Those are great! It's interesting to see how the sport has changed. They seemed not so concerned with breaking at the waist and landing positions back in the day:) It's wonderful that the older footage is still around for us to watch. I'm amazed that the ladies could skate in such full and long skirts.

I found:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rBlAG867DY&NR=1
1990 Compulsory Figures Review (in German, I think)
It's not really vintage, but is definitely a rarity today.

Two things I noticed about figures in competition:
1) They must've been cold! It's not like freeskating, where you're constantly moving. I noticed the gloves and jackets and stretch pants.
2) They looked down! How many times have I been told in skating not to look down at the ice?! But I guess you had to with figures, or you wouldn't be able to stay on your tracing.

[SynchroSk8r114]

2) They looked down! How many times have I been told in skating not to look down at the ice?! But I guess you had to with figures, or you wouldn't be able to stay on your tracing.

Hahaha, yes...quite a difference from what most of us are taught today, but figures did have its pros, one of which is that it taught skaters proper body alignment and edges. It seems today that since MIF has taken over, many skaters aren't aware of control, staying over their skating hip, not toe-pushing, using the correct edges to generate speed and flow, etc. You can definitely tell the skaters who have done figures versus those who haven't.

I used to skate figures, but at the time I began, it was already on its way out. It's such a shame too because it really made MIF a lot easier. I pity the younger skaters who never had the opportunity to do patch.

[Morgail]

Hahaha, yes...quite a difference from what most of us are taught today, but figures did have its pros, one of which is that it taught skaters proper body alignment and edges. It seems today that since MIF has taken over, many skaters aren't aware of control, staying over their skating hip, not toe-pushing, using the correct edges to generate speed and flow, etc. You can definitely tell the skaters who have done figures versus those who haven't.

Very true! They definitely had to have great edge control to do those. And the speed they could generate out of a single small push! 8-) Figures were out by the time I got more serious about skating. I tried them one session, in the early 90s, and remember them being very hard.

[kayskate]

Cool idea! When I looked at Salchow, I was fascinated by how little the single sal has changed in almost 100 yrs. He looks just like most low FS skaters doing a 1sal.

I also happened upon Midoru Ito doing 10 2axels in a row. In Japanese.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sns1G0OdtBo

Kay

[rlichtefeld]

Tim Woods - 1968 World Figure Skating Championships long program
(back when the Loooonnnnnnggggg program was 5:00!)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2253368586681904980&hl=en

Rob

[Skittl1321]

Cool idea! When I looked at Salchow, I was fascinated by how little the single sal has changed in almost 100 yrs. He looks just like most low FS skaters doing a 1sal.

I also happened upon Midoru Ito doing 10 2axels in a row. In Japanese.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sns1G0OdtBo

Kay

I especially love the poster who corrects her technique, mentioning that it could get really bad if it goes unfixed. LOL.


I enjoyed the video of Reflections on Ice- I knew figures were heavily weighted, but I didn't realize they were 2/3! Why bother having the freeskate with that?

[doubletoe]

Just looked at the video of Ulrich Salchow. I am amazed at his forward scratch spin. . .which is done entirely on a forward inside edge! Was that done as a difficult variation or is that just how he did it? I also notice he did his Salchow and upright spin CCW but did his sitspin CW. I guess in the days of figures, it was more valued to be able to do things in both directions..

[icedancer2]

Tim Woods - 1968 World Figure Skating Championships long program
(back when the Loooonnnnnnggggg program was 5:00!)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2253368586681904980&hl=en

Rob

I was going to post this!!! Yea Tim! (Actually it was Tim Wood, not Woods...)

[dbny]

Just looked at the video of Ulrich Salchow. I am amazed at his forward scratch spin. . .which is done entirely on a forward inside edge! Was that done as a difficult variation or is that just how he did it?

I noticed that too. This may be evidence for my suspicion about how the backspin got it's name (not in opposition to the "forward" scratch spin, which is on a BI edge). What I think may have happened is that the first spins on the "other" foot were FI spins like the one Salchow does in this video. A real backspin is much more difficult, as all who have been on that FI edge while learning can attest. In fact, thinking about it now, it's the "forward" spin that has the wrong name, and that must have come later, after the backspin.

[SynchroSk8r114]

Cool idea! When I looked at Salchow, I was fascinated by how little the single sal has changed in almost 100 yrs. He looks just like most low FS skaters doing a 1sal.

I also happened upon Midoru Ito doing 10 2axels in a row. In Japanese.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sns1G0OdtBo

Kay

Oh, yes! This was amazing! I had to laugh a bit though after she nails those ten 2axels and then finishes with a sloppy/wild lunge. Oh well, I guess that's a small price to pay for all those gorgeous jumps! :bow:

[SynchroSk8r114]

I enjoyed the video of Reflections on Ice- I knew figures were heavily weighted, but I didn't realize they were 2/3! Why bother having the freeskate with that?

I know. It's strange to think that with figures weighing so heavily into competition that it eventually got phased out by freestyle. My, how times have changed...

I wonder where we'll be in ten years...I mean, if Midori Ito was able to do ten consecutive double axels however-many-years-ago and we're seeing the quads become a staple (at least in the men's competition), I can't wait to see what the future holds!

[doubletoe]

I noticed that too. This may be evidence for my suspicion about how the backspin got it's name (not in opposition to the "forward" scratch spin, which is on a BI edge). What I think may have happened is that the first spins on the "other" foot were FI spins like the one Salchow does in this video. A real backspin is much more difficult, as all who have been on that FI edge while learning can attest. In fact, thinking about it now, it's the "forward" spin that has the wrong name, and that must have come later, after the backspin.

Duh! I think I meant his "backspin" but I inadvertently called it a forward spin because he was spinning forward on the inside edge, LOL! And you bring up a very interesting point!

BTW, I always feel so much better about my "presentation" and "extension" after watching these old figure skating videos, LOL!

[dbny]

BTW, I always feel so much better about my "presentation" and "extension" after watching these old figure skating videos, LOL!

It amazes me that it took them so long to bring ballet into it! It's like they really had this new thing and no clue what they should do with it. I wonder what they would have thought back then, if someone with ballet training had skated with the kind of presentation and extension we now expect.

[Ellyn]

I wonder what they would have thought back then, if someone with ballet training had skated with the kind of presentation and extension we now expect.

Well, I think that's what Jackson Haines brought, back in the 1860s-70s. The British and American skaters tended to find his skating too much for show and not enough about the precision of the blade work, but they loved him in Vienna and other parts of Europe.