A TIGHT-KNIT COMMUNITY COMMITTED TO FIGURE SKATING’S GREATNESS
by JASON WONG Celebrating a century with legends of fig-
ure skating was truly a night to remember. Founded in 1912, Te Skating Club of Boston has stood tall as one of America’s pre- mier skating clubs. Graced by the presence of former members and legends of the sport such as Peter Carruthers, Dorothy Hamill, Paul Wy- lie, Nancy Kerrigan, Brian Boitano and Dick Button, the spirit of Te Skating Club of Bos- ton’s 100th anniversary Skaters’ Ball was filled with a love for figure skating. Te energy was high and there was a smile
on everyone’s face. Men wore tuxedos and wom- en donned ball gowns; the room glistened like ice and gold. We all danced and toasted to com- memorate “100 Years of Excellence.” What stole the night was Dick Button tak-
ing the floor. He graced us with his words that brought smiles, tears and the room to its feet. Cameras flashed and people smiled, not a sound in the ballroom but his voice. He spoke with sincerity and passion for the sport, which reso- nated throughout the room and into our hearts. When he said “superb” I shivered and had a flashback of Michelle Kwan doing her beauti- ful spiral. When he said “marvelous” I thought about Naomi Nari Nam doing her traveling camel spin. When he said “legendary” I thought about him, Mr. Dick Button, the voice of figure skating.
What made it a truly magical evening was the reason we were all there — figure skating.
It is what brings our Athletes Advisory Committee (AAC) together as we strive for excellence and growth within our sport. It is because of the memories we have and hold to ourselves, and the memories that voic- es like Mr. Button leave us with, that we have the com- munity that we do. Our commu- nity is composed of fans, volunteers, athletes and fami- lies. Without them we could never have made 100 years. U.S. Figure Skating is soon due to cele- brate its 100th anniversary! We as the AAC were once the athletes but are now the volunteers to our skating community, and we will always be fans of our sport. Te clubs, volunteers, fans and skaters are the building blocks to our suc- cess, and we urge you to continue to contribute to the skating community to help it grow and thrive.
Tim LeBlanc, Marissa Castelli and Jason Wong attended The Skating Club of Boston’s 100th anniversary Skaters’ Ball on Feb. 18.
Ross Miner and Jason Wong celebrate The Skating Club of Boston’s historic anniversary.
Te AAC is composed of not just current and former athletes, but future and present scholars, coaches, technical panel members and judges. We stay active within our community to help it grow, and stay involved to see it remain the sport we remember and know. We also com- miserate about the struggles we once had trying to become the athletes we dreamt about being, and we seek new ideas and avenues to share with current and future generations, so they do not hit the same roadblocks. One of the large undertakings of the AAC is a scholarship that promotes our sport and ed- ucation. Te 3A Award is a scholarship that the athletes have created and worked to promote and grow in the past five years. Te Athlete Alumni reunion is another large project of the AAC, in which we bring back former champi- ons each year to the U.S. Championships. Brian Boitano, Kristi Yamaguchi and others have be- come familiar faces each year at the U.S. Cham- pionships. Giving back and being active within the
community we all love has helped us grow as individuals and will allow us to prevail as one of the top national amateur sports governing bodies.
I look forward to another Governing
Council in May as our large family comes to- gether once again to keep figure skating at the forefront of amateur sports and continue to grow and see our 100th birthday. We, the AAC, hope to see you at our athlete dinner at Gov- erning Counci, where we guarantee another fun event.
36 APRIL 2012
ATHL E T E corner
ATHLETES ADVISORY COMMITTEE
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