L E T T E R F R O M T H E E D I T O R
First Adult Championships in 1995 set the tone for this special competition The 2014 U.S. Adult Figure Skating Cham-
pionships in April marked the 20th anniversary of the national competition, which debuted April 20–23, 1995, at the Skating Club of Wilm- ington in Delaware. A total of 421 skaters, representing 37 of
the 50 states, took part in the inaugural event, including nine individuals who have gone on to compete at every U.S. Adult Championships for the last two decades. “It has moved off the drawing board and
become a reality,” U.S. Figure Skating President Claire Ferguson said at the time in a message to membership. “I think this event has a very strong future.” Touted as the “First Skate in the First
State,” the competition in Delaware set the tone for what has become an event that fea- tures championship-level skaters as well as those whose love for the sport can be seen in the details and passion for their programs. It’s an event that brings out the best in sportsman- ship, camaraderie and fun on and off the ice. Julie Gidlow, who is one of the nine skat-
ers to have competed in all 20 events, said the fi rst championships served as a launching pad to the next chapter in her skating career. “I came back to skating at age 25 after
quitting the sport at age 16,” Gidlow said. “At fi rst, I was reluctant to compete as an adult, be- cause as a kid I competed through novice and didn’t particularly enjoy it. But at the fi rst Adult Championships, I remember hearing a child in the stands yell, ‘Go, Mommy!’ and I knew right then that this would be a completely diff erent competition experience.”
Lynne Kuechle shows off the offi cial 1995 sweatshirt of the inaugural U.S. Adult Championships.
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Another one of the nine skaters with per-
fect attendance, Thom Mullins, also has vivid memories of that fi rst championship. “I remember walking into the arena
for practice ice and the fi rst skater I saw was John-Patrick Hull, who could have easily sailed over the boards with his huge jumps,” Mullins said. “I thought, ‘This is incredible, but why am I here?’ It seems like it has taken 20 years for me to realize we all bring something special to the ice.”
Joining Gidlow and Mullins in having
never missed any of the 20 competitions are Angela Prevost, Colleen Conroy, Ted Gradman, Patricia McNamara, Dorothy Ray, Walter Hor- ton and Phyllis Friello. Their collective passion and commitment
to the sport and the championship event is something that Gidlow admires greatly. Seri- ous medical issues and even brushes with the worst Mother Nature can off er haven’t prevent- ed members of this special group from making the annual pilgrimage to adult nationals. “That’s a testament not only to how resil-
ient these people are but how special this com- petition is. There’s nothing like it,” Gidlow said. In the past 20 years of the event, there
have been many changes, including lower- ing the age eligibility to 21, adding qualifying championship events, instituting solo dance categories and adopting National Showcase rules for artistic events. There’s also been the introduction of ice-
network and social media, which has changed the event’s dynamic, Mullins said. “We used to hang around the venue
longer to watch events and then go out as a group,” Mullins said. “Social media has us more connected, yet we are more isolated. We don’t have to see someone to make lunch or dinner plans with a group, we can check results on- line, we can watch what we miss later on ice- network, hence the stands seem empty. We skate for our family and the family of our com- petitors. I miss the audience reaction. It loses something.” For Gidlow, the biggest change is an in-
tangible one. “It’s the respect that the overall skating
community now has for the Adult Champion- ships and adult skaters in general. While adults may have previously been seen as anomalies in skating, now we are truly an integral part of the fabric of the sport. In fact, we aren’t adult skaters, we are skaters who just happen to be adults.” The 2014 edition of the U.S. Adult Cham-
pionships in Cape Cod featured 455 skaters and 744 starts. The youngest competitor was 21 and the oldest 81. Coverage of the competi- tion starts on page 12. “The past 20 years have been the best of
my life thanks to skating and the Adult Cham- pionships,” Gidlow said. “I hope the nine of us are still going strong for the next 20. See every- one next year in Salt Lake City for No. 21.”
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4 JUNE/JULY 2014
PHOTO BY LEXI ROHNER
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