1940: Skating, Figure And Speed

The graceful art of figure skating as an avocation and as a vocation is growing rapidly in the United States, as may be seen in the increasing number of skating clubs in all parts of the country and in the number of both amateur and professional ice carnivals. These ice revues are taking the most talented girl skaters as fast as they are developed from the amateur ranks for a novel source of entertainment that embraced one hundred huge extravaganzas produced by six professional show groups in 1940. The four ice carnivals staged in the Madison Square Garden, New York, including the Skating Club of New York (amateur) revue, were seen by more than 255,000 people.

The artistic level of figure skating has greatly improved during the past few years, and many amateur skaters are now performing difficult jumps, spins, loops and dance steps with grace and poise unmatched by professionals up to ten years ago. The amateur field is large and competition is keen.

The 1940 championship figure skating events saw two Californians capture national titles, Eugene Turner, of Los Angeles, the senior event, and Miss Ramona Allen, of Oakland, the junior title. For two years in succession Miss Joan Tozzer won the women's national title, and paired with Bernard Fox (both of Boston) to win the national pairs championship. Members of the St. Paul Figure Skating Club (the Misses Jannette Ahrens and Mary Louise Premer, and Robert Upgren and Lyman E. Wakefield, Jr.) won the national fours title, and Miss Dorothy Glazier and Stephen Tanner, Boston skaters, captured the national dance title. Miss Maxie Herber and Ernst Baier, the 1936 Olympic figure skating pair, are the champions of Germany for the fourth time.

In speed skating another Olympic champion repeated in spectacular manner when Leo Freisinger, of Chicago, captured both the National and North American championships, winning the races at 220, 440 and 880 yards and one mile. Miss Madeleine Horn, of Beaver Dam, Wisc., also made a clean sweep of these two skating classics for women, winning the 440 and 880 yards races and the three-quarter-mile event. Following her victories, Miss Horn announced her retirement from competitive skating. Next in importance, the Middle Atlantic championships were won by John A. Roukema, of Paterson, N. J., and Miss Virginia Jahn, of Cresskill, N. J.

Ted Ellenwood, of Fort Johnson, N. Y., and Miss Alice Burnham, of Brooklyn, romped off with the Eastern State outdoor crowns, while the one major indoor title meet, the Middle Atlantic, resulted in popular victories for Joe Bree and Miss Marjorie Cummings, both of Brooklyn, N. Y. Two new indoor speed champions are Roy Erickson and Miss Esther Williams, winners of the Silver Skates tourney, at the Madison Square Garden, New York.