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Australia
celebrates a centenary All Australian skaters owe their heritage to a group of virtually unknown entrepreneurs who in 1903 formed a syndicate led by H. Newman-Reid to open the first artificial ice rink in Australia, the Adelaide Glaciarium. Newman-Reid, winner of the men's event in the Sydney "Nationals" in 1911; built the Melbourne Glaciarium in 1906 and the Sydney Glaciarium in 1907. The Sydney Glaciarium was home to Australia's first skating club, The Sydney Ice Skating Club. Writing in The Skating Times, Richardson noted, In a short time Australia produced men good enough to compete in the World Championships. It is a most encouraging fact that from those countries where one would least expect skating or indeed any form of winter sport - South Africa, Australia and New Zealand - there should come the greatest enthusiasm. Ice skating had become an accepted form of recreation thanks to the foresight of that early syndicate and a young Scotsman named Dunbar Poole. In 1903, Poole sailed from Glasgow to Australia on a windjammer. It is written that, after a stormy voyage of 112 days, the ship finally berthed in Adelaide and there, he found something quite unexpected - a group of ice skating enthusiasts. Considered the most experienced rink manager in Great Britain, Poole had produced many successful ice shows, many of which he also designed the costumes and sets for. At the turn of the century, Great Britain was a training hub for many international skaters and produced most of the ice shows in Europe at the time. Poole was a close friend of the Swedish royal family and had taught the Crown Prince to skate and play ice hockey. In 1911, the Swedish government, through the Stockholm Figure Skating Club. asked Poole to represent Sweden at the World Figure Skating Championships in Berlin, Germany. He did so again in 1912 in Manchester, England. He finished last in both events. Returning to Australia, Poole joined the Newman-Reid syndicate and was a key player in the formation of the Melbourrie Ice Skating and Refrigeration Co. Poole, who counted the Duke of Windsor among his friends, relocated to Sydney to manage the Glaciarium, where he remained for the next 25 years. He later returned to Great Britain, but came back to Australia in 1938 to open Sydney's second rink, the Ice Palais. In all, Poole helped plan and open four rinks in Australia. Association Formed The first national ice skating association was formed in Melbourne shortly after the First World War. Sydney formed its own national association in the late 1920s. Both associations held independent "Nationals" until 1931, when they collaborated to form The Council of the National Ice Skating Association of Australia, which conducted national championships in affiliation with the ISU. The first national championships of the association were held in Sydney in 1931, thereafter alternating yearly between both cities. The program listed the disciplines as "men, ladies and waltzing on ice." Queensland and South Australia formed associations in the early 1960s and became affiliated With the national body, but only in the 197Os did it become a truly unified association. In 1997. delegates voted to change the name of the Association to Ice Skating Australia. Inc. The Australian Championships were suspended in 1939 for eight years due to the World War Two. The event was revived in November 1947. John Phalc wrote in his column in Skating World, "It was a Clarear disappointment to many that no entries came from Sydney, the only other city in the Commonwealth to possess an ice rink." Australia became a member of the ISU in 1932 and was one of the 13 remaining members to be represented at the first post-war Congress. Due to changes in the aeographical alignment of Europe and the political climate of the world during and after the war, many associations had dismantled. Patricia Molony, the 1947 Australian champion, holds the unique distinction of being Australia's first female international representative. She competed at the 1947 Europeans and Worlds, placing 12th out of 19 competitors at 1947 Worlds. Molony is the only Australian skater to have competed at Europeans. Reg Park, former coach of current National champion, Miriam Manzano, became the first Australian to win a medal at British Nationals, placing second in the 1949 championships. Seemingly unobserved by the international community, Australian skaters were making history. In 1951 Adrian Swan won both the Junior and Senior British championships. Jacqueline Mason and Mervyn Bower won the bronze in pairs at these championships in 1951 and 1955. International Success Though Australia fielded skaters in ISU competitions internationally for the next 20 years, it was not until 1976, that the brother-and-sister pair team of Elizabeth and Peter Cain won Australids first medal at an ISU event, placing third at the junior championships in Megeve, France. Elizabeth Cain is the mother of Sean Carlow. The popular brother-and-sister pair team of Danielle and Stephen Carr skated its way into the history books by winning 19 consecutive national titles between 1980 and 1998. The two won a bronze medal at 1992 Piruetten, but perhaps their greatest moment was the bronze medal they won at Skate Canada that same year. Stephen Carr was also the Australian men's champion from 1991 to 1994. In 1996, Brisbane hosted its second World junior Championships, which marked the first time ISU awarded prize money. All cop 24 skaters received a portion of US$270,000. The 2000 World Figure Skating Championships, originally slated for Brisbane, were moved by the ISU to Nice, France due to a breakdown in television contractual negotiations Modern Era In the modern era of Australian skating, singles skaters Anthony Liti and Miriam Manzano stand apart from all others. Liti, born in China, moved to Australia in 1994. During his career, he was a seven-time national champion and won 10 international medals. He placed 10th at the 2002 Olympics and 7th at 2002 Worlds. He retired following the Olympics and now owns Ice Castle International Training Center in Lake Arrowhead, California. Manzano won her first title in 1993, retired following the 1996 Worlds and, after a two-year hiatus, returned to the ice. She has defended her national title in each successive year since and remains Australids best hope for the 2006 Olympic Games. Written with files from John Baster (UK), Frank Parsons, Bob Battersby, and Don McKnight (Aus). |
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