Why am I passionate about this?
I'm a Canadian author and figure skating historian. I have written about the sport's fascinating past for over a decade. My innate curiosity about skating history dates back to the days of BETA tapes and card catalogs. Long before YouTube and social media, the only insights we often had about skater's stories were small nuggets of information passed on in television broadcasts and magazines. Figure skating biographies are a rare treat, allowing us to really get to know the people behind the skating performances we love. I'm absolutely delighted to share with you a skating biography of my own - the true story of The Father of Figure Skating - Jackson Haines.
Ryan's book list on figure skating biographies you'll ever read
Why did Ryan love this book?
It was one of Toller Cranston's performances that first inspired me to take up figure skating.
There was something so bold, expressive, and larger than life about his performances. Those qualities are all front and center in his biography Zero Tollerance. Toller was never afraid to speak his mind, shake the tree or let the truth get in the way of a good story... and this biography is resplendent with great stories, heart, and humour.
1 author picked Zero Tollerance as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
Toller Cranston is: six-time Canadian figure-skating champion, celebrity, costume designer, artist extraordinaire, broadcaster, choreographer of skating routines, raconteur, bon vivant, coach, world traveller, art collector, legend, and enigma. In 1976 he won Olympic bronze (so why did it feel like defeat?). This book tells the story of his life after those fateful games at Innsbruck.
The rise and fall of Toller’s first professional ice show is described in soul-searing detail. His subsequent triumphant tour of Europe as the Skater of the Century is recounted, in contrast, with wicked humour. There are vignettes here of his encounters with the rich and…