Some figure skating fans may view skating as an art because of the grace with which most skaters glide across the ice. But for figure skater John Stuart skating is decidedly a sport.
John learned to sake when he was eight years old. At the time, he was living in Germany where his father was serving in the Navy. John played a lot of sport for recreation and enjoyed them so his parents decided to sign him up for lessons at rink that was close to his house. John did not speak any German at the time, so learning to skate from a German coach was a challenge but he loved it. Even after he left Germany, John skated recreationally in the winter then started figure skating when 12. Out of all the sports John played when he was younger, skating was the one he stuck with because he loved being on the ice.
As John got older and learned more about figure skating he came to the sport for its unique combination of art and athleticism. There are not many men in figure skating, so he formed close relationships with the other boys involved in figure skating and loved the community of the men involved in the sport. Even though figure skating is an individual sport and the boys were competing against each other, they formed a close bond.
John explains that figure skating is an incredibly demanding as a sport in terms of the physical exertion that is required to complete the elements, which includes launching in air, rotating three or four times, and landing in a specific spot. Skaters also need a lot of stamina to make it through a program once they reach the top level of the sport since they need to sustain an intense performance level for several minutes straight. What’s more skaters need to not just have the skills to figure skate, but they need to do them well. Even the most difficult elements of a performance need to look effortless.
To pull off a good figure skating routine, there is a lot of conditioning that needs to take place beforehand and the conditioning spans greater areas than is needed for most sports. Many skaters do a lot of work off the ice at the gym for strength training, practice yoga for flexibility, and work on cardio to build up exertions.
John now skates with Disney on Ice: Dare to Dream and finds that with show skating it’s essential to keep up training in order to be able to perform his best at every show and keep up the strength needed to lift women in the show in the air. John usually in finds himself in a different hotel every week but every hotel has a gym and most cast members work out on the road in order to keep up with the physical demands of the show. For his role skating with Rapunzel, he does a jump with Rapunzel in tandem with several performers. John also plays Christoph in the Frozen segment of the show and he does a challenging jump into a spin.
With so much effort and training involved, it’s hard to deny that figure skating is a sport - but one with the added challenge of needing to make sure all maneuvers are performed with precision and look flawless each and every time.
Contributor has no interest in anyone or anything mentioned.