The History
According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Olympic_medalists_in_figure_skating, figure skating wasn’t contested as an Olympic sport until 1908 Summer Olympics, in London, United Kingdom. In London, figure skating in the Olympics was presented in four different events. The events were men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s special figures, mixed pairs. The history of figure skating in the Winter Olympic Games goes back to 1924. It was first held in Chamoonix, France. Ice dancing was introduced as an Olympic skating event in 1976, after a demonstration event at Grenoble 1968.
Figure Skating Requirements
There are lots of requirements that need to be met to skate in the Olympics. First, there is age. Skaters must be 15 before July 1 of the preceding year to perform in the Olympics. Also, male pair skaters and ice dancers cannot be 21 years old. But, you need to be aware that people have given false ages to meet the age requirements. Second, there is citizenship. In order to compete in the Olympics, you have to be a citizen of the country you are representing. Each country is only allowed one-3 entries per event in the Olympics.
Winners
There have been so many winners of the Figure Skating Olympics; it would take forever to name them all. But, here is a little information about some of the medalists. Gillis Gratstrӧm was a Swedish figure skater who won four consecutive Olympics. He won from the 1920 Summer Games to the 1932 Winter Games. He is the overall medal leader in the sport. Another medalist is Kim Yuna, who is in the picture to the right. She is a South Korean figure skater and is the 2010 Olympic champion in ladies’ singles. Also, Kim was the first South Korean skater to win a medal at the Olympic Games. Dick Button is another Olympic champion. He got 1st place in the Winter Olympics in 1948 and 1952. For a list of more Olympic medalists, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Olympic_medalists_in_figure_skating.