Jackson Haines: The Skating King

"Ryan's journalistic ability to unearth historical details and mix them into a compelling story is first-class! While balancing accuracy and fairness, he reveals a man whose life demonstrated enormous talent and creativity, celebrity and human frailty." - Debbi Wilkes, Olympic Silver Medallist, author and figure skating commentator The definitive biography of Jackson Haines, The Father of Figure Skating. The legend of The Skating King has been one of the most enduring stories in figure skating history. Jackson Haines left America during the height of the Civil War and toured extensively through Europe. He translated ballet to the ice. He performed for Czars and Emperors. He inspired the formation of many of the world's oldest skating clubs. He changed the world's most exciting winter sport forever and our fascination with him has never waned. In this magisterial and dramatic portrait, figure skating historian Ryan Stevens chronicles Haines' story from his humble beginnings in New York to his premature death in Finland in 1875 - both on and off the ice. Through meticulous research of 19th century archives and unpublished material housed at the K.H. Renlunds Museum and World Figure Skating Museum, Stevens proves that fact can be far more intriguing than fiction. A must-have book for anyone interested in figure skating history!