Roller skating, ice skating, and skateboarding have become popular sports. Indoor skating rinks have made it possible for people to roller skate or ice skate through the year.

Types of skating

There are three main types of skating: roller skating, skateboarding, and ice skating. Roller skating can be done indoors as well as outdoors. Most people begin skating on driveways, pavements, and playgrounds. Indoor skaters enjoy roller dancing, figure skating, and speed skating on hardwood or plastic-coated tracks. Roller hockey is usually played outdoors.

The popular sport of skateboarding came into fashion in the early 1960s. People started skating on the paved areas along the beaches in California when the ocean waves were too flat for them to ride. Skateboarding is now a popular trend. Skateboard parks provide a variety of slopes and surfaces for sudden turns and stunts.

Ice skating has three main divisions: figure skating, speed skating, and ice dancing. For many years ice skating had to be done outdoors in freezing winter weather. Then, in 1876, an artificial ice rink was opened in London. However, the preparation of the ice was expensive. At the beginning of the 20th century, artificial ice rinks became practical with the help of electric refrigeration. Professional figure skaters began to stage ice carnivals across the world. Ice hockey is the most famous team sport that involves skating.

Equipment

Resembling ordinary shoes, roller skates have adjustable clamps that can be attached to the soles either by skate keys, leather straps, or velcro fastenings. The wheels are made of a material called polyurethane that had been originally developed for skateboards. Some skates are fitted with ankle-supports.

Since the 1980s, roller blades or in-line skates, have become popular. These skates have a single row of wheels unlike the earlier design with four wheels arranged in a rectangular fashion. In-line skates are trendy and flashy, and sometimes come with matching equipment like shoelaces, gloves, headphones, and watches.

Skateboards are mini surfboards with wheels attached to them. Most skateboards are about 32 inches (81 centimeters) long and 9 inches (22.8 centimeters) wide. Originally, they were made of wood, but they are now also made of aluminum, fiberglass, and plastic. Special helmets, elbow and kneepads, and goggles have now been created to protect skateboarders from accidents.

Figure skates are best suited for pleasure skating as well as for figure skating and ice dancing. These skates have irregular edges at the front of its blade. The boot is usually black for men and white for women.

The speed skate is low cut, allowing the ankle to move freely, whereas the hockey skate is a hard protective boot with a short blade that is curved at the ends to allow for quick turns.

History

Wooden skate runners were first used in Holland in the 14th century. The network of canals in this country froze in the winter, forming highways over which skaters traveled. Skating became popular in England in the 17th century, and the Members of the Skating Club of Edinburgh was formed in 1742.

It was in the 1740s that British servicemen introduced ice skating to North America. It was popular at the French court around 1776; the French queen Marie Antoinette was among the skaters. Napoleon Bonaparte skated at Auxerre in 1781.

The first known speed skating race in England took place in 1814. The first race for amateurs took place in 1823. The London Skating Club for figure skating was founded in 1842. E.W. Bushnell of Philadelphia invented the first all steel ice skates in 1848. The first skating club of the United States was formed in 1849.

Another American, Jackson Haines, further developed skating. He was a ballet master who went to Vienna during the mid-1860s. The aimless skaters he saw there gave him the idea of skating to music. He became a dancing teacher of ice skaters, and this new form of skating was soon very popular. Haines was called the “American ice master.” He later developed roller skate ballets. All modern figure skating grew out of his efforts.

The first rink in Canada was opened at Toronto in 1868. The Glaciarium, the first private rink with artificially frozen ice, was opened in London in 1876, and throughout the century larger and public rinks with artificially produced ice appeared. Crude team games played on ice are mentioned as early as the 2nd century AD, but it is only in the 19th century that goal-scoring sports on skates appear in Northern Europe. The National Skating Association of Great Britain was set up in 1879. This body organized sports involving ice skating along with other organizations like the National Amateur Skating Association of the United States and the Amateur Skating Association of Canada.

These groups, along with some others, founded the International Skating Union in 1892 that later became the world governing body for speed skating, ice dancing, and figure skating. Speed skating and figure skating world championships began in the 1890s, and the first women's speed skating world championships were held in 1936. Figure skating for men, women, and pairs was included in the Olympic program at the 1908 games in London, and other skating events were added later.

Ice hockey appeared in the Summer Olympics in 1920. In 1998 the Olympic competition was opened to include professionals from the National Hockey League (NHL). Women's ice hockey also made its debut during the 1998 Winter Games. The increasing number of rinks with artificially produced ice continues to spread the popularity of recreational ice skating.