Olympic skater Tina Noyes, ice dancer Renee Roca among latest US Figure Skating Hall of Fame class
Two-time Olympic skater and longtime coach Tina Noyes, ice dancer and choreographer Renee Roca, trailblazer Atoy Wilson and judge Robert Horen have been elected to the U.S. Figure Skating Hall of Fame, the organization announced Monday.
The induction ceremony will take place on Jan. 25 at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas.
Noyes was one of the leading skaters of the 1960s, helping the American team move on after a plane crash in 1961 claimed the lives of the entire U.S. worlds team. She trained alongside Peggy Fleming and Christine Haigler at Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and joined them in competing at the 1964 Winter Games in Innsbruck, Austria.
Noyes also competed at the 1968 Olympics in Grenoble, France, finishing fourth. Fleming won the gold medal.
Noyes, a published author, continued to skate with Ice Capades in the 1970s, and for the past 40 years, she has coached figure skaters, synchronized skaters and hockey players at the Hayden Recreational Centre in Lexington, Massachusetts.
Roca was a three-time U.S. ice dance champion and remains the only dancer to win the title with multiple partners. She has choreographed programs for Olympic and world medalists from China and the U.S. and helped to produce Stars on Ice, Canada’s Battle of the Blades and Kristi Yamaguchi’s Always Dream Foundation’s Golden Moment.
Horan has been an ice dance judge, technical controller and referee for the International Skating Union for more than 25 years and a U.S. Figure Skating judge and referee for singles, pairs and ice dance for more than four decades.
Paris Olympics
- The Olympics are more than fun and games. They’re a billion-dollar business with political overtones.
- Breakdance will make it’s debut as an Olympic sport in Paris.. Here’s what else will be different at this year’s games.
- Follow all of AP’s coverage of the Summer Games.
Wilson became the first Black athlete to compete at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in 1965, finishing second, and came back the following year to win the novice category. He reached the senior level before retiring from competition in 1969.
“The Class of 2025 is among our most diverse and historically significant classes,” said Richard Dalley, chairman of the Hall of Fame nominating committee. “It is with great pride that we celebrate and honor these exceptional individuals who define the values and culture of our organization.”
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports