- footwear with attached blades, intended for walking or sports competition on ice. Runners are made from various alloys, in the past centuries they were made from steel, and even earlier - from animal bones. The blades are permanently attached to the boot or removable. Interestingly, there is no one who invented skates, because they were invented back in the Bronze Age.

Who Invented Skates?

Here we will find out when and where the first skates appeared, in what century. This inventory does not have a specific inventor. The oldest bone product was discovered in 1967 on the coast of the Southern Bug near Odessa. The find is 3200 years old. The first mentions of some devices worn on the feet for walking on ice are found in ancient Greek sources.

According to ancient books, the first bone skates were used by the Cimmerians, a people who lived on the coast of the Dnieper estuary, where the first archaeological finds were found. In parallel, similar structures were used in other parts of the Earth: in Russia, England, China and in other parts of the world.

What were the first skates made of?

In Siberia, they were made from walrus tusks, and in China - from bamboo. In most regions of the world, wood and animal bones were used, more often thighs due to the length, strength and characteristic bend hip joint at one end.

How were the first skates made from wood and animal bones?

To do this, the bone or wood was grinded on one side to form a flat surface under the sole. Holes were made on both sides through which shoe mounts were threaded. On the other side of the bone, an oblong cut was often made into which a flat bone or wood was inserted to act as a blade.

Such devices did not slide well, so people pushed off with sticks. Bone implements were used until the 13th century, since iron in those days was very expensive, and the bone perfectly coped with the task. The transition to iron took place only with the expansion of metalworking.

The mention of bone skates was found in the book Chronicles of the Noble City of London, which was written by Stephanius, a 12th century monk. He said that when the swamp, which washed the northern part of the city rampart near Mufilde, froze, the child rolled on the ice, putting on the thigh bones of animals on his boots and pushing off with his hands with the help of wooden sticks.

When did the first skates appear?

Now let's see who brought the skates to Russia? We can be proud that the classic look - steel blades on a boot - appeared thanks to the Russian emperor Peter I. Before that, the blades were attached to wooden bars, then to steel tubes, but this was inconvenient for rolling. Peter I, with appropriate decisiveness, attached wooden skates to his boots, nailing them tightly with nails.

He also brought skates to Russia, along with potatoes, fashion for new clothes and balls, shipbuilding and iron casting. By the decree of Peter I, the production of skates began in Tula. After the death of the emperor, there was a reaction, and the new fashion was forgotten for some time. Alexander I managed to renew it, who saw Europe during the Napoleonic Wars.

The rapid growth in the popularity of ice skates began in 1842, when the first ice rink was flooded. The river or lake surface freezes with uneven hillocks, as the water expands when solidifying, which greatly prevents beginners from mastering the art of ice skating. Since the appearance of a flat surface, there has been a sports boom.

In the Russian Empire, a speed skating organization was opened in 1864, and already in 1887 the first international competitions in speed skating, where the famous Russian runner and figure skater Alexander Panshin won. After the October Revolution, skating rinks for skaters were built all over the country.

The evolution of cross-country skates

The history of cross-country skating begins in mid XIX centuries. Originally, the steel blade was attached to a wooden sole and tied to the leg with straps. This design provided some mobility of the boot on the foot, which was a significant drawback. The first tubular skates were created in 1880. They were attached to the boot from the back and front with four and six screws, respectively.

In 1887, after the victory of Alexander Panshin, his version of the skates became popular, where the blade was lengthened and became very narrow, and the front part was slightly bent, while the interfering curl was cut off. The next improvement was due to the Norwegian H. Hagen, who made a steel pipe, and already inserted an iron runner into it.

Subsequent inventions have taken place with blade material. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, a serious development of chemistry began. Steel alloying was invented, which doubled the strength of the runners. This made the blade thinner and lighter.

The last radical change came in 1990, when they created drop-to-toe skates that made them look like slippers. Such a structure improved sliding, made it easier to run, since it was no longer necessary to lift the entire structure.

The evolution of figure skates

The performance of jumps, complex movements on ice was popular even before figure skating. The first association of amateurs opened in Edinburgh in 1742. Classical figure skating was started by the American Haynes, who in the middle of the 19th century first performed ice skating to music.

The new fashion quickly gained popularity, in 1871. figure skating became a sport. In 1908, competitions in this type of sports were held in the first summer Olympic Games Oh. The program included the performance of difficult jumps, turns and other tricks on the ice.

The ideal shape of the blade and boots was found gradually. At this time, the skates became much shorter, since otherwise the partners interfered with each other. At the same time, the rear part, at the same time, teeth were made on the skids in front, which made it possible to perform complex numbers, standing on the fingers.

In 1976, ice dancing was added to the list of the Olympic Games, at the same time the USSR figure skaters - Lyudmila Pakhomova and Alexander Gorshkov - were recognized as winners of the first competitions in a new sport. By this time, the skate boot had become much softer.

The evolution of ice hockey skates

Ice hockey appeared in 1879. However, in Russia it did not become popular by the October Revolution. After the proletariat came to power, athletes began to play hockey with an inflatable rubber ball, but a plastic washer was introduced only by 1946. At that time, ancient skates became extremely uncomfortable.

At first, the blades were shortened, and later they were made much stronger due to alloying of steel. Later, the boot became more stable and more mobile. A fuse appeared at the front end of the runner. The latest innovation is the mobility of the blades, which, when repulsed, lag behind the boot, and return to the sole with the help of a spring.

Roller Evolution

Antique rollers from the mid-18th century have large metal wheels (much larger than a foot) with spokes. The invention did not gain much popularity, as it was practically uncontrollable. The first successful design, made in 1819, consisted of two-skid, pairwise fixed wheels. Such antiques can now be seen in the Louvre.

Modern roller skates appeared at the end of the 20th century, when the wheels were placed in one line. Although the device was more difficult to learn, it greatly reduced friction. Skating speed increased instantly. In 1995, the last improvement took place - the roller boot became soft.

Did you know?

The blade of the skates is very narrow, which creates extremely high pressure in a small area. Under this pressure, the ice melts, resulting in an excellent lubrication that greatly reduces the coefficient of friction. Thanks to this, ease of sliding appears.

The first blades had a strongly curved toe, which is why the front of the runners resembled a horse's head. That is why the device got its name - skates.

Good day to you, our dear readers.

That is practically the end of the New Year holidays. They flew by, to put it mildly, quickly. Well, at least for me.

Winter is an amazing time. In winter, despite the frosty weather, we play snowballs, sled, ski and skate. At this time of the year, even adults feel like children. And not only because of the wonderful holidays, but also because they themselves can return to childhood for a while.

My friends love to go to the skating rink in winter (and sometimes in summer as well). And who even came up with the idea of ​​flooding the grounds with water and inviting people to go ice skating? Where did skates come from?

It turns out that ancient people already used them. Well, of course, they don't look like modern skates at all. They were not made of iron, but animal bones. And they found them for the first time in Northern Europe.

The skates, it turns out, are very old. Ancient people often used them to move on slippery surfaces. They were made either from bones (as noted above) or from wood, which were attached to shoes with ropes. Our Siberian ancestors rode on walrus tusks, and the Chinese used a bamboo trunk. Interesting specimens made of horse bone were found in Kazakhstan. One of them is kept in the London Museum.

In 1967, scientists near Odessa discovered the oldest skates, which are about 3200 years old. These amazing products belong to the nomadic tribe of the Cimmerians. It turns out that they were used already in the Bronze Age.

The first skates were more like skis - there were no pointed ribs. They repelled the sticks. They were made (as noted above) from the bones of domestic animals.

In Russia, bone skates appeared about 3 thousand years ago. Most often they were made from horse bones. Three holes were made in them - two to tie the product to the sock, and one to hold the heel.

From the 13th to the 18th century, skates, how funny it sounds for modern man, were a means of transportation on ice (rivers, lakes and other water bodies). Since the middle of the 14th century, they have been improved: they began to be made of wood with a metal strip for more comfortable sliding. At first, strips of bronze were fastened, and then steel was used.

By the way, our famous Emperor Peter I was the first to connect shoes and skates. After that, skates, in principle, did not change their design. Only slightly changed the length of the metal strip and the material from which all this miracle is made.

Then skates and skating on them became not so much a means of transportation as a means of entertainment and recreation. The era of speed skating began. In Russia, the first speed skating club was opened in 1864 in the then capital of our country - St. Petersburg. It was opened, by the way, by our famous and popular compatriot at that time, Alexander Pashnin, who became the first world champion in speed skating.

After some time, figure skating also began to develop, which gained immense popularity.

By the way, on January 7, 1876, the world's first artificial ice rink was opened in London. The British were delighted with this, but just a day later they found that the skates had doubled in price, although they were only runners with laces.

Currently, there are different types of skates.

They differ from the rest in that they have a convex blade shape and special teeth at the front end.

Hockey skates. They have a removable and non-removable blade. The length of the blade and the boot are the same.

Walking skates ... They are similar to the first two types, but more convenient than them. The women's version looks more like figure skating skates, and the men's version is more massive - like hockey skates.

Speed ​​skating skates. These are special skates for those who are professionally engaged speed skating... Their design is slightly different from the previous ones. They have long length blades, a larger radius of curvature of the blade. The biggest difference is that they have a movable blade.

Well, that seems to be all that I wanted to tell.

On my own behalf and on behalf of our entire team, I would like to congratulate all of you on the past holidays. Spend more time outdoors - walk, go for a drive on your sons and skates - such ancient and one of the most amazing inventions of mankind.

From time immemorial, people have appreciated beauty, grace, elegance. In our modern, progressive world, it is impossible to imagine a person who would not know what figure skating is. Someone calls it a sport, some call it “art, but ice skating became possible thanks to the emergence of“ skates ”in the world, and in our homeland to someone who brought skates to Russia.

Man has always been able to adapt, adapt to living conditions, habitat. It is not surprising that many scientists find it impossible to determine the exact year and place where ice skating shoes were first invented and used. It's also hard to tell who came up with the skates. In the ancient world, climate conditions were harsh, people often had to settle where it was cold. To survive, they were engaged in hunting, fishing, food production. Probably, then someone resourceful and came up with the idea that it is better to slide on the ice, not wander.

Archaeologists have found archaeologists all over the world that were installed as the first prototypes of skates. These are the Netherlands, China, England, Switzerland, Bavaria, Kazakhstan, Siberia, Scandinavian countries. It was very difficult for people in ancient times to overcome such huge distances, therefore, people could come up with shoes for walking on ice at different times.

Some scholarly minds claim that the first skates were made from animal bones. This can be considered true only in part. Not everyone had the opportunity to use such material as a blank. Someone carved skates from wood, mainly from a Christmas tree, some took bamboo as a basis, even walrus tusks were used. At the base of the workpiece, holes were made into which a leather cord was threaded. They attached the device to the leg.

Interesting to know! The earliest historically documented mention of winter ice shoe items in literature can be found in the English-Dutch Dictionary of 1648.

At the moment, the most ancient skates are bone devices found in 1967 in the vicinity of the northern part of the Black Sea coast. According to scientists, they are about 3200 years old. It is assumed that they were made by the Cimmerian tribes in order to comfortably glide along the frozen rivers. The shape of the bone did not allow for high speed and maneuverability. I had to additionally use sticks. However, even then it was a significant progress in human life. Prior to this, seekers of antiquity found ancient shoes, which, according to rough estimates, are more than 2000 years old. The antiques contained in one of the British museums were found in 1839.

It has been established that from the 13th to the middle of the 18th centuries, ice shoes were used only as a means of rapid movement along frozen rivers, lakes, and canals. In addition to wood and bone, from which the first skates were made, strips of bronze and iron were used in the products to improve the structure.

Skate inventors

It is impossible to pinpoint exactly who came up with the ingenious idea to make ice shoes. But the names of the people who worked to improve them are known. These were not only scientists and designers, but also those who simply loved to slide on ice.

Interesting! The front of the skates was often decorated with a figure in the shape of a horse's head. Because of this, the device got its affectionate name - "Skates".

Innovation in the creation of ice shoes began in Europe at the beginning of the 14th century, when iron plates were inserted into wooden skates, and later they were replaced by steel tubes. It didn't take long for the first all-metal devices to appear in Holland. Ancient alloy skates were short, heavy, with a curved toe.

The impractical construction made it inconvenient to attach the shoe to the foot. The outsole did not fit snugly against the sidewall, the straps slipped off. Here the genius of the Russian Tsar Perth I came to the rescue. There is an opinion that, being in Holland on state affairs and carried away by ice skating, the ruler thought that it would be good to combine the blade with the shoes into a single whole.

Although people have been fond of ice skating for a long time, it gained great popularity closer to the middle of the 19th century. The popularity of this hobby has led to the emergence of various disciplines in sports related to skating and skiing. This gave impetus to the rapid development of the design. sports shoes, new models began to be produced and produced by well-known companies.

For the first time, Norwegian runners invented ancient tubular skates. The blades were screwed to the shoe with four and six screws. The Russian skater A. Panshin was engaged in experiments with the form of running skates. In 1887, he achieved considerable success, starting to create elongated models with a thin blade curved at the end. For many decades, the original structure remained practical and did not change.

Interesting! You don't have to be an engineer to create a new model of skates. Any boy could grind off a skate blade from the front and back, getting the so-called "Canada", suitable for both beautiful gliding and high-speed racing.

Currently, athletes use a steel tube skate model with a runner inserted into it. The development was carried out by the Norwegian H. Hagen. He achieved success in 1892, making his name in history winter sports... 1996 introduced the world to new versions of ice shoes. It happened in competitions different levels when the Dutch and Belgian athletes had a good start in the season. Developed by the firms "Viking" and "Raps", and new model received the name "Slepskate".

Ice skating has become so popular that a completely new type of shoe has appeared - a plastic, roller skate. There was no need to invent something completely new. Its principle was to replace the metal blade with wheels. This allowed skating not only on ice. This entertainment is especially popular among children and adolescents.

Gaines ridge

Dr. Gaines is the man who came up with and implemented the idea of ​​"Snow Maiden" skates. In the 60s of the XIX century, he decided to make "Snow Maidens", which had a wide blade, a sock bent upwards without teeth. Their absence allows you to slide even on hard, rolled snow. Such equipment is suitable for teaching beginners, with it they learn to ride using the edges of the skate. Further changes in the model were not fundamental, but introduced some innovations. So, the Swedish figure skater U. Salkov came up with the idea of ​​adding teeth to the toe. The innovation made it possible to perform more complex shapes, jumps, stops, toe pirouettes, compasses, steps, jerks. N. Panin helped to strengthen the strength of the model. He added a rack, now there are three.

There were no more significant changes in the Snow Maidens. The length and thickness of the blade varied depending on the application. For example, for ice dancing, the shortest length is provided so that partners do not hurt each other. The blades of their skates are 2-3 mm thick, for comparison, their predecessors were 5-6 mm thick. The height is 40-50 mm. The skid is rounded so that when the body is tilted, it slides along an arc.

Who brought skates to Russia

The fashion for ice skating in Russia was brought by Peter I. He really liked this kind of entertainment. The tsar even ordered to start producing skates in Tula when he returned home. But after his death, the popularity of skates declined. It is believed that the very first speed skating club in Russia was founded in 1864 by A. Panshin. Skorokhod and skater opened it in St. Petersburg.

Interesting! More than 300 years ago, the English diplomat Carlyle visited Moscow. He later wrote: "Favorite winter fun for Muscovites - ice skating ”.

In February 1890, the St. Petersburg Yusupov skating rink celebrated its 25th anniversary. On this occasion, they decided to arrange a grandiose ice competition. Athletes from America and Europe were specially invited to participate. The scale of the event, the stellar composition of the participants give the right to call these competitions the first unofficial world championship. The success of this competition has accelerated the holding of world-class competitions. Also, this event served as an impetus for the creation of the International Skating Union in 2 years.

Figure skating is called one of the most beautiful and hockey the most courageous sports. But few people know when, who and why invented skates, and why they were called that. History provides answers to these questions.

The first skates

The invention, from which skates came later, came about 3200 years ago. Skates found on the banks of the river indicate this date. Southern Bug near Odessa. They belonged to a nomadic people called the Cimmerians. In the British Museum, you can also see bone skates, made 2,000 years ago, which were attached to shoes with leather laces threaded through holes in the blades. Thus, there is all the evidence that skates are a rather ancient invention.

Outwardly, they, of course, bear little resemblance to the modern outfit of a skater. And each nation made them from different materials - for example, in Siberia, blades were carved from walrus tusks, in Kazakhstan - from horse bones, in China - from bamboo. Runners were made of wood and attached to shoes. However, no matter what material the blades were made from, their common property was the strength and smoothness of the surface.

Skates were needed to move around the ice-covered terrain. Therefore, most of all, ancient skates were found in countries such as Denmark, the Netherlands, England, Sweden, Switzerland, etc.

Primitive skates were more like skis. They lacked pointed ribs, and for better gliding on the ice, it was necessary to use sticks. Already in later versions, they began to make sharp blades that were attached to shoes with straps. And, for example, in the Netherlands, metal runners were attached to wooden shoes.

Types of skates

Skates in a more modern version did not appear anywhere, but in Russia. And this was initiated by Emperor Peter I. While in Holland, he worked there as a carpenter, and in his free time he skated. At some point, he decided to attach a metal blade on a wooden base to his boots, and in this form, skates came into use.

Later, the changes concerned only the shape and length of the skates, the design itself remained unchanged, and in the same form has survived to this day. Modern skates for figure skating provide for fastening the blades to the boots with screws, and for hockey and running - with rivets.

Today, several varieties of skates are produced. "Snegurochki" are distinguished by their stability and are well suited for beginners who have just started on the ice. Cross-country skates are a lightweight version with a long blade.

Skates for figure skating have teeth in front, as well as blades with a sharpened groove.

The origin of the word "skates"

The word "skates" has native Russian roots and is a diminutive version of the word "horse". In the primitive version, skates were perceived by humans as small horses that carry humans. Moreover, in ancient skates, they were decorated in front with the image of a horse's head, which confirmed this hypothesis.

According to another version, the name came from the fact that the first runners were usually carved from the bones of animals, most often horses.

A little about skating rinks

For a beautiful glide on ice, a good surface is just as important as having the right skates. After all, according to bad ice and you can't skate well. Therefore, a lot of attention is paid to the creation of suitable rollers today. The craftsmen who do this are called ice makers. When creating an ice rink, you need to know well the properties of water and its behavior under different natural and climatic conditions. In addition, special equipment is required to create a skating rink.

So, to fill the ice treadmill, you need to work on a frosty night, at very low air temperatures. The casting machine must make at least 800 rounds at intervals for good adhesion of thin layers. In fact, this is a very painstaking work that requires special skill.

The creation of a hockey field is different. First, it is backfilled with snow, then tamped, then filled with water. When the water hardens, the surface of the ice is sanded with a special machine, it is again poured with hot and then cold water.

Today, the creation of ice rinks has been simplified by the invention of refrigeration technology. The first artificial ice rink was made in the USA in 1876 using Chelsea refrigerators.

This turned out to be an interesting story of the creation of skates.

The oldest mention of the term "horse" is found in the "English-Dutch Dictionary". In international sports, the word "skates" came from the Russian language. Usually, the front of the runners was decorated with a wooden horse's head. So they called it - "skates".

But of course skates are not the first device for moving on ice. During archaeological excavations and from ancient literature, scientists have discovered that the first such devices were made from animal bones. By the way, skates are one of the most ancient human inventions. When there was ice on the ground, ancient people carved skates from wood or bone and attached them to their boots. The inhabitants of Siberia rode on the ice on the tusks of walruses, and the Chinese - on bamboo trunks. The British Museum exhibits bone skates that were used for skating almost two thousand years ago. And they were found only in the last century. Only in 1967, on the banks of the Southern Bug River near Odessa, archaeologists unearthed the oldest skates ever found. They belonged to the Cimmerians who lived in the Northern Black Sea region 3200 years ago.

Ancient skates

The emergence of figure skating

Scientists delve into the very distant past to find the first facts of the emergence of figure skating. Most historians believe that the birthplace of figure skating is Holland. After all, it was in this country in the XIII-XIV centuries that the first iron ice skates were created. In the Dutch book "The Life of Lidwina" you can even see what a horse with an iron blade was. In the engraving of a group of skaters at the city wall, we see the skates of that time.

"St. Lidwina fell on the ice "(1498)

Many do not agree with the Dutch championship and believe that it is difficult to name the discoverer, because they started skating at about the same time in different countries. The creation of skates of a new type made it possible to develop figure skating in general. But at that time it was different from the sport we know today.

Initially, figure skating was the ability to draw a variety of intricate shapes and patterns on the ice, and at the same time try to keep a beautiful pose.This is what attracted many people of art. A passionate admirer of skates was, in particular, the great German writer J.W. Goethe. Even paintings have survived that captured the poet on ice, sliding in an exquisite pose. In general, there are so many paintings, prints, drawings and even cartoons devoted to any sport that exists to this day, as ice skating and figure skating.

Fun on ice in front of the gate of Sant Geri in Antwerp (Halle, 1553)

The first rules for ice skating were first published in England in 1772. British artillery lieutenant Robert Jones wrote A Treatise on Ice Skating, which described all the main patterns known at the time. Since all the required figures were described in the UK, it was in this country that the first skating clubs were created and the first rules for the competition in this sport were drawn up.

Ice Skating in New York's Central Park in Winter, pictured in 1862

Figure skating development

In 1882, the first international competition in Europe was held in Vienna.

In the development of figure skating as a sport, figure skaters from Austria, representatives of the Norwegian school, as well as Swedish, German, English and American, have contributed.

The popularity of figure skating in Europe and in Russia, according to historians, became possible thanks to the skater from America. American Jackson Haynes (in another transcription Heinz; 1840-1875), dancer and skater, combined both of his skills, and got his own style skating: riding to music, dancing movements and tops on the ice. The skates, which were attached with belts to the shoes, could not withstand such loads, then Haynes was one of the first to screw them tightly to the boots. However, this style was not adopted in Puritan America, and in the 60s of the 19th century, the artist went on tour to Europe.

Jackson Haynes

When the artist toured European ice rinks, he aroused the admiration of ice skating enthusiasts. Historians call him the founder of the modern style of figure skating.

February 1890 was marked by the 25th anniversary of the St. Petersburg Yusupov skating rink and was organized sports competition... Skaters from Europe and America were invited to this competition. Given the scale and composition of the participants, this could actually be called the first unofficial world championship. For three days, 8 participants competed to determine the best of them, and in all types of skating, the winner was Alexei Pavlovich Lebedev, a talented Russian figure skater.

The success of the completed competition in St. Petersburg accelerated the organization of the first European and world championships, and also largely helped the creation of the International Skating Union (ISU) in 1892

In 1896, for the first time, the International Skating Union announced its intention to hold the world championship. To honor the merits of Russia in this sport, the first official international championship was held in St. Petersburg. Only 4 participants skated their programs on the ice: Austrian G Hugel, German G Fuchs and 2 Russian figure skaters G Sanders and N. Poduskov. The victory in that competition was won by a German.

Participants of the First World Championship in St. Petersburg, 1896.

At the dawn of the twentieth century, famous and talented skaters tried to invent their own unique and beautiful jumps on ice Masters such as Salchow, Lutz, Rittberger, Axel Paulsen came up with their own original jumping techniques, which to this day bear names derived from their names and surnames.

In the 1960s, after a half-century hiatus, Russia reappeared on the world stage. The first to write their names into the annals of history were Lyudmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov. However, Soviet books preferred to keep silent about their merits - in 1979 they became "defectors". Irina Rodnina (with two different partners) became a 10-time world champion and 3-time Olympic champion.

The end of the 20th century passed under the complete domination of the USSR and Russia in figure skating. V pair skating Russia was generally out of competition, having received "gold" in all Olympic Games from 1964 to 2006. However, having a huge advantage over the rest in pair and dance skating and strong men, the USSR never won a single gold medal in women's skating. Kira Ivanova came closest to the coveted title (silver in the World Championship, bronze at the Olympic Games). Already in post-Soviet Russia, the women's world championship was won by Maria Butyrskaya and Irina Slutskaya.

And among men, Alexey Urmanov, Alexey Yagudin and Evgeni Plushenko became Olympic champions, world and European champions.

The history of speed skating

Speed ​​skating has a very ancient history... Information about the first Dutch ice skating races through the country's frozen canals dates back to the 13th century.

In the middle of the 16th century, ice skating competitions began to be held in the Scandinavian countries.

As a sport, speed skating developed in the second half of the 19th century. In 1867, the first official competitions skaters in Norway, who organized "Christiania Skate Club". This sport became widespread in various European countries; in the 70s of the XIX century, national championships began to be held.

In 1880, the Norwegian racers A. PAULSEN and K. WERNER designed tubular cross-country skates. The front and rear metal platforms were screwed to the sole of the boot with six and four screws, respectively. This was a revolution in speed skating.

A great contribution to the development of the shape of the skates was made by a Russian runner, an employee of the Nikolaev railway, Alexander Nikitovich Panshin (1863-1904). In 1887, he made elongated skates according to his own model - all-metal, long skates with a narrow blade and a slightly curved toe - the prototype of today's cross-country skates. For many decades, the tubular skate model has not changed fundamentally.

Alexander Nikitovich Panshin

In 1889, the first (unofficial) world speed skating championship was held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. A.N. Panshin.

In 1892 the International Skating Union ISU - ISU was formed.It declared the competitions held in 1889 in Amsterdam, professional and held in 1893, in Amsterdam, the first official world championship, which was won by Jaap Eden from the Netherlands.

Dutch skater Jaap Eden on ice. 1890-1900.

Already in those days, the program of such competitions included four distances, which became classic in this sport for many years - 500, 1500, 5000 and 10,000 m. However, the conditions for winning the title of world champion then differed from the rules of the classic all-around adopted later. Until 1908, in order to obtain the world title, it was necessary to win the competition at least three distances out of four. Due to these rules, in 1894, 1902, 1903, 1906 and 1907, the winners of the world championships were not identified.

Competitions in speed skating were held, and are now being held, on a closed track, consisting of two straight lines and two turns. The classic length of such a track is 400 m. The skaters participating in the competition run in pairs.

Dutch athletes Lijkle Poepjes and B. van derZee at the start of the speed race in Leeuwarden (Netherlands)

Among the strongest in this sport in the first and second decades of the 20th century, the Norwegian Oskar Mathisen achieved the greatest success. He won the world championships five times - in 1908, 1909, 1912, 1913 and 1914.Twice - in 1910 and 1911 - the Russian speed skater Nikolai Strunnikov became the world champion.

Strunnikov Nikolay Vasiliskovich (1886-1940)

Since 1926, a system was introduced, according to which the champion and the holders of all subsequent places were determined by the sum of points in the all-around, awarded to each skater at each of the four distances, depending on the results shown by him.

Since 1936, the world championships in speed skating have been held not only among men, but also among women. Their championship in the all-around was determined by the sum of points scored by each athlete in competitions at four distances - 500, 1000, 1500 and 3000 m. The first world champion was the speed skater from the USA Kitty Klein. Then on women's championships the world was won by the Norwegian Laila Shaw-Nielsen, in 1937 and 1938, and the Finnish athlete Verne Lesche, in 1939 and 1947.

In 1956, Soviet skaters for the first time entered the start of the VII Winter Olympics and won 7 medals. The first Soviet champion Maria Isakova became the world champion, she won the world championship three times in a row, won three Olympic awards.

Maria Isakova

In 1957, at the XV World Championship among women, held in Imatra (Finland) Soviet athletes won 13 prizes out of 15 possible.

In the capital of the 1964 Olympics, Innsbruck, Lydia Skoblikova won all four distances, setting world records on three of them, and in 2010 is the only 6-time Olympic champion in the history of speed skating.

Lydia Skoblikova

In the mid-1980s, the first fully indoor skating rinks appeared.

In 1997, a new type of skate began to be used en masse - clap skates, which made it possible to increase running speed.

Clap skates

Variants of this type of skate have been known since 1900. In modern competitions, they were periodically used by various athletes since 1984, but without much success, and were perceived with skepticism, until in the 1996/1997 season the Dutch women's team, performing in this model, beat everyone as standing. With next year all athletes gradually began to switch to "claps". Today, all athletes in all competitions top level perform only in clap skates. The classic model with a fixed blade is used for setting up a run for novice athletes and for sprint distances.

Ice hockey history

The history of ice hockey is one of the most contested of all sports. Traditionally, the birthplace of hockey has been Montreal, although more recent research points to the primacy of Kingston (Ontario) or Windsor (Nova Scotia).

There is evidence that games resembling hockey (more precisely, field hockey) have existed since ancient times. Some believe that such a game originated in Persia, where polo once appeared. According to other sources, the ancient Greeks also had a game resembling hockey, which was even included in the program of the Olympic Games. It was called "Freininda". In Athens, the bas-reliefs of the famous wall of Themistocles, which is more than 2,400 years old, depict young people playing what is very reminiscent of modern field hockey. A similar game was played in the 16th-17th centuries in England and France. In the 16th century, a ball game on ice appeared in Holland - "bandy".

Ice scene (Henrik Averkamp, ​​early 17th century)

Then, similar games appeared in Scandinavia, where later in the 19th century they were transformed into ice hockey. They also knew such a game in China, five and a half centuries ago. The ancient Indians were also fond of hockey fights. This is evidenced by the frescoes on display at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. They depict athletes playing a small ball with curved sticks. Some sources claim that the birth of ice hockey is associated with the life of the Indians of the Far North of America, who competed on ice in the game with sticks.

And if you resort to the help of linguists, you can find out that the word "hockey" is of French origin. "Hoke" - this is how the name of a shepherd's staff with a bent handle sounds in French.

But despite this, the homeland modern hockey after all, Canada is considered a puck.

There are many versions of the origins of hockey in Canada. One of them is that field hockey first appeared in Europe. When Great Britain conquered Canada from France in 1763, English arrows brought him to Halifax, whose inhabitants were carried away new game... Since Canadian winters are very harsh and long, this area has always been a welcome winter views sports. By attaching cheese cutters to their boots, English and French-speaking Canadians played the game on frozen rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water. At first, they played not with a puck, but with a heavy ball, and the number of teams reached 50 or more players on each side. In Nova Scotia and Virginia, there are old paintings of people playing hockey.

The first formal game took place in 1855 in Kingston, Ontario, by teams composed of the Royal Canadian Riflemen of the Imperial Army. And the first official match took place on March 3, 1875 in Montreal at the Victoria skating rink, information about which was recorded in the Montreal Gazette. Each of the teams consisted of nine people. They played with a wooden puck and borrowed protective gear from baseball. For the first time, a hockey goal was installed on the ice.

1st McGill University Hockey Team

In the 1870s. ice hockey in Canada was a must-play for everyone sports events... In 1877, several students at McGill University in Montreal invented the first seven rules of ice hockey. In 1879, a rubber washer was proposed for the game. After some time, the game became so popular that in 1883 it was presented at the annual Montreal Winter Carnival. The Amateur Hockey Association was founded in Montreal in 1885.

Ice hockey at the McGill University ice rink, 1884.

The first official rules of the game of ice hockey were published in 1886, which have been preserved to the present day as much as possible. According to them, the number of field players decreased from nine to seven, there were a goalkeeper, front and rear defenders, a center and two forwards on the ice, and a rover was acting in front of the entire width of the field - the strongest hockey player, the best thrower. The whole match was played by the team in one composition, and by the end of the game the athletes literally crawled on the ice from fatigue, because it was only allowed to replace the player who was injured (and then in the last period and only with the consent of the opponents). The author of the new code of practice was the Canadian R Smith. In 1886, the first international meeting was held between the Canadian and English teams.

In 1890, a four-team championship was held in the province of Ontario. Soon appeared indoor skating rinks with natural ice. To prevent it from melting, narrow slots were cut in the walls and roofs for cold air to enter. In 1899, the world's first indoor ice hockey stadium with an artificial ice rink was built in Montreal, designed for an unprecedented number of spectators - 10,000 people. In the same year, the Canadian Amateur hockey league.

Team Montreal, Stanley Cup winner 1894

The game of hockey became so popular that in 1893 the Governor-General of Canada, Lord Frederick Arthur Stanley, bought for 10 guineas a cup that looked like an inverted pyramid of silver rings to present to the champion of the country. This is how the legendary trophy appeared - the Stanley Cup. At first, amateurs fought for him, and since 1910 - and professionals.

Team Montreal Victoria 1896

In 1900, a net appeared on the gate, made for the first time from fishing net, it made it possible to accurately determine whether a goal was scored against the team. After that, the disputes about the scored puck, which sometimes reached the team fights, stopped, it became much more convenient for the referees and hockey players to follow the goal being scored. Then, a metal net was hung on the gate. It was strong, but after hitting the puck flew back and sometimes injured the goalkeeper or the player who was at the goal. This deficiency was corrected with a second rope net, stretched inside the gate to soften the blow. Today's network combines these two networks. The judge's metal whistle, sticking to his lips from the cold, was replaced with a bell, and soon, with a plastic whistle. At the same time, a throw-in of the puck was introduced (earlier, the referee pushed the opponents' sticks with his hands to the puck lying on the ice and, blowing a whistle, drove off to the side so as not to get hit with the stick).

The first professional ice hockey team was created in Canada in 1904. In the same year, hockey players switched to a new game system - "six by six". The standard size of the site was set - 56 x 26 m, which has hardly changed since then. Four seasons later, there was a complete division into professionals and amateurs. For the latter, the Allan Cup was established, which has been played since 1908. Its owners subsequently represented Canada at the World Championships.

At the beginning of the 20th century Canadian hockey the Europeans became interested. I Congress, held on May 15-16, 1908 in Paris, founded The International Federation ice hockey (LIHG), which originally united four countries - France, Great Britain, Switzerland and Belgium. From the birth of the game, until 1903, Europeans played on natural ice The first artificial ice appeared in London, after which the improvement of ice rinks and the construction of new ones began. And soon the UK was able to develop hockey to professional level but not for long ... The war on hockey, like all other sports, had a great negative impact ...

To increase the entertainment and speed of the game, in 1910, the replacement of athletes was allowed. In the same year, the National Hockey Association (NHA) was formed, the successor of which was the famous National Hockey League (NHL), which appeared in 1917.

Hockey match, 1922

In 1911, the LIHG officially approved the Canadian rules for the game of hockey.

In 1920, the first meeting took place in an official tournament - at the Olympic Games, simultaneously considered world championships - between the teams of the Old and New Worlds. Canadians have confirmed their fame as the strongest hockey power in the world. The Canadians also won the Olympic tournaments of 1924 and 1928. In 1936 Great Britain won the title Olympic champion by taking it away from the Canadians, who had owned it for 16 years.
Many innovations belong to the hockey brothers Patrick - Frank and Lester (the latter became a famous hockey figure). On their initiative, each player was assigned a number, points were awarded not only for goals, but also for assists ("goal + pass" system), hockey players were allowed to pass the puck forward, and goalkeepers were allowed to take their skates off the ice. Since then, the game has lasted three periods of 20 minutes each.

Goalkeepers did not wear masks until 1929, when Clint Benedict, who played for the Canadian club Montreal Maroons, first stepped on the ice with it, but it was not officially approved immediately. In 1934, a free throw - a bullet was legalized. In 1945, multicolored lanterns were installed behind the gates for more accurate accounting of the goals scored ("red" means a goal, "green" - no goal has been scored). In the same year, a triple refereeing was introduced: the head referee and two assistants (linesmen). In 1946, the system of judges' gestures was legalized for specific violations of the rules.

In 1952, the USSR was admitted to the membership of the International Hockey Federation (IIHF) and from that moment until 1991 the USSR national hockey team was the strongest in the world. She took part in 30 world championships, 19 of which she won. She became a participant in 9 Winter Olympic hockey tournaments, 7 of which she won. It is the only national team in the world that has never returned from the World Championships and the Olympic Games without a set of awards.

After the collapse Soviet Union, the baton from the USSR national team was taken by the Russian national team, which did not have such success as its predecessor. Speaking at 5 Olympic tournaments, the team only once became a silver and bronze medalist, never winning the tournament. Participating in 21 world championships, 4 championship titles were won and the national team was among the prize-winners 4 more times. But in last years Russian hockey players revive the glory of Soviet hockey, becoming world champions 3 times over the past 5 years.