Legendary Olympic Coach and Skater Ron Ludington Passes at 85

Yuri

Yuri

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Just got off the phone with my sibling who trained under Luddy for several years during the 1980s in Wilmington and Newark, Delaware during his golden era, to let me know that he passed away today. I assume there will be many more articles later.


In addition to his coaching career, Luddy won four US National Championships in pairs with Nancy and they won a bronze medal at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley. One of his stories was that he should have been on the plane that crashed and killed the entire 1961 US World Figure Skating team plus coaches/officials and family. As a coach, Luddy was best known for guiding Kitty & Peter Carruthers to a bronze medal as the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo.
 
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Yes Wikipedia says he died on May 14th, but the linked article doesn't say and my sibling also saw it on Facebook. I've known him since 1982 but it's probably been two decades since I saw him. What a legend, they don't make them like Luddy anymore. It was so special to attend those late night sessions at SC Wilmington with all of his Olympic and senior National team members in the 1980s, he's the primary reason that I became involved in figure skating myself as a volunteer and an official, as well as my becoming a lifelong fan of the sport. Just seeing the Carruthers, Fox & Dalley, Miller & Fauver, and so many other great pairs and ice dancing couples rinkside in the middle of the night was so cool!
 
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That's a big loss to the skating community. A National, World, and Olympic medalist himself from the Golden Age of American Skating, plus the coach of National and Olympic medalists.

{{I take off my hat.}}
 
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A true legend. RIP

1960 US Nationals
m.youtube.com

Nancy & Ron Ludington - 1960 US National Championship FS

I apologise for the poor quality of this film but, well it was 1960. And today we lost Ron Ludington, and there really isn't any footage of his skating onlin...
m.youtube.com m.youtube.com

1960 Olympics
m.youtube.com

1960 Ron and Nancy Ludington OLYMPIC LP (Top 3 medalists)

Not many have seen Ron Ludington, dean of American pairs skating, on ice.....but here is a short clip of them winning the 1960 Olympic Bronze medal, in a bit...
m.youtube.com m.youtube.com
 
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Squaw Valley 1960 was the end of the US Golden Age! The other medalists were Carol Heiss (gold) and Barbara Roles (bronze) in the Ladies and David Jenkins (gold) in the men. Definitely an area when the SC of Boston and New England skaters dominated the US scene.

The Squaw Valley footage at the outdoor arena is priceless. The pairs look more like ice dancers except during the death spirals and sbs jumps.
 
Here's a much better local Delaware article celebrating Luddy's life including quotes from a couple of his Olympic skaters, Scott Gregory and Johnny Weir.

www.delawareonline.com

Figure skating icon Ron Ludington, who won Olympic bronze and coached dozens of Olympians in Delaware, dies

Ron Ludington won a bronze medal in 1960 and coached more than 30 more Olympians during his 50 years in Delaware.
www.delawareonline.com

What's scary is that he attended EVERY World Figure Skating Championship from 1957 to 1999, EXCEPT 1961 where he backed out at the last minute because he couldn't afford the flight and lodging in Prague! Of course, that was the flight that took the lives of 72 passengers, including all 18 members of the US World team and their coaches, such as Luddy's own legendary coach Maribel Vinson Owen.
 
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I saw this yesterday on Facebook. :( I have skated at UD off and on for 20 years, and he was such a fixture until a few years ago when he moved to the Patriot Center (formerly the Pond). He was always friendly to me. On the way back from an adult skating camp in Lake Placid he was sitting next to me on the plane, so we had a very interesting long chat. I haven't seen him in awhile, but I will miss him anyway.
 
I was just reading this at USAtoday.com. Wow, he would’ve been on the 1961 plane that crashed in Belgium with the 1961 team but did not go at the last minute. Wow.

I did not realize he coached Calla and Rocky. What an amazing man. Went to all the world championships.

www.usatoday.com

Figure skating icon Ron Ludington, who won Olympic bronze and coached dozens of Olympians, dies at 85

Ron Ludington won a bronze medal in 1960 and then went to coach more than 30 more Olympians. He was named to the Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 1999.
www.usatoday.com
 
Those were lovely tributes to 'Luddy' by Scott Gregory and Johnny Weir. Thanks for sharing the old interview @overedge, from manleywoman's podcast. And thanks to @floskate for those wonderful clips of Luddy and his former pairs partner. I didn't realize it was his first wife he skated with. I always thought Nancy was his sister. :)

Those clips are really good. The quality is better than I expected. I enjoy looking at old pairs clips and seeing how pairs has evolved, and comparing interesting moves that aren't done anymore with the early moves that have developed over time through advances in technique to increased difficulty and athleticism, such as lifts.

Luddy & Nancy surely did love the pair camel spins. They did a lot of them in one program. :encore:Toward the end of their 1960 U.S. Nationals free skate, they did what looks like pull Arabians into another pairs camel spin. They aren't always showing matching lines in their camel spins but their individual form is good. The pull Arabians remind me of Tai & Randy who had the best ones I've ever seen. Of course, Tai & Randy were also superb in their matching lines. T&R had an exquisite matching pair Ina Bauer. And there were a number of new pair innovations during T&R's era.

Luddy & Nancy were so precise with great edgework, of course. They had good ice coverage, but not a lot of speed. At least to the slow music they were skating to, they didn't show great speed. But they exhibited wonderful precision and timing. Their opening moves remind me so much of the kinds of openings we see in pairs today. And they did a lot of dance-type lifts and carry moves. We see a lot of dance lifts and moves in pairs skating today, especially with so many dance choreographers creating pairs programs. It's a cross-fertilization that has invigorated pairs, IMO. But probably the cross-fertilization in dance and pairs has always taken place, one discipline to the other and then vice versa, probably since the beginnings of both disciplines.

Some of the early pairs skating of the fifties and early 60s (pre- Belousova/Protopopov) had a lot of intricate arm holds, somewhat similar to dance. And there was a lot of short lifts of the lady and hops in unison. I guess I should take this type of discussion to the pairs thread.

Anyway, blessings to 'Luddy!' R.I.P. and condolences to his family and friends. Every time we hear of the passing of another great skating legend the sport, as we know it, seems further diminished. Unless there are those who have been passed the torch who will rise to the occasion and push the sport forward. Skating sorely needs inspired coaching and leadership at this time.

It's cool hearing what sounds like Dick Button's effervescent cheering toward the end of the Luddy/Nancy U.S. nationals free skate. :D
 
The Skating Club of Wilmington will be hosting a "Tribute Celebration to Luddy" on the weekend of May 20-22, 2022, delayed two years due to YNW and just after the second anniversary of his passing. I don't know the full details yet, but here are the highlights:

  • Friday 5/20 evening: reception at the SC of Wilmington
  • Saturday 5/21: 6-9 pm: ice show at SCW
  • Sunday 5/22: 2-4 pm: golf at the Elks Club

My understanding from my sibling who skated under Luddy at SCW (1301 Carruthers Lane, Wilmington DE) is that legendary Olympian pairs skater Peter Carruthers will be hosting/organizing the festivities and they are making major efforts to get as many of his Olympians to attend as possible (including those who trained at U Delaware under his leadership, e.g. the non-American Olympians who trained there). I believe this event is also a kickoff to fundraising for a Ron Ludington Memorial Fund to benefit competitive figure skaters. I will post more info as it becomes available, and there is a Facebook website for this event.
 
Yuri said:
Yes Wikipedia says he died on May 14th, but the linked article doesn't say and my sibling also saw it on Facebook. I've known him since 1982 but it's probably been two decades since I saw him. What a legend, they don't make them like Luddy anymore. It was so special to attend those late night sessions at SC Wilmington with all of his Olympic and senior National team members in the 1980s, he's the primary reason that I became involved in figure skating myself as a volunteer and an official, as well as my becoming a lifelong fan of the sport. Just seeing the Carruthers, Fox & Dalley, Miller & Fauver, and so many other great pairs and ice dancing couples rinkside in the middle of the night was so cool!
Click to expand...
We all enjoyed being in Delaware and skating with Luddy. It was a great group of hard working skaters and I certainly learned a lot!
 
Yuri said:
The Skating Club of Wilmington will be hosting a "Tribute Celebration to Luddy" on the weekend of May 20-22, 2022, delayed two years due to YNW and just after the second anniversary of his passing.
Click to expand...
Edited to clarify that I found this FB event page for another upcoming Ron Ludington tribute ice show on May 6 & 7 (you don't have to have an account or be logged in to view posts): https://m.facebook.com/Tribute2Luddy/

Skaters announced to perform so far in the Patriot Ice Center's 1st annual "Journey To Champion: A Tribute to Ron Ludington" ice show in Newark, Delaware:
Caroline Green/Michael Parsons (headliners)
Ilia Malinin (a special guest performer)
Emmanuel Savary (was coached by Ron Ludington)
Peter Liu

Tickets: https://app.mysportsort.com/view/index.php?an=334&myss_source=register&entitytype=3&entityid=50017
 
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Sylvia said:
FB event page (you don't have to have an account or be logged in to view posts): https://m.facebook.com/Tribute2Luddy/

Skaters announced to perform so far in the Patriot Ice Center's 1st annual "Journey To Champion: A Tribute to Ron Ludington" ice show in Newark, Delaware:
Caroline Green/Michael Parsons (headliners)
Ilia Malinin (a special guest performer)
Emmanuel Savary (was coached by Ron Ludington)
Peter Liu

Tickets: https://app.mysportsort.com/view/index.php?an=334&myss_source=register&entitytype=3&entityid=50017
Click to expand...
 
Less than three weeks away from the Tribute to Ron Ludington at the Skating Club of Wilmington on the evenings of May 20-21 in Wilmington DE. Friday is a business formal cocktail reception while Saturday has a social hour followed by a Tribute on Ice hosted by Peter Carruthers. The proceedings will run from 6:30-9:00 pm both nights, with tickets $75 in advance and $100 at the door.

Yuri will be attending with his skating sibling and Mom on both evenings. Really looking forward to it, too!
 
Philadelphia Inquirer article by Ellen Dunkel (May 20): https://www.inquirer.com/sports/figure-skating-ron-ludington-kitty-peter-carruthers-20220520.html
Excerpts:
Ludington died in 2020 at age 85, and many of his former Olympians finally are able to return to the Skating Club of Wilmington this weekend to honor him. They also will kick off the Ron Ludington Skaters Fund, which will benefit young pairs skaters and the education of pairs coaches.
The Carruthers will be hosts of a Saturday night skating show. The weekend also includes a reception and a golf outing at the Rock Manor Golf Course next to the rink.
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Along with the Carruthers, the Olympic skaters expected to attend include Scott Gregory (1984 and 1988 Olympics), Suzy Semanick (1988), Kim Seybold Catron (1988), April Sargent Silverstein (1992), Russ Witherby (1992), and Todd Waggoner (1988), along with coaches John Nicks and Kerry Leitch.
The future of pairs skating also will be on hand. Sonia Baram and Daniel Tioumentsev, the 2022 U.S. junior pairs champions, will skate in the show.
Tickets are available on luddysk8ersfund.com.
Click to expand...
@Yuri I hope you and family members enjoy the festivities and report back here afterwards! :)
 
Friday night was an amazing reunion with lots of laughter, plus some heartfelt tears, as many of Luddy's Army returned to the Skating Club of Wilmington to honor the legendary Ron Ludington just over two years since his passing. Luddy's peers honoring him with stories and memories included Master of Ceremonies Kerry Leitch, Robby Kaine, and John Nicks. World and Olympics team members and National medalists speaking off-the-cuff included Ronald Kaufman (via Zoom), Judy Schwomeyer Sladky, Stacey Smith, Peter & Kitty Carruthers, Scott Gregory, Todd Waggoner, Wayne Seybold, April Sargent, and Ron Kravette. Many more of his top skaters were in attendance (including co-organizer Russ Witherby and Wayne's sister Kim) and others may attend the Saturday Tribute and Ice Show.
 
Given the very hot temperatures, fortunately all the festivities were inside the SCW rink on Saturday evening! Everyone had a nice get-together prior to the Tribute Ice Show and it was cool they played the Olympics skating videos of Luddy's teams with at least one member in attendance such as the Carruthers, Semanick & Gregory, and Wachsman & Waggoner. Additional attendees who couldn't make it on Friday night were the always bubbly Calla Urbanski and beloved choreographer Diane Agle. The show itself lasted close to an hour and was headlined by the current US junior pair champions, Sonia Baram and Daniel Tioumentsev, who train in Orange County under Meno & Sand. Peter Carruthers acted as the primary emcee and a great time was had by all!
 
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