Skating on Air

I always think when when Figure Skating "Blogosphere" peers actually publish something it's so awesome, specially when it's about skating.

So one of the most unique voices in figure skating, Kelli Lawrence, has penned an new book Skating on Air: The Broadcast History of an Olympic Marquee Sport.

Kelli Lawrence: What I’ve done is trace figure skating’s story in terms of the way it has emerged as a top spectator sport—touching briefly on the skating carnivals, ballets, etc. of yesteryear, as well as the efforts of Sonja Henie pre and post-WWII, before digging into its televised history. The primary goals were to show the way TV/media has shaped the sport through the years, and vice versa… and, of course, to take a closer look at all the things that have transpired from the ’94 Winter Olympics, through the pro skating boom, the 2002 pairs judging scandal, the CoP judging system, etc. to bring skating to the place it is (or isn’t) on the TV map today.

Over 30 interviews with 30 broadcasters, skaters-turned-commentators, producers, programmers, executives, etc. representing most of the major networks (and a few of the "minor" ones) and a foreword by CBS’ Verne Lundquist, I can imagine the book will be a stellar read. Her musings on figure skating are some of my favorite. You can read her over at State of the Skate and you can get your hands on a copy of the book by clicking this link.

I also suggest Ice Charades by Jenny Hall.