Tenley Albright (USA) - World Championships Vienna 1955 - ISU Archives USA

To license ISU footage: bit.ly/3M7bcaF We dusted off the skating archive to show you some of our sports greatest legends.
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Tenley Albright has been an achiever in both sports and life itself. In 1956, she earned the distinction of becoming the first U.S. Women to win the Olympic Figure Skating Championship. She began skating when she was 9 years old, and two years later she was struck by non-paralytic poliomyelitis. She resumed skating to strengthen her back muscles weakened by the polio attack. her natural talent for skating became quickly evident, and soon she began skating competitively.
In 1947, she won the Eastern Juvenile Girls Championship in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1951, she became the U.S. ladies’ Novice champion. She earned this prestigious title 5 consecutive times, from 1952 to 1956. The fact that prior to this, she had also won the Eastern Senior Pairs title with Dudley Richards in 1951, clearly demonstrates her skating versatility.
Miss Albright made her World Championships debut in Milan, Italy in 1951. The next year in Paris the flu forced her to withdraw. She won the first of two World Championships in 1953. In 1955, she regained her world title in Vienna by a wide margin. She entered Olympic competition in 1952 winning the silver medal. In 1956, she became the first U.S. women skater to win the gold medal in Figure Skating.
Influenced by the style of her teachers, Willie Frick and Maribel Vinson of Boston, and Eugene Turner of California, Miss Albright skating exemplified a brilliant combination of athletic skills, artistry and grace. After her Olympic win, miss Albright retired from skating to attend Radcliffe College and focused on completing her education. She graduated from Harvard Medical School in 1961, went on to become a surgeon, and she practiced for 23 years, continuing as a faculty member and lecturer at Harvard Medical School.
She was a highly-respected surgeon, and a recognized authority in sports medicine. She has maintained a prominent role also as a member of the Sports Medicine Committee of both the U.S. Olympic Committee and the U.S. Figure Skating Association.

[@hv9561]

So interesting to watch

[@Tracks777]

Great! Keep it up!

[@Tracks777]

Good video! Keep it up!

[@sheilamuirenn6336]

I’m
Reminded of Michelle Kwan in the beauty of her skating. Its edges, flow. And correctness. Even the jumps. They need to bring back school figures. Skating is boring to watch, nowadays. No depth.