History of speed skating. Who invented skates? The history of the invention of skates. The evolution of hockey skates

As a child, I really loved watching figure skating with my parents. And if my mother empathized with the failures of the athletes, full of some specific terms denoting the elements that the skaters performed, then I, a little girl, looked at the costumes of the performing girls with all my eyes. Shiny dresses, just like real princesses, and jumps and take-offs - like magic. The magic of figure skating still lives in that little girl who wakes up in an adult when this sport comes into my field of vision. And, it seems to me that if theater begins with a hanger, then figure skating begins with skates.

How a person first came up with the idea of ​​ice skating is unknown. It is possible that a certain Cimmerian (historians attribute to the representatives of this nomadic people the creation of the prototype of modern skates) went out one day, and in place of the usual surface of water of the river flowing next to the house, he did not see this very surface. Actually, the surface was there, but it changed its structure: it was impossible to swim, and walking was slippery. What should our Cimmerian do? After all, he urgently needed to get to the other side of the river for his nomadic affairs! Why he did not use a method more familiar to him for this purpose - we will never know. Maybe this Cimmerian had the nature of a true inventor? Otherwise, it would not have occurred to him to create the world’s first bone skates to quickly and easily move along the frozen Dnieper estuary.

Bone skates similar to the Cimmerian ones were used much later: skaters moved along the mentioned estuary on them back in the 8th-7th centuries BC, and Europeans skated on approximately the same ones in the 12th century. There is a mention of this in the “Chronicle of the Noble City of London”: its author, monk Stephanius, writes about the skaters like this:

When the large swamp that borders the city ramparts at Moorfield to the north freezes over, whole groups of young people go there. Some, walking as wide as possible, simply glide quickly. Others, more experienced in playing on ice, tie the tibia of animals to their legs and, holding sticks with sharp tips in their hands, from time to time push off from the ice with them and rush as fast as a bird in the air or a spear launched from a ballista...

It is difficult to imagine the skill of these “others” who managed to ride on bones. To offer such a means of transportation to modern athletes now - I think, at best, they will twirl the bones with straps in their hands, and at worst, they will simply refuse to pick them up. However, they may be interested in other options: for example, in the North, craftsmen used walrus tusks to make skates, and in China, in the absence of them, they took bamboo for the same purpose. We skated according to the same principle, pushing off the ice with bamboo sticks. The first skaters had access to not only the direct skating technique: they could also move sideways, with slipping. Modern techniques became available only with the advent of steel skates, which did not slide on the ice, but cut it thanks to sharply sharpened edges.

In the 13th century, wood replaced the tibia. A metal strip, pointed on one side, was inserted into a wooden block, and on such a structure they slid along the ice. Only by the 18th century did the skates become completely metal, and their shape was the same as the customer himself desired. Anyone who wanted to ride would draw a rough sketch and bring it to the blacksmith. He assessed the complexity of the work, named the price, and if the customer and the performer were satisfied with each other’s conditions, then soon the future skater would receive the finished product. Hence the difference in the appearance of the skates: made according to individual drawings, they were practically never repeated. Some people preferred the toe of their skate to be smooth and neat, others, on the contrary, wanted to get skates with a dashing spiral, and others, guided by their aesthetic sense, asked to decorate their “transport” in the style of a ship. Most often, miniature horse heads appeared on socks, which decorated the bows of ships. Maybe this is where their modern name came from - “skates”?

The decorations were varied, but the shape, as well as the method of fastening, were standard. Thus, Peter I, having arrived in Europe, not only observed the entertainment of the Europeans, but also wished to join it himself. However, local skaters, having tied the blades to their shoes with a rope while skating, then untied their skates and continued on their way in the same boots or boots. Peter found this very inconvenient and tightly screwed the pair given to him to his shoes. Of course, he is a king - he has any number of pairs of spare boots, any of which you can attach skates to. I rode it to my heart's content and put it away in a dark corner until next winter so that it wouldn't become an eyesore. The Europeans did not appreciate the noble idea of ​​their royal guest, and continued to tie their skates with ropes.

When Peter I returned home, one of his first orders was to organize his own production of skates, which was soon established in Tula factories. The Moscow and St. Petersburg nobility quickly became interested in the new product (I admit that not of their own free will, because after the death of the monarch the hobby lost its popularity, and the show skating to the delight of the innovator was just an attempt to suck up). Soon, on the frozen rivers and lakes, a cheerful noise was heard coming from the townspeople having fun. There is even a memory of how Muscovites, Peter’s contemporaries, embraced European entertainment:

Muscovites diligently learned to skate, and they repeatedly fell and were seriously hurt. And since they, through carelessness, sometimes skated on thin ice, some of them fell neck-deep into the water. Meanwhile, they tolerated the cold well and therefore were in no hurry to put on a dry dress, but continued to ride for some time in a wet one. Then we changed into dry clothes and went for a ride again. They did this so zealously that they made progress, and some of them could skate perfectly...

Maybe the Muscovites’ passion for skating was really just for show, out of fear of angering the hot-tempered ruler, but for the most part they liked the entertainment. Despite its decline after the death of Peter I, a century later Pushkin noted how fun it was to slide along the mirror of standing, flat rivers with sharp iron on your feet. Looking ahead a little, I will say that the “mirror” mentioned by Pushkin was not so smooth, and its unevenness caused skaters a lot of inconvenience, but the first skating rink appeared only in 1842: it was filled by British resident Henry Kirk.

What about Europe? And there - in particular, the Scots were the pioneers - in 1604 the first skating club was opened, the participants of which even organized competitions. Their essence was not just a race over a certain distance: along the way, they also had to jump over three hats placed on the path of the skater and pick up one coin. And, of course, arrive at the finish line first. The prize, with the exception of hats, went to the winner, and therefore the gambling Scots had at least a small, but still financially motivated. The Norwegians went even further: it was there, in 1888, that the first thin blades appeared, thanks to which racing skates could already be called professional. However, in the fight for the title of world champion in speed skating in the classic all-around, which began in 1889, it was not a Norwegian at all, but a descendant of those same Muscovites who not so long ago first started skating - Alexander Panshin. Around the same period, the St. Petersburg Society of Skating Fans was founded.

The 19th century comes with a “gift” for both amateurs and professionals of speed skating: three new models of skates. Both tubular and tubular, but with a blade inserted into the tube, and consisting of two separate parts attached to each other. A prototype of a modern skate appeared, created by the famous American figure skater Jackson Haynes. According to his individual order, craftsmen created skates without any tubes - just a straight thin blade, the end of which was sharply bent. Haynes was so confident in the superiority of his chosen form that he performed in these skates in front of the Russian imperial family. According to the recollections of eyewitnesses who were on February 7, 1865 in the garden of the Tauride Palace, the Romanovs were delighted with the art of the American speed skater, who very naturally depicted all the difficulties of a beginner in this sport, and then explained in detail how the skates invented by Haynes himself would help him. The praise of the crowned family was very flattering. But the name “Haines skates” did not catch on in Russia: in our country this form was dubbed “snow maidens”. They can be seen on any New Year's card, the plot of which develops around the Snow Maiden skating.

And then... then the skates develop rapidly. For several sports in which they are an integral part of the participant’s equipment, their own forms have appeared. For figure skating, for hockey, for running and for ice dancing, and, as an apotheosis - roller skates, for those who do not want to part with their favorite activity even in the hot season.

At the end of the 17th century, Russian carpenter Pyotr Mikhailov came to Holland. He tried to be no different from other masters. He led a very ordinary life - he studied shipbuilding, went to buy supplies for lunch, and in the absence of the hostess, he cooked the food himself. In his free time, he enjoyed skating on ice. At that time, skates were tied to boots with straps each time. The carpenter quickly got tired of this boring task, and he simply nailed the skates tightly to the soles.

Soon curious people began to gather around the carpenter, but not because of his invention - few people paid attention to the skates.

The Dutch, who were in Russia on trade business, “identified” the Russian Tsar Peter I in the carpenter and told about it. Here is the entry left in his diary by the inquisitive Dutchman Jacob Nomen, a character in A. N. Tolstoy’s novel “Peter the Great”: “The Tsar managed to live incognito for no more than a week; some who were in Muscovy recognized his face. The rumor about this soon spread throughout our fatherland. On the Amsterdam stock exchange people bet big money and bet whether this was really the great king or just one of his ambassadors.”

More than 150 years have passed, and the American Jackson Heine, who is considered the father of modern figure skating, came to St. Petersburg. He came up with a new skate blade and attached it firmly to the boot. But when he began to advertise his invention, he was saddened to learn that it was not new at all and Peter I should still be considered the real inventor.

Vintage Japanese and European skates.

How old are the skates? No one, unfortunately, will answer this question. One can only assume that they first appeared where there was a lot of smooth ice, while skis appeared in places where there was a lot of snow. One thing is known: already several thousand years ago, our ancestors were fond of skating, made from the ribs or tubular bones of large animals. Typically, the bone was sawed lengthwise, polished, and several holes were drilled to tie it to shoes. This is confirmed by archaeological excavations. The British Museum houses skates that were used several thousand years ago. For a long time they were considered the most ancient, and England and the Scandinavian countries were considered the birthplace of skates. But recently, perhaps the most ancient skates on Earth were found in Kazakhstan. They belong to the Bronze Age. These are carefully polished bones of some animal. There are holes in the toe and end of the skate for fastening.

Ice skating rink of the 18th century.

As time passed, the shape of the skates, the method of fastening, and the material from which they were made changed. In the 17th-18th centuries, skates were made of wood and covered with iron on the bottom and front.

And why, strictly speaking, “skates”? Where does this name come from? “Skates” is a purely Russian word. It was formed from the word “horse” - the front part of the skates was often decorated with the head of a horse. So the name of the object came from its decoration - small horses carrying us forward. By the way, the word “horse” has another meaning. Horse or prince, horse, prince - the top edge, the ridge of the roof. In Russian buildings, the top of the ridge was covered with a thick hollowed out log for greater strength. It was called “okhlupen”, and its end facing the façade was carved in the shape of a horse or a warbird.

Nowadays, with the light hand of Peter I, skates are tightly attached to shoes. Figured ones - with the help of screws, and hockey and running ones - with the help of rivets.

There are many types of skates. For those who are just getting started with this sport, “snow maidens” are suitable - they are stable. If you like speed, you need lightweight skates with a long thin blade - racing skates. Hockey players use two types of skates: Russian hockey and ice hockey. The former have slightly shorter blades than the running blades, while the latter have slightly curved blades. This is no coincidence: during intense, high-speed play, these skates are easier to maneuver on the ice. Skaters have special skates with teeth on the front and the blade is sharpened with a groove.

But no matter how comfortable the skates are, they can fail if the ice turns out to be bad. Those who make ice at large skating rinks are called ice makers. Making good ice is both a science and an art. This is how, for example, they fill a treadmill. This is usually done at night, when the frost is stronger.

The pouring machine goes through the first circle, then stops to form an ice crust. Then we hit the road again, but it’s not close. To get a 20-centimeter layer of ice, the car needs to drive in a circle 800 times - 320 kilometers!

For a hockey field, ice is prepared differently: first, the field is covered with snow and then rolled. And only after that they pour water. Among other things, the ice is “cut” - planed, polished, and filled with hot and cold water. It all depends on the skill and experience of the ice makers. After all, it is necessary to take into account the condition of the ice, the air temperature, the presence of precipitation, and much more.

The work of ice makers was greatly facilitated by the advent of refrigeration equipment. The first artificial ice skating rink was built in 1876 by the Chelsea refrigeration plant in the USA. By the end of the century, Paris, London and other cities around the world acquired ice arenas.

But there are skates that you can skate on without thinking about the condition of the ice. Because it is not needed at all. But you need special skates - roller skates. By the way, they are not as young as they seem. They are over 200 years old. The story of their demonstration to the public is both funny and sad. Roller skates were invented by a master of musical instruments. He lived in London. To attract attention to his invention, he once drove them into a magnificent masquerade ball, playing the violin, but was unable to brake in time. As a result... the violin is broken, a huge mirror is broken, and the inventor himself is seriously cut.

There are sometimes strange turns in the history of inventions. It would seem that after such a “premiere” the reputation of roller skates was forever undermined. But a short board with wheels, which is attached to shoes with a strap, began to conquer the world. Since the middle of the last century, halls and paved areas for roller skating have been built in Europe and America. Russia is not lagging behind Europe either. However, at first, “roller skaters” appear only at fairgrounds and perform in variety revues. But then athletes, then ballet dancers, got on new skates. Well, how could the ubiquitous boys get behind them, especially if they are “in business”?

Roller skates from the 19th century.

Newsboys rushed along the streets of American cities on roller skates; letter carriers and couriers, often people of advanced age, quickly mastered the innovation. In many countries, airport employees, weavers when servicing machines, workers in large assembly shops, and tour guides in museums began to spend most of their working day on roller skates. If you manage to visit the Louvre, they may offer you such skates.

Modern roller skates.

Very soon it turned out that roller skating was not only pleasant, but also useful. It promotes the development of coordination and improves the vestibular apparatus. Almost everyone can use rollers, and age has absolutely nothing to do with it. To ride them while maintaining balance, you do not need any special training.

But the videos are not as harmless as they seem at first glance. For example, in 1978, the year of the roller skating boom in America, 93 thousand young men and women ended up in hospitals with broken arms and legs. And this is thanks to the so far simple videos, on which no special means were used to increase speed. And there are many such funds. Here are just a few of them.

1906 France. Motorized roller skates have been tested in a Parisian park. Each horse had its own miniature single-cylinder gasoline engine with a gas tank and battery.

1915 USA. Wheeled skates have been invented that move with the help of a small electric motor, and the battery is attached to a wide belt.

1980 Germany. Motorized skates have been improved, their motor has become more miniature, and control is carried out using a special drive.

1983 France. A young man is skating along the asphalt on roller skates. He has a fan in his hands. The traction force is such that it carries a person forward.

Relatively recently in America, roller skates turned into a “board on wheels.” Riding it requires great courage and dexterity. Maybe that's why she quickly gained popularity among young people all over the world? Competitions are already being held in the new sport; on sidewalks and paved areas you can often see children deftly balancing on rapidly moving boards on wheels - skateboards...

Do you know?

Another name is cedrate (Citrus medica). Plant of the genus Citrus of the Rutaceae family. Homeland - India and Southern China

Lemon is an evergreen fruit tree of the Rutaceae family; lemon is not now found growing wild. A small evergreen tree with a pyramidal

Skates have long become a familiar attribute of our lives and it seems that it has always been this way. But everything appears for the first time and it is impossible to find out when the first skates appeared, who came up with the idea of ​​skating on ice not with shoes, but with special devices. Memories remain, there are archaeological finds, but this is only part of the history of skates.

An excursion into the history of skating

Based on the capabilities and purpose of skates, it would be natural to assume that their prototypes appeared in countries where there are many bodies of water that freeze in cold winters. In the warm season, a lake, river or pond was an obstacle to rapid movement, and sometimes it was necessary to make a long detour to get to the right place.

The natural ice bridge made it possible to reduce the distance and make it possible to get to the place faster if you came up with something that would speed up the movement. Who knows where and who first came up with this idea, but it did, so we can assume that this person invented skates.

Maybe it was in northern China, where bamboo sticks were tied to shoes, or in cold Siberia, where a hunter used walrus tusks or a block of wood. Northern European countries can also claim leadership in the invention of ice skates - they are also said to have used animal bones and wooden blocks to move across frozen lakes and rivers.

Reference! The first reliable source of information about ice shoes was the English-Dutch Dictionary, published in 1648.

There are not so many finds related to skate prototypes. In Britain (20th century), shoes adapted for walking on an icy surface were found - their age is 2000 years. A little later (1967), on the banks of the Southern Bug near Odessa, more ancient specimens of skates were found, or rather, devices for skating on ice made from bones. It’s hard to imagine, but 3,200 years ago, one of the Cimmerians roaming this area rode them on the frozen river.

Of course, there were no blades, in the full sense of the word. To make movement more convenient, a large piece of bone or wood was ground on one side and secured to the sole with leather laces or ropes passed through holes in the workpiece. On the opposite side of the workpiece, a recess was made into which a flat bone or wooden die was inserted - this was the “blade”.

Monk Stephanius (12th century) spoke about bone skates in the Chronicles of the Noble City of London. He described his impressions of what he saw - a child was rolling on a frozen swamp, tying large animal bones to his shoes, and pushing off with sticks.

Around the XIII-XVIII centuries. special ice shoes were not used for skating, but for fast movement on the frozen surface of bodies of water. Inserts made of bone and wood were gradually replaced by bronze and iron strips.

Interesting fact! Once upon a time, the famous explorer and traveler Marco Polo (XIII century), while in Central Asia, witnessed an unusual hunt on ice. Hunters with skis drove animals onto the ice, and hunters with devices made of bones on their shoes, moving quickly on the ice, approached the prey, which could not escape - the hooves parted.

The first skate designers

The names of innovators who used various devices for the convenience of skating on ice are not known to history, but it is known that already at the beginning of the 14th century, strips of iron began to be inserted into wooden blocks, and then iron tubes. History is also silent about where these innovations were first invented, but they can be considered the prototypes of modern skates.

Later in Holland, the entire structure began to be made of metal, but short skates with a curved nose were heavy and uncomfortable. And the fastenings made of leather laces constantly slipped and became untied.

There is an opinion that for the first time Peter I rigidly connected a skate with a shoe when he was in Holland on state affairs. He liked skating, but did not like the problems associated with skating, so he nailed his skates to his boots, which surprised the Dutch a lot. After his return from the trip, a decree was issued to begin the production of skates in Tula.

The fashion for ice skates was half forgotten after the death of Peter, but during the reign of Alexander I, skates were remembered again.

The popularity of skating increased after the first skating rink opened in London in 1842. The artificial creation of an ice surface made it possible to ride where there was no river or lake. The organization involved in speed skating in Russia appeared in 1864 in St. Petersburg, and already in 1867 the Russian figure skater and speed skater A. Panshin became the winner at international competitions.

Reference! A figurine of a horse's head was attached to the front of the skates, hence the name of the whole structure - skates.

The idea of ​​​​making tubular skates belonged to fast walkers from Norway, and they attached the blades to the sole with screws. A. Panshin experimented with different blade shapes and by 1887 significant progress had been achieved. The model of the skates changed - they became longer and thinner, and curved at the end.

This model was in use until 1892, until H. Hagen (Norway) improved it by inserting a thin runner into a steel tube. In fact, he invented modern skates. In 1992, at various competitions, athletes from Belgium and Holland presented other versions of skates - “Slepskate”, developed by Viking and Raps.

Skates "Snow Maidens"

Comfortable and simple skates with wide, serrated blades curved upward were invented by Dr. Gaines. The model began to be called “Snow Maiden” because of its resemblance to the sleigh that the fairy-tale Snow Maiden rode. This blade shape made it possible to ride even in the snow and make it easy for even small children to learn to ride.

Subsequent improvements to the skates made them suitable for use in figure skating. U. Salkov, a figure skater from Sweden, initiated the addition of teeth so that complex figures could be performed. The strength of the skates was added by an innovation invented by N. Panin - a third was added to the two racks.

The “snow maiden” model did not change significantly, but the thickness and length of the blade changed depending on the use.

Reference! Dance skates have the shortest blade - this is made for the safety of partners. The runner of dance models is slightly rounded.

Skate improvements

Modern sports life without skates is impossible - many sports are based on their use, they are used to support physical condition while leading a healthy lifestyle, both adults and children leading an active lifestyle ride on them.

Cross-country

Skates for running already existed in the middle of the 19th century - a steel blade was fixed to a flat wooden block and tied to shoes with straps. While running, the straps became loose and the skate began to dangle, which, of course, was inconvenient. Later (1880) tubular skates were invented and attached to the sole of the boot with screws.

When A. Panshin became the winner of the ice skating competition (1887), the model he used gained great popularity. The blade of his skates was longer and narrower, slightly curved in front, and the curl that interfered with running was removed.

The invention of alloy steel (late 19th century) made it possible to increase the strength of the runner by 2 times and reduce its thickness and weight.

The most significant change in the design of running skates occurred in 1990 - the skates began to be attached only to the toe, and the heel was left free. This fastening made running much easier and increased speed.

Curly

Various figures and pirouettes on ice began to be performed when ice skating became widespread, so it is quite reasonable to consider the people the inventor of figure skating.

How great it is to run to the skating rink with friends on a frosty day! And there they compete to see who is faster and who has the steepest turn. And it always seemed to me that skates were called skates because they race so fast. Well, just like horses!

And indeed, the Russian word “skates” was formed from the word “horse”. But not because of the speed, but because earlier the front part of the skates was decorated with a horse’s head.

It turns out that our distant ancestors also loved to ride them. Not far from Odessa, archaeologists unearthed two pairs of the most ancient skates ever found on the planet. They are over three thousand years old! They are made from walrus tusks and animal bones. The first skates were similar to skis because they did not have pointed ribs. And people pushed off with the help of sticks, so they skated quickly and confidently.

What were skates made from? In China, pieces of bamboo were attached to boots, in Siberia they rode on walrus tusks, in Kazakhstan they made skates from horse bones.

As time passed, the shape of the skates and the material from which they were made changed. In the 17th century, skates were made of wood and lined with iron on the bottom and front.

At the beginning of the 18th century, the first steel skates appeared in northern Europe, but their fastening was weak, and they often flew off the feet of ice skaters. A strong fastening was invented by ours. Historical chronicles tell about Tsar Peter I, who amazed the Dutch with his extraordinary solution: he screwed his skates directly to his boots and dashingly glided to the shipyard where he was doing his internship. Upon returning to Russia, he ordered the production of skates to be established in Tula. With the death of Peter, the passion for skating faded away, however, a hundred years later, Pushkin noted “how fun it is, having shod your feet with sharp iron, to slide along the mirror of standing, flat rivers.” Tsar Peter I, who was fond of skating. He decided that skates and shoes should be one unit and screwed the skates to the boots.

Muscovites learned to skate with great diligence, about which there were curious memoirs of contemporaries written in the 17th century. “The Muscovites studied hard to skate, and they repeatedly fell and were seriously hurt. And since they, through carelessness, sometimes skated on thin ice, some of them fell neck-deep into the water. Meanwhile, they tolerated the cold well and therefore were in no hurry to put on a dry dress, but continued to ride for some time in a wet one. Then we changed into dry clothes and went for a ride again. They did this so zealously that they made progress, and some of them could skate perfectly..."

If at first skates were used only as a means of transportation, then they became a favorite winter pastime. The first skating club opened in 1604 in the Scottish city of Edinburgh. Even the conditions mandatory for skaters who wanted to become members of the club were preserved. It was necessary to drive a circle on one leg, jump over three hats placed one on top of the other, and at high speed pick up a coin lying on the ice.

The very first thin-blade racing skates were invented in 1888 by two Norwegian runner inventors. On such skates, the speed of athletes increased and the first world champion in speed skating was the Russian athlete Alexander Panshin.

And what are skaters doing on the ice just now? Well, their skates are, of course, special! Nowadays, each sport has its own skates. These are speed skating skates, short track skates, hockey skates, figure skates, as well as recreational skates for tourism. And it all started with a strong bone!

The earliest mention of the word “horse” can be found in the “English-Dutch Dictionary” of GEMAHA (1648). The word “skates” came to international sports from the Russian language skates, runner skates, and humpback skates. The front part of the wooden skates was decorated with a horse's head - hence the affectionate name, a diminutive of the word "horse": skates.

The first devices for moving on ice, which we know about from archaeological excavations and from literature, were made from animal bones. Such skate bones have been found in the Netherlands, Denmark, Bavaria, Bohemia, Switzerland, England, Norway, Sweden and the Soviet Union. Skates are one of the oldest inventions of mankind. Carved from wood or carved from animal bones and attached to a boot, skates made it possible to quickly move across ice-covered ground.

In Siberia they rode on walrus tusks, in China - on bamboo trunks. And the skates found by archaeologists in Kazakhstan near Borovoe Lake were made from the shin bone of a horse. A similar skate is kept in the London Museum - a long, sharpened bone with a slot for a lace. This skate was found in Moorefield in 1839. The British Museum displays bone skates that were used to skate almost two thousand years ago. These skates were found in the last century. And more recently, in 1967, on the banks of the Southern Bug and a dry estuary near Odessa, archaeologists discovered the most ancient skates ever found; these skates belonged to the Cimmerians, a nomadic tribe that lived 3,200 years ago in the Northern Black Sea region. The Chimerians were already skating during the Bronze Age. These devices were made from the bones of domestic animals. The bone was ground down on one side, and special holes were made at the ends for attaching to shoes.

The first skates were actually a prototype of skis and did not have pointed ribs. Repulsion had to be done using sticks. But still, movement on the ice-covered surface was much faster and more confident. Similar bone skates existed in ancient times, and archaeologists attribute some of them to the Stone Age. In age, they are superior to the “equipment” of the ancient Dutch and Danes in Scandinavia; skates appeared only in the Viking Age. Bone skates appeared in Russia almost 3 thousand years ago. During excavations in settlements and cities of ancient Rus' - Staraya Ladoga, Novgorod, Pskov - skates were found made from the bones of the front legs of horses. These skates had three holes - two for attaching the skate to the toe of the shoe and one for holding the skate at the heel. In the Netherlands, initially the role of a skate, along with animal bones, was played by a wooden shoe. Then metal runners began to be attached to such shoes.

In England during Shakespeare's time (until the beginning of the 16th century), people still skated on bone skates, not to mention Norway and Iceland, where they were held in high esteem until the end of the 19th century. But already in the 14th century, they learned how to make wooden skates with a metal strip on the sliding surface.
From the 13th to the mid-18th centuries, skates served as a means of transportation for people on frozen rivers, lakes and canals in the northern countries; the skate was made from a wooden base, to which a runner made of bronze or iron was first attached, and later from steel. The first to rivete skates to shoes was the Russian Emperor PETER I, who, while building ships in Holland, became interested in skates. He immediately realized that skates and shoes should form a single whole. Over the past four centuries, the wooden base of the ridge, as well as the runner, have changed mainly only in their length and shape.

The second half of the 19th century is characterized by the rapid development of speed skating throughout the world. In America, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Russia and other countries, skates of new designs are beginning to appear.

So, in Philadelphia (America) around 1850, all-metal steel skates were made. They were attached to the leg using straps. Then, in the second half of the 19th century, the oval plate on the heel of the skate was replaced with additional fastening brackets. And yet, until the 90s of the 19th century, wooden skates with a metal runner of Dutch and English production continued to be very popular. The next notable improvement was the invention of the Halifax skate, which

Its simplicity of design was superior to all other types of skates used previously. This skate has gained great popularity among speed skaters in many countries around the world.

Ice skating has become a favorite winter pastime, and therefore skating clubs began to open everywhere. In Russia, the first such club was opened in St. Petersburg in 1864 by the world-famous speed skater, the first unofficial world champion, Russian speed skater and figure skater A. Panshin. Simultaneously with the wide spread of skating and running, their improvement also took place.
Until 1883, figure skaters and speed skaters skated on all-metal short, heavy skates with a curved blade. Such skates, made by Tula craftsmen, were found during the construction of the Moscow metro.

Norwegian speed skaters A. PAULSEN and K. WERNER designed tubular racing skates in 1880. 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 the Russian speed walker, an employee of the Nikolaev Railway, Alexander PANSHIN. In 1887, he made elongated skates based on his own model - all-metal, long skates with a narrow blade and a slightly curved toe - the prototype of today's running skates. For many decades, the model of tubular running skates has not undergone fundamental changes.

In 1892, the Norwegian H. Hagen proposed another innovation - a running skate consisting of a steel tube and a steel runner inserted into it. These skates made it possible to take a colossal step forward in the development of speed running; All the world's speed skaters still use these skates to this day.
The appearance of a new model of skates made by the Dutch companies Viking and Raps became a sensation. In 1996-1997 Some Dutch speed skaters began the competitive season on new model skates. Belgian Bart VELDKAMP, winner of the 1997 World Championships in the 10,000 m race, said: “Blindskate is the future of speed skating.”

First time I mentioned skating in literature, the Canterbury monk Stephanius, who in 1174 created the Chronicle of the Noble City of London. This is how he described winter fun: “When the large swamp, washing the city rampart at Moorfield from the north, freezes, whole groups of young people go there to play sports on ice. Some, walking as wide as possible, glide quickly. Others, more experienced in playing on ice, tie the shin bones of animals to their legs and, holding sticks with sharp tips in their hands, at times push off from the ice with them and rush as fast as a bird in the air or a spear launched from a ballista...” Beautiful wrote the monk, but, like many journalists, he apparently liked to make things up: is it really possible to run on skates at the speed of a spear? But let’s forgive the ancient recluse’s exaggeration. Let us be grateful to him for his work.

Exhibited in the British Museum bone skates, which were ridden almost two thousand years ago. These skates were found in the last century.

And in 1967, on the banks of the Southern Bug and a dry estuary near Odessa, archaeologists discovered the oldest skates ever found. These skates belonged to the Chimerians, a nomadic tribe that lived 3,200 years ago in the Northern Black Sea region. The Chimerians were already skating during the Bronze Age. In age, they are superior to the “equipment” of the ancient Dutch and Danes in Scandinavia; skates appeared only in the Viking Age.

Skates were known to the peoples of the northern countries back in the 12th century. Back then they were made from bone. They served as a means of transportation. Even in ancient times, people used pieces of wood and animal bones to quickly move across ice and snow. This is confirmed by the first ancient skates found during excavations on the shores of Lakes Ladoga and Lake Peipsi.

Over time, both the skates themselves and the method of movement on them improved. Animal bones were replaced with wooden blocks. First, their surface was polished, then metal strips began to be attached to it.

In the 13th century, skates with an iron runner curved in front appeared in Holland and Iceland. inserted into a wooden block. They were tied to their shoes with belts. And Russian craftsmen carved the curved toe of the skate in the form of a horse’s head, hence the name “skates”.

From the 14th century until the end of the 17th century, skates were made of wood with metal runners and attached to the sole of the shoe with ropes and belts. And at the very beginning of the 18th century, the first steel skates. Metal skates began to be made at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries. And in the early 80s of the 19th century, Norwegian speed skaters K. Varnep and A. Paulsen designed racing skates.

Steel skates, tightly screwed to shoes, were made at the Tula Arms Factory by order of Peter I.
And in 1908, the first figure skating champion Nikolai Panin appeared in Russia. He also became the only winner of an Olympic gold medal in pre-revolutionary Russia and a five-time champion of our country in this sport. Since then, we have firmly held the world championship in figure skating, and the Russian school is rightfully considered the strongest.

First skating club opened - this is known for sure - in 1604 in the Scottish city of Edinburgh.
In 1763, athletes from Foggy Albion held the first international friendly meeting with American fast walkers.

The very first edition of the skating rules also published in England in 1772. It turns out that a hundred and fifty years ago certain principles of skating already existed.
This book was innovative. On one of the pages it is mentioned that for the first time, skates were riveted to boots by the Russian Emperor Peter the Great, who, while building ships in the Dutch forest port of Zaandam (now called Zaandam), became interested in speed skating in his “free time from work.”
A clarification is necessary here: skates have long been known to the Russian people, who were very fond of this useful pastime.

More than three hundred years ago, the English diplomat Carlyle, who visited Moscow, wrote: “The favorite winter pastime of Muscovites is ice skating.” And in the works of A.S. Pushkina, L.N. Tolstoy, A.I. Kuprin mentions this more than once.

Yes, skates lost popularity, for almost a hundred years there was no word about them in Russia, as they say... And only in the twenties of the 19th century the brilliant Pushkin (he was the first in the propaganda of skates!) sang a short song for them, but to this day unsurpassed anthem in "Autumn":
How fun it is to put sharp iron on your feet,
Slide along the mirror of standing, flat rivers...

In the twenties and thirties of the 19th century, skates were revived in Russia and even became fashionable.
The first skating rink “on land” was filled in 1842 in England Londoner Henry Kirke; Until that time, athletes used the ice of natural reservoirs...
Skates for children learning to master the art of gliding appeared in 1900 and had two runners...