John Curry: How Olympic champion and LGBT icon revolutionised figure skating

John Curry was an icon, a trailblazer and one of many biggest determine skaters of all time.

Shortly after his Olympic victory, Curry was outed as homosexual, making him one of the high-profile LGBT sportspeople of his time.

Curry, who died of an AIDS-related coronary heart assault aged 44 in 1994, stays an inspiration to the LGBT+ neighborhood as we speak.

As a part of LGBT historical past month, BBC Sport appears at how Curry modified his sport and his ongoing impression, by means of his phrases and people of athletes he impressed.

The revolutionary

Birmingham-born Curry needed to take ballet classes when he was younger, however was stopped from doing so by his father, so he turned to ice skating.

“Ice skating is protected by the umbrella of sport, so it was fairly acceptable,” he mentioned.

He developed a singular type, incorporating components of ballet and fashionable dance along with technical excellence and prodigious pure expertise – later instructing himself find out how to do a triple loop soar.

However what was inspired as a boy, was met with hostility as a person, with Curry’s type difficult gender norms.

“I used to be instructed I should not use my arms, I should not do spirals, I should not attempt to make all the pieces look so easy and sleek,” he mentioned.

“I used to be truly instructed to not be so sleek.”

American skater Adam Rippon, who gained staff bronze on the 2018 Winter Olympics, mentioned Curry’s skating was “so lovely, so pure” and “in contrast to something I had ever seen earlier than”.

“It was the primary time I noticed any person who skated like a person, however they might additionally skate like a phenomenal girl,” he added.

Robin Cousins, who adopted Curry as Olympic champion in 1980, mentioned his modern had an distinctive mix of expertise.

“You possibly can use his footwork, his choreography, his type, his leaping method, his spinning method, all as instructing instruments – that does not occur fairly often,” he mentioned.

Regardless of an preliminary blended reception from judges, Curry “saved plugging away” as he put it, decided to overtake the game.

“I all the time needed to have the ability to current skating in a manner I had not seen earlier than,” mentioned Curry.

“And I realised the one manner I’d have the chance to do this was by proving myself in probably the most seen and accepted manner, which was by successful the Olympics.”

Curry achieved that on the 1976 Winter Video games in Innsbruck, turning into the primary British man to win Olympic determine skating gold.

The LGBT+ icon

Main as much as the Olympic ultimate, Curry was interviewed by Related Press journalist John Vinocur and disclosed his sexuality in these conversations.

Curry was outed when the article was printed shortly after his Olympic victory. Curry claimed the disclosure was off the file and he had been “conned” by Vinocur, who defended the piece by saying “there was no expectation of copy approval”.

Curry was questioned about his sexuality in a press convention, throughout which Day by day Mail sportswriter Ian Wooldridge mentioned he gave “his second beautiful efficiency in 19 hours”, although Curry was damage by the ordeal.

“Lots of people mentioned I got here out on the Olympics, however I did not – I by no means deliberately got down to make an announcement,” he mentioned.

Dancing on Ice star Matt Evers, who gained US championships as a junior, mentioned he “could not think about” the stress Curry was below throughout that Olympic ultimate understanding he could possibly be outed.

“All the Olympic glory concerning the sport was taken away from him as a result of it turned about the truth that he was a homosexual athlete,” mentioned Evers.

Rippon, who publicly got here out in 2015 and was the USA’s first overtly homosexual athlete to win a Winter Olympics medal, mentioned he “cannot think about how afraid” Curry should have felt.

Canada’s Eric Radford, who publicly got here out as homosexual in 2014 and gained Olympic staff gold in 2018, mentioned: “It is simply terrible, that he was outed like that.

“However it wasn’t for nothing – his story, regardless of it not being instructed on his phrases, nonetheless resonates and nonetheless conjures up.

“There have been seven out athletes at Sochi 2014, 16 at Pyeongchang 2018 and over 35 at Beijing 2022 – it is rising exponentially and we wanted these trailblazers like John Curry.”

Cousins mentioned Curry coped with the scrutiny “extraordinarily properly” and confirmed an admirable refusal to compromise.

He mentioned: “It did not change who he was as an individual and it definitely did not change who he was going to be as a performer, he made that very clear.”

Curry was recognized with HIV in 1987 and with AIDS in 1991, spending his ultimate years again within the West Midlands along with his mom Rita.

The enduring affect

Curry was named BBC Sports activities Character of the 12 months in 1976 and was additionally made an OBE.

Following his victory on the World Championships, he did what we had dreamt of all his life and turned skilled, beginning the John Curry Theatre of Skating – primarily ballet on ice.

Curry had beforehand mentioned he competed “with the intention to have the chance to do what I did later”.

He and his skaters carried out at well-known venues just like the Albert Corridor in London and the Met in New York, and in entrance of celebrities together with singer Diana Ross.

“It introduced skating to a brand new period and actually modified the game on an expert degree,” mentioned Evers.

The enduring affect of Curry is clear from TV exhibits like Dancing on Ice to the head of the elite sport.

“I discover it very arduous to suppose that our sport could be the place it’s now with out John Curry,” mentioned Cousins.

“His legacy is embedded in numerous determine skating that we see now throughout all disciplines.”

Radford added: “He moved in a manner I would by no means seen one other male determine skater transfer. That classical type of skating nonetheless permeates the game as we speak.”

Rippon mentioned: “Each time I doubt myself, I feel again to John Curry, what he did and the way completely different it was.”