Ronald Ludington

Ronald Ludington is an American figure skater and coach.

Biography

With his then-wife, Nancy Rouillard Ludington, he won the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in pair skating four times, between 1957 and 1960, after having been the junior national champions in 1956. They won bronze medals at the 1959 World Figure Skating Championships and 1960 Winter Olympics. Ludington also won the 1958 U.S. junior (silver) dance championship, partnered with Judy Ann Lamar.

Following his competitive career, Ludington took up coaching. His first pupils included Patricia and Robert Dineen, who were killed along with the rest of the U.S. team in the crash of Sabena Flight 548 on their way to the 1961 World Championships. Ludington was not on the plane because neither he nor the Dineens had the money to fund his travel expenses; it was the only World Championships between 1957 and the end of the century which he did not attend as either a competitor or a coach.

Ludington's best-known pupils are probably Kitty and Peter Carruthers, the silver medalists in pair skating at the 1984 Winter Olympics. He was also the coach of ice dancers Carol Fox and Richard Dalley at those Olympic Games.

After his divorce from Nancy Rouillard, Ludington was married to Mary Batdorf, who is now better known as Mary Scotvold. They were divorced in the mid-1970's. He is now married to Karen Ludington, another skating coach.Their current students include Melissa Bulanhagui.

Ludington is director of the Skating Science Development Center the University of Delaware Figure Skating Club. He was named to the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 1999.

References

* Bob Duffy, [http://www.boston.com/sports/packages/usfigureskating/stories/123100_twists_of_fate.htm "Twists of fate"] , "The Boston Globe", Dec 31, 2000
* [http://www.udel.edu/PR/UpDate/99/32/skate.html Hall of fame announcement]
* Scott Hamilton, "Landing It". ISBN 1-57566-466-6.

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