Tiny figure skating clubs in small towns have produced more than their share of world-renowned figure skaters, says Donald Knight, who will be inducted into the Canadian figure skating hall of fame later this year.
Knight grew up in Dundas, Ont., which had a population of about 10,000 at the time, and a skating club of 100 to 150 people. Now 60, he went on to earn a bronze medal at the 1965 world figure skating championships, and won gold at the 1967 North American championships and three Canadian titles in 1965, 1966 and 1967.
He competed at the 1964 Olympic Games at Innsbruck, Austria and finished ninth.
Brian Orser came from a small town, as did Kurt Browning and Jeff Buttle, all world champions.
“It's important to see how small clubs can get people started in figure skating especially guys. It's hard today,'' Knight said. “It's the grassroots in these little places that gives everybody the opportunity to do it.''
Knight had the frightful responsibility of having to follow two other famous Donalds in the sport, who also came from small towns: Donald Jackson, of Oshawa, Ont., who won the 1962 world championships, and landed the first triple Lutz in competition, and Donald McPherson of Stratford, Ont., who won the world championship the following year and kept the Canadian flag flying.
Knight admits he felt pressure to live up to their exploits and actually skated against both of them in 1962.
Now, Knight is also in the Hall of Fame alongside the other Donalds.
“I'm really going to cherish this one,” Knight said from his cell phone at rinkside at the Burlington Skating Centre. “I thought it was just wonderful. Skating is a passion for me. It's an honour and a great compliment. It tops off everything I've ever done in skating…It really was quite a shock for me.''
Knight first competed at a world championship at age 15, but retired at age 19 and – not surprisingly – said he reached his peak as a professional skater, mainly with Ice Capades, when it was peppered with top skaters. He spent 13 years as a pro skater.
As an amateur skater, Knight was fortunate, considering he came from a small club outside the Toronto area. Legendary coach Ellen Burka taught him his first lesson and he still remains amazed that she made the trip from Toronto once or twice a week to teach. Burka took him to his first world championship in 1963. He then went on to take lessons from Dennis Silverthorne, and for the last three years of his competitive career, he learned from master coach Sheldon Galbraith, who had also taught Barbara Ann Scott.
All three of his coaches are members of Skate Canada's Hall of Fame. “How fortunate I was, to have that training throughout my whole career, '' Knight said. “How and why [Burka] got to Dundas, I don't know. There was a need for it.''
Knight competed at Dick Button's first world professional championship in Tokyo and won the interpretive part of the event, while skating to Battle Hymn of the Republic. He was particularly adept at compulsory figures and at spinning.
Knight also co-owned and operated six Pizza Delight franchises in the Burlington-Hamilton area before selling them about five years ago to return to coaching.
Three nights ago, he watched one of his successors, Buttle, the new world champion, win a noisy standing ovation at the Stars on Ice stop in Hamilton. “It was a wonderful evening,” Knight said.
