Pair of white figure skates worn by Debi Thomas

Object Details

Worn by

Dr. Debra Janine Thomas, American, born 1967

Created by

Harlick Skating Boots, American, founded 1935

Manufactured by

MK Blades, American

Caption

Debi Thomas is the 1986 World Figure Skating Champion, a two-time U.S. National Figure Skating Champion, and the 1988 Olympic bronze medalist. Thomas was the first African American to win a medal at the Winter Olympics when she won bronze in the Ladies’ Singles Figure Skating in Calgary in 1988.

Description

A pair of white figure skates worn by Debi Thomas. The top of the skates reach the shin and the boot has a rounded toe. The boots are made of a white leather. There are four white (4) metal hooks for tying the laces on either side of the tongue. These are followeed by eleven (11) shoelace holes on either side, going down towards the toe. The white laces are made of cotton and have plastic aglets on the ends. There is white stitching on the boot- around the top, around the shoelace holes, down the middle of the toe, and down the center of the back, on either side of an extra leather panel.

The tops of the boots and the tongues are padded with foam. Each skate has a manufacturer's label inside the top of the boot at the inner opening. It is a black label with gold script reading "Harlick Custom Made", accompanied by the image of a figure skate. All parts of the label are made with thread. The word [FIGURE] is printed in black ink near the label. The name [DEBI THOMAS] is written in black marker inside the top of the boot at the exterior opening.

The soles of the skates are made of a reddish brown wood and have a 1 1/2 inch heel. There appears to be a word or letters carved down the center of the sole of both skates. The last letter on both skates appears to be a "P".

The steel blades are attached to the wooden soles with screws. There are eight (8) on skate a. and nine (9) on skate b. It aooears as if several are issing from each skate. The numbers "9 1'3" are etched into the piece of steel near the front of the skates. This is the length of the skate from toe to heel. The words [MADE IN ENGLAND] and [SHEFFIELD STEEL] are etched on the other side of each blade, near the front of the skate, with the logo "MK" in a circle. The words [Gold Test] are etched in script near the back of each blade. The letters "CF" are etched between the two words.

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Debra Janine Thomas

1980s

Object number

2016.38.2ab

Restrictions & Rights

No Known Copyright Restrictions

Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.

Type

ice skates

Medium

leather, cotton, plastic, foam, wood, and steel

Dimensions

H x W x D (a - left): 9 1/2 × 3 9/16 × 11 1/2 in. (24.1 × 9 × 29.2 cm)

H x W x D (a - left (cloth cover)): 2 1/2 × 1 × 13 1/2 in. (6.4 × 2.5 × 34.3 cm)

H x W x D (b - right): 9 1/2 × 3 1/2 × 11 1/2 in. (24.1 × 8.9 × 29.2 cm)

H x W x D (b - right (cloth cover)): 2 1/2 × 1 × 12 3/4 in. (6.4 × 2.5 × 32.4 cm)

Place used

United States, North and Central America

See more items in

National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Clothing - Fashion and Historical

Clothing - Sports Uniforms

Clothing - Costume

Exhibition

Sports: Leveling the Playing Field

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Community/Third Floor, 3 052

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Topic

African American

Athletes

Clothing and dress

Figure skating

Sports

Women

Record ID

nmaahc_2016.38.2ab

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd5e55517cd-55b8-44dd-a03d-87e0430ea156