Bernard Ford,

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

, (27 September 1947 – 5 April 2023) was an English ice dancer. With partner Diane Towler, he was a four-time (1966–1969) World, European, and British champion. He was also a World Professional ice dancing champion. He later became a coach and choreographer.

Skating career

Ford was born in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

. He competed with Diane Towler. They were coached by Gladys Hogg in London, England at Queens Ice Dance Club. Towler / Ford debuted at the World Championships in

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

, finishing 13th. In 1965, they finished just off the podium in 4th. Towler / Ford won gold at the 1966 European Championships and went on to win their first World title. They would win the World and European titles for four consecutive seasons. At the 1968 Olympics, Towler / Ford skated in a demonstration event for ice dancing, winning the gold medal. Ice dancing became an official part of the Winter Olympics in 1976. The achievements of Towler and Ford earned them the appointment of Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by Queen Elizabeth II, as well as a spot in the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 1993. Birmingham_Ice_Skating_Sound_of_Music_Dance_Gala_Team_April_1969

Birmingham_Ice_Skating_Sound_of_Music_Dance_Gala_Team_April_1969

Andrene_Harris_Present_WorldChampion_Ice_Skaters

Coaching career

Ford immigrated to

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada in 1971 and coached numerous ice dance teams to national titles and international acclaim, most notably 1986 World bronze medalists

Tracy Wilson Tracy Wilson, (born September 25, 1961) is a Canadian former competitive ice dancer. With partner Rob McCall, she won the Canadian national championship seven times (1982–1988), is a three-time World bronze medallist, and the 1988 Olympic ...

/ Rob McCall. His coaching success with Wilson / McCall earned him the Petro-Canada Coaching Excellence Award and the Longines-Wittnauer Coaching Excellence Award. In 1986, Ford co-founded the York Region Skating Academy (YRSA) in

Richmond Hill, Ontario Richmond Hill (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population: 202,022) is a city in south-central Regional Municipality of York, York Region, Ontario, Canada. Part of the Greater Toronto Area, it is the York Region's third most populous municipality and th ...

. In 1989 at the YRSA, Ford invented the Cha-Cha Congelado, with assistance from coach Kelly Johnson and ice dance team Laurie Palmer / Steven Belanger. The Cha-Cha Congelado became an

International Skating Union The International Skating Union (ISU) is the international governing body for competitive ice skating disciplines, including figure skating, synchronized skating, speed skating, and short track speed skating. It was founded in Scheveningen, Net ...

pattern dance. In 1999 the Town of Richmond Hill recognised Ford with an induction into the Richmond Hill Sports Hall of Fame. In 1994, Ford took a coaching position in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, Washington, where he produced national champions and international competitors as well as coaching ice dance teams from Australia and Japan to World Championship competition. Ford returned to Canada in 2003 and continued to coach ice dance teams to the national and international level. Over the years he had acted as a consultant to Skate Canada, United States Figure Skating, Professional Skaters Association and the ISU ice dance technical committee. He was an NCCP coaching course facilitator and conducted officials and coach teaching and training seminars for national sport organisations across the world. In January 2007, Skate Canada inducted Ford into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame.

Personal life

Ford was educated at the King Edward VI Grammar School in Aston, Birmingham. Ford resided in Calgary,

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Results

(with Diane Towler)

References

External links

British ice dancing legend brings extensive knowledge to Calgary figure skating scene

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Bernard People educated at King Edward VI Aston School English male ice dancers British figure skating coaches Canadian figure skating coaches Sportspeople from Birmingham, West Midlands Members of the Order of the British Empire Figure skating choreographers Dancing on Ice World Figure Skating Championships medalists European Figure Skating Championships medalists 1947 births 2023 deaths