Otto Gold (18 May 1909 – 7 April 1977) was a Czechoslovak

figure skater Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

and coach. Gold, who competed in men's singles, won the silver medal at the

1930 European Figure Skating Championships The 1930 European Figure Skating Championships were held in Berlin, Germany. Elite senior-level figure skaters from European ISU member nations competed for the title of European Champion in the disciplines of men's singles, for the first time ...

in Berlin. He began coaching in 1932. He coached Sonia Henie at the

1935 World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion. Men's and pairs' competitions took place from February ...

. In 1937, he moved to Ontario, Canada, where he began a four-decade coaching career at the

Minto Skating Club The Minto Skating Club is a competitive figure skating club in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, founded in 1904. The Club is a member of the Skate Canada figure skating organization in Canada, and was a founder of the predecessor organization to Skate Can ...

. He was one of the first coaches of 1948 Olympic champion

Barbara Ann Scott Barbara Ann Scott (May 9, 1928 – September 30, 2012) was a Canadian figure skater. She was the 1948 Olympic champion, a two-time World champion (1947–1948), and a four-time Canadian national champion (1944–46, 48) in ladies' singles. Kn ...

, and also worked in Vancouver, Connecticut and Lake Placid. He has been recognised for raising the level of figure skating in North America. In April 1977, Gold died in a Toronto hospital from injuries caused by a fire at his apartment. His daughter, Frances Gold Lynn, was a figure skater who placed fourth at the 1962 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and later became a coach. He was inducted into the

Canadian Figure Skating Hall of Fame The Skate Canada Hall of Fame is the sports hall of fame for figure skating maintained by Skate Canada. It was established in 1990 as the Canadian Figure Skating Hall of Fame. The members are inducted into one of four categories that best represent ...

in its inaugural class of 1990.

Competitive highlights

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gold, Otto 1909 births 1977 deaths Czechoslovak male single skaters Czechoslovak emigrants to Canada Czech figure skating coaches Canadian figure skating coaches Deaths from fire Figure skaters from Prague