James "Jimmie" Santee is an American former competitive

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, with its introduction occurring at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic d ...

. He is the 1981

Golden Spin of Zagreb The Golden Spin of Zagreb () is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU), organized and hosted by the Croatian Skating Federation () and held in Zagreb, Croatia. The competition debuted in 1973, and ...

champion, 1982 Ennia Challenge Cup silver medalist, and 1983

Prague Skate The Prague Skate (sometimes titled Golden Skate; from 1994: Czech Skate) is an international figure skating competition. It was a senior event from the 1960s to 1997, usually held in November or December in Prague. Medals were awarded in the discip ...

silver medalist. Since 2006, he has served as the executive director of the

Professional Skaters Association The American Skaters Guild, later the Professional Skaters Guild of America and then the Professional Skaters Association, was the first skating teachers organization in North America. On August 10, 1938, a meeting took place of thirteen prominen ...

Personal life

James Santee was born 1962, the son of RoseMary and Neil Santee. His mother served as a judge for U.S. Figure Skating and his elder brother,

David Santee David Neil Santee (born July 22, 1957 in Oak Park, Illinois) is an American former competitive figure skater. He finished fourth in the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, and is the 1981 World silver medalist and an eight-time U.S. national ...

, competed internationally in figure skating. In 1987, he married Jamie-Lynn Kitching, who won the silver medal at the 1981 World Professional Championships and performed with

Disney on Ice Walt Disney's World on Ice is a series of touring ice shows produced by Feld Entertainment's Ice Follies And Holiday on Ice, Inc. division under agreement with The Walt Disney Company. Aimed primarily at children, the shows feature figure ska ...

as a principal skater from 1983–95. They had their first child, a son named Ryan, around 1995, and then two daughters, Sarah and Jessica. Ryan Santee competed at the junior national level in the United States.

Career

Competitive

Santee began skating when he was three years old, following his elder brother. They trained at various rinks, including the Oakton Ice Arena in

Park Ridge, Illinois Park Ridge is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 39,656. It is located north of downtown Chicago. It is close to O'Hare International Airpo ...

, Randhurst, Polar Dome in East Dundee, Rolling Meadows, Northbrook, and Niles Ice Land. In addition to his career as a figure skater, Santee qualified to the 1975 U.S. Speed Skating Championships and 1975 North American Speed Skating Championships. Competing at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Santee won the novice men's title in 1977 and the junior men's title in 1979. He finished 7th at the 1979 World Junior Championships in

Augsburg Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...

, Germany. Santee began appearing on the senior level in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

. Internationally, he won gold at the 1981

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

, silver at the 1982 Ennia Challenge Cup in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, and silver at the 1983

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. He finished fourth at the 1982 Skate America.

Post-competitive

After retiring from competition, Santee worked for

Walt Disney's World on Ice Walt is a masculine given name, generally a short form of Walter (name), Walter, and occasionally a surname. Notable people with the name include: People Given name * Walt Anderson (American football) (born 1952), American football official * Walt ...

, appearing as a principal performer (1985–95) and then as a coach (1987–95). He later served as the skating director and facilities coordinator for Park Ridge Recreation & Park District in

. From 1996 to 2005, he was the head coach for the Park Ridge speed skating team. He was named the 2002 Employee of the Year. In 2006, Santee became the executive director of the

Competitive highlights

; Other * 1979 Coupe Des Alpes Team Trophy, 1st place * 1984 Golden Skate Award, Oakton Ice Arena * 1999 Ice Skating Institute District 8 Merit Award * 2004 Ice Skating Institute Great Skate Award * 2008 Ice Skating Institute Presidents Award

References

External links

Professional Skaters Association

{{DEFAULTSORT:Santee, James 1960s births American male single skaters Living people Sportspeople from Park Ridge, Illinois 20th-century American sportsmen Year of birth missing (living people)