Ronald Ludington


Ronald Ludington was an American figure skating coach and pair skater. With Nancy Rouillard Ludington, he was the 1960 Olympic bronze medalist, 1959 World bronze medalist, and a four-time U.S. national champion.

Career

With his then-wife, Nancy Rouillard Ludington, he won the U.S. Championships in pair skating four times, between 1957 and 1960, after having been the junior national champions in 1956. They won bronze medals at the 1959 World Figure Skating Championships and 1960 Winter Olympics. Ludington also won the 1958 U.S. junior dance championship, partnered with Judy Ann Lamar.
Following his competitive career, Ludington took up coaching in Norwalk, Connecticut. His first pupils included Patricia and Robert Dineen, who were killed along with the rest of the U.S. team in the crash of Sabena Flight 548 on their way to the 1961 World Championships. Ludington was not on the plane because neither he nor the Dineens had the money to fund his travel expenses. It was the only World Championships from 1957 to the end of the century which he did not attend as either a competitor or a coach.
Around 1970, due to limited ice time in Detroit, Ludington moved to Wilmington, Delaware to coach at the Skating Club of Wilmington. In 1987, he became the director of the University of Delaware's Ice Skating Science Development Center. He held that position until 2010.
Ludington coached the following skaters:
Ludington was named to the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 1999, the Professional Skaters Association Coaches Hall of Fame in 2002, and the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame in 2000.

Personal life

In 1957, Ludington married his skating partner, Nancy Rouillard. He later married Mary Batdorf, a skating coach. They had a son, Michael, before divorcing in the mid-1970s. Ludington married this third Wife, Karen, who also was a professional skater. The marriage ended in Divorce in 2011. Ludington died on May 14, 2020, at the age of 85.

Results

Pairs

Event1957195819591960
Winter Olympic Games3rd
World Championships4th5th3rd6th
North American Championships3rd
U.S. Championships1st1st1st1st

Ice dance

Event1958
U.S. Championships1st J.