By Badi Cross
The Howard University Ice Skating Club made history last month at the Blue Hen Ice Classic on Feb. 24 and 25, becoming the first HBCU organization to compete in an intercollegiate figure skating competition.
Although many on the team are beginners, that didn’t stop them from competing in the University of Delaware’s annual figure skating competition.
The club competed as a team in the Team Maneuvers – Low event, while Club President Maya James competed in the Juvenile Women Short Program and team skater Gabrielle Francis competed in the Pre-Preliminary Women Excel event.
James, a junior at Howard, finished fifth in the Juvenile Women Short Program. She expressed feeling really good competing in the competition.
“It took a lot to get there, so I was very emotional after,” said James. “It just felt like, ‘we’re finally here’ and I did pretty well so it just felt really good.”
James said that one of their main goals in creating the club was to make figure skating more accessible.
The organization is not a Division-1 sport within Howard Athletics but a club consisting of members of all different skill levels and mediums—even a hockey player.
“It’s why we take beginners and people who want to learn how to figure skate,” James said. “We want them to get a new passion.”
The club began practicing during the fall semester of the 2023-24 school year and received widespread media coverage from multiple outlets such as NPR, CBS News, and Essence Magazine.
Despite the nationwide coverage, the club’s leadership says they haven’t changed in how they operate.
“I don’t think the coverage changed much in terms of how the club members interact,” said Vice President Cheyenne Walker. “I do think that it opened the space for more people to learn about our club, which is pretty exciting.”
The club’s advisor, Dr. Jomah Watson, said the club’s progress has largely been due to its student initiative, which has made the process smoother.
“This was one of the easier clubs to start,” said Watson. “Maya and Cheyenne have done a lot of the groundwork. They’ve made things a lot simpler.”
While the club is finished competing for this school year, its leaders say there is still more in store as they continue to build for the future.
“Of course, we aim to have more people on the team and more club members in general,” James said. “Cheyenne and I both hope to see a synchronized skating team in the future, as that’s where most of our background lies.”
Walker said she also hopes to see the club’s community aspect expand.
“As much as we focus on the team, I would also love to see the ‘Learn to Skate’ aspect grow larger,” Walker said. “We want people to know that you don’t have to compete to be in the sport. You don’t have to compete to have a good time.”
The club plans to hold a fundraiser and an exhibition at the end of the school year and looks forward to its next competition, which is planned for November 2024.
