18 Facts About John Curry

John Curry was the 1976 European, Olympic and World Champion.

John Curry was noted for combining ballet and modern dance influences into his skating.

John Curry was educated at Solihull School, a private school in the West Midlands and prior to this, at St Andrews, an independent boarding school in Somerset.

In 1972 John Curry found an American sponsor who enabled him to study in the United States with Gus Lussi and Carlo Fassi.

John Curry won the British championships that year, giving him the coveted Grand Slam in figure skating with his four major titles in 1976.

John Curry was the first male figure skater from Great Britain to win Olympic gold.

At the peak of his competitive career, John Curry was accomplished both at compulsory figures and the athletic aspects of free skating.

John Curry's performance is known to have garnered the highest score ever given during the era of the 6.0 scoring in figure skating.

John Curry earned 105.9 points out of a possible 108 points from a panel of 9 international judges.

John Curry's skating was unusual in that his jumps were performed counter-clockwise but most of his spins were performed clockwise.

John Curry's skating was characterized by strict attention to detail and clean, classical lines.

Besides choreographing routines for the company, John Curry commissioned works from such noted dance choreographers as Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Peter Martins and Twyla Tharp.

John Curry was reportedly a difficult person to get along with, and a dispute with the business managers of his company forced it to suspend operations in the mid-1980s.

John Curry confirmed he was gay at a press conference in Innsbruck the same evening.

In 1987, John Curry was diagnosed with HIV, and in 1991 with AIDS.

John Curry spent the last years of his life with his mother.

John Curry died of an AIDS-related heart attack on 15 April 1994 in Binton, Warwickshire, aged 44.

In line with his own wishes, John Curry had a humanist funeral, led by celebrant Nigel Collins.