James Santee

James "Jimmie" Santee is an American former competitive figure skater. He is the 1981 Golden Spin of Zagreb champion, 1982 Ennia Challenge Cup silver medalist, and 1983 Prague Skate silver medalist. Since 2006, he has served as the executive director of the Professional Skaters Association.

James Santee
Personal information
Alternative namesJimmie Santee
Country representedUnited States
Bornc. 1962 (age 57–58)
Oak Park, Illinois
Home townPark Ridge, Illinois
ResidenceRochester, Minnesota
CoachEvy and Mary Scotvold (1978-1984), Candy Brown (1978-80), Gail Garrity Reed (1978-80), Kay Faynor (1977), Rueben Huron (1968-76)
ChoreographerMary Scotvold
Skating clubChicago FSC (1978-1984), Broadmoor FSC (1970-77), Arapahoe FSC (1968-69)
Began skatingmid-1960s
RetiredAmateur 1984, Walt Disney's World on Ice 1995

Personal life

James Santee was born c. 1962, the son of RoseMary and Neil Santee.[1] His mother served as a judge for U.S. Figure Skating and his elder brother, David Santee, competed internationally in figure skating.[1] In 1987, he married Jamie-Lynn Kitching, who won the silver medal at the 1981 World Professional Championships and performed with Disney on Ice as a principal skater from 1983–95.[2] They had their first child, a son named Ryan, around 1995, and then two daughters, Sarah and Jessica.[1][3] 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.[1] They trained at various rinks, including the Oakton Ice Arena in Park Ridge, Illinois, Randhurst, Polar Dome in East Dundee, Rolling Meadows, Northbrook, and Niles Ice Land.[1][4]

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.[1] He finished 7th at the 1979 World Junior Championships in Augsburg, Germany.

Santee began appearing on the senior level in 1980. Internationally, he won gold at the 1981 Golden Spin of Zagreb in Yugoslavia, silver at the 1982 Ennia Challenge Cup in the Netherlands, and silver at the 1983 Prague Skate in Czechoslovakia.[5] He finished fourth at the 1982 Skate America.

Post-competitive

After retiring from competition, Santee worked for Walt Disney's World on Ice, 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 Park Ridge, Illinois.[4][6][7] 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 Professional Skaters Association.[7]

Competitive highlights
International
Event 75–76 76–77 77–78 77–79 79–80 80–81 81–82 82–83 83–84
Ennia Challenge2nd
Golden Spin1st
Nebelhorn Trophy4th
Prague Skate2nd
Skate America4th
St. Gervais4th
International: Junior
Junior Worlds7th
National
U.S. Champ.4th N1st N3rd J1st J9th6th6th11th
Levels: N = Novice; J = Junior
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
  1. Mandernach, Mark (February 15, 1998). "The Northwest Suburbs' First Family Of Skating". Chicago Tribune.
  2. "Jamie Lynn Santee". Professional Skaters Association. Archived from the original on December 16, 2016.
  3. "U.S. Figure Skating Reach for the Stars: Faculty Bios" (PDF). U.S. Figure Skating. 2009. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 26, 2011.
  4. Geroulis, Dean (February 13, 2002). "Skaters' success pumps up rink's Olympic pedigree". Chicago Tribune.
  5. "Results Book, Volume 2: 1974–current" (PDF). Skate Canada. Archived from the original on September 20, 2009.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)
  6. "Episode #13: Jimmie Santee". manleywoman.com. March 25, 2008.
  7. "Jimmie Santee". Professional Skaters Association. Archived from the original on December 16, 2016.
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