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Laurie Jean Hickox and William Holmes Hickox
1961 U.S. pairs bronze medalistsWilliam ("Bill") Holmes Hickox, 18, and Laurie Jean Hickox, 15, won the 1960 U.S. junior pairs championship but did not plan to compete in 1961. Born in San Francisco, they were the only children of Lute and Elinor Hickox of Berkeley, Calif. Elinor gave birth to Bill at age 40, and the couple adopted Laurie at birth. Bill competed in singles for several years on the national level, but Bill and Laurie excelled as a pairs team. They first represented the St. Moritz Ice Skating Club and then switched to the Skating Club of San Francisco. The siblings trained at both the Iceland rink in Berkeley and the Sutro's rink in San Francisco. Their coaches included Maribel Vinson Owen, Robert Swenning, Gene Turner, Bill and Julie Barrett, and Edi Scholdan. After winning the 1960 U.S. junior title, Bill retired from competitive skating. A brilliant student, he entered the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs in June 1960. Bill had been off the ice for six months when his mother convinced him to enter the 1961 U.S. Figure Skating Championships with Laurie at the nearby Broadmoor World Arena. After placing third in senior pairs at the 1961 U.S. Championships, the academy granted Bill permission to miss school and travel to a communist country. Laurie was the youngest member of the 1961 U.S. World Figure Skating Team.
Bio written by Patricia Shelley Bushman, author of Indelible Tracings.
