As the most artistic of athletic events, figure skating is widely believed to be teeming with gay men—and, indeed, some of the most renowned elite male skaters have been gay or bisexual. But the sport’s fey reputation is largely attributable to the perceived gender nonconformity of its male participants.

It is impossible to know now whether early champion skaters such as Jackson Haines, a ballet dancer by training who pioneered the modern artistic form of figure skating in the 1860s, were queer. Lorrie Kim, creator of the Rainbow Ice website, has compiled a list of 20 elite gay male skaters, but only a few publicly revealed their sexuality while they were champion contenders.

American Ronnie Robertson, the 1956 Olympic silver medalist, was exposed as gay by his former coach, Michael Kirby, in a memoir published the year of Robertson’s death (2000). The "Nureyev of the Ice," Great Britain’s John Curry, reportedly made a little-noticed announcement that he was gay at a press conference shortly before winning the 1976 Olympic gold medal. The bronze medalist that year, Toller Cranston of Canada, mentioned affairs with both men and women in his two autobiographies; during the 1973 World Championships, he recalled, he was seduced by Czech skater Ondrej Nepela, who went on to best the flustered Cranston and win the title. In 1992, another Canadian, Matthew Hall, was next after Curry to come out publicly during his competitive career; Hall also likely holds the distinction of being the only elite figure skater to appear in a gay S/M porn movie (Titan’s Fallen Angel). Longtime Canadian champion Brian Orser was outed in 1998 when his ex-boyfriend filed a palimony lawsuit.

The best-known queer figure skater, Rudy Galindo—who once described himself as "an openly gay trailer-trash Mexican"—had reached the highest levels of pairs skating with his then-partner, Kristi Yamaguchi, when she decided to focus on singles competition. After several years of disappointing performances, a bout with alcohol and drug addiction, and the loss of his brother and two coaches to AIDS, Galindo went on to win the 1996 U.S. Nationals. Despite his own HIV diagnosis and the replacement of both hips, Galindo has repeatedly challenged the conservative skating world—for example, performing to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and a medley of Village People songs.

Other queer elite male skaters have included U.S. national medalist Robert Wagenhoffer (who had long-term romantic relationships with former junior champion Billy Lawe and professional show skater Sylvain Beauregard), champion ice dancer and choreographer Rob McCall, 1978-80 Canadian national champion Brian Pockar, and former Dutch national champion Edward van Campen; all but Beauregard and van Campen died of AIDS. Galindo once estimated that 98 percent of elite male skaters are straight. But "in the real trenches of show skating," according to openly gay skater Christopher Nolan, "guys are out all over the place."

Many male figure skaters have described the harassment they received for pursing a sport considered to be queer. In reaction, skaters such as Kurt Browning, Philippe Candeloro, and Elvis Stojko emphasized a macho image and athletic style in the 1990s; others, including three-time U.S. champion Michael Weiss, regularly show off their wives and children. Current U.S. national champion and top Olympic contender Johnny Weir has tripped the gaydar of many with his flamboyant outfits and effeminate mannerisms, though he has yet to explicitly state his sexual orientation.

Despite its queer reputation, the skating establishment has long mandated strict gender roles. Although things have come a long way since officials at the 1920 Olympics scolded Theresa Weld for performing an "unladylike" jump, some judges still look askance at male skaters who do too many spins and spirals. So strict are the gender conventions that 1988 Olympic gold and bronze medalists Katarina Witt and Debbie Thomas provoked shock by performing in nontraditional costumes such as knee breeches and full-length leotards, prompting the sport’s highest governing body, the International Skating Union (ISU), to institute a rule that female competitors must wear skirts that cover their derrieres.

While male skaters are often assumed to be gay, the sport’s requisite femininity renders queer women invisible. There are no openly lesbian or bisexual women skaters among the elite ranks, though some of today’s female champion contenders are so young that it may be premature to speculate about their sexuality. But a number of queer women participate in nonelite adult competition, including International Gay Figure Skating Union cofounder Laura Moore, who started skating at age 32 after divorcing her husband and coming out as a lesbian.

Ironically, no sport emphasizes the appearance of heterosexuality more than competitive pair skating and ice dancing. The ISU regulation that teams must consist of "a man and a lady" has caused grief for elite skaters who wish to perform with same-sex partners. The ISU does not sanction events that do not adhere to its rules, but the international Ice Skating Institute and some national governing bodies, including the United States Figure Skating Association and Skate Canada, do offer sanctions or waivers for the Gay Games and similar events. "[T]he thrill of seeing an openly gay pair team has nothing to do with triple jumps," said Moore, who won the 1994 Gay Games ice dance competition with her partner, Linda Carney.