Robin Cousins facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Robin Cousins MBE
Personal information
Born	(1957-08-17) 17 August 1957 (age 68) Bristol, England
Height	1.83 m
Former coach	Carlo Fassi
Skating club	Queen's Ice Club London Bristol Ice Dance and Figure Skating Club
Retired	1980 (amateur), 1997 (professional)
Medal record Representing  Great Britain Olympic Games Gold 1980 Lake Placid Singles World Championships Silver 1980 Dortmund Singles Silver 1979 Vienna Singles Bronze 1978 Ottawa Singles European Championships Gold 1980 Gothenburg Singles Bronze 1979 Zagreb Singles Bronze 1978 Strasbourg Singles Bronze 1977 Helsinki Singles

Robin John Cousins MBE (born 17 August 1957) is a British former competitive figure skater. He was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1980. Robin Cousins won the 1980 Olympic Games and the 1980 European Championship. He also earned three World Championship medals between 1978 and 1980. He was the British national champion four times from 1977 to 1980.

After his amateur career, he became a successful professional figure skater. He also starred in and produced many ice shows. Robin is special because he can spin in both directions, which is rare for a skater.

Off the ice, Cousins has worked as a commentator for figure skating events on the BBC. He was also the head judge on the TV show Dancing on Ice from 2006 to 2014. He has also performed in theatre shows, including those in London's West End.

Early Life and Skating Start

Robin Cousins was born in Bristol, England. His mother, Jo, was a secretary, and his father, Fred, was a civil servant. Fred used to be a goalkeeper for Millwall F.C.. Robin has two older brothers, Martin and Nick. He went to Henbury School but left when he was 15.

Robin first tried ice skating at age six. This was during a holiday in Bournemouth. He enjoyed it so much that he asked for lessons for Christmas.

When he was young, Robin trained in both ice dancing and singles skating. His first coach was Pamela Davies. Later, he was coached by Gladys Hogg and then by Carlo Fassi.

Cousins left school at 16 to focus completely on figure skating. In 1974, he moved from Bristol to London by himself. He lived in a very small apartment and worked stacking shelves at a department store.

Amazing Competitive Career

Robin Cousins won his first national title in 1969 when he was 12. This was at the novice level. By age 14, he was Britain's junior champion. He then started competing internationally that same year.

He represented the United Kingdom as an amateur figure skater for eight years. He won the British National Senior Championships four years in a row, from 1977 to 1980. He also won the free skating part of the World Championships three times. He earned silver medals at the World Championships in 1979 and 1980.

His biggest achievements as an amateur skater came in 1980. He won gold medals at both the European Championships and the Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid, New York. At the Olympics, he was in second place after the first two parts of the competition. But he performed an amazing long program. Eight out of nine judges gave him a near-perfect score for artistic impression. Even though his competitor had a more technical performance, six judges gave first place to Cousins. This gave him the overall win and the gold medal. He was voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year for 1980.

After his amateur career, he became a professional skater in 1980. He won the World Professional Men's Figure Skating Championships twice. He also won other medals as a professional.

Life After Competing

After turning professional in 1980, Robin Cousins performed in many ice shows. These included Holiday on Ice and Ice Capades. He also kept competing in the World Professional Championships.

He was given the title of Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1980. This was for his great contributions to ice skating. He also set two Guinness World Records in 1983. He achieved the longest Axel jump (5.81 meters) and the longest back flip (5.48 meters) on figure skates.

In 1983, Cousins started his own ice skating company. It toured the world with shows like Electric Ice and Ice Majesty. He has also starred in, produced, directed, or choreographed many TV ice shows. These include The Nutcracker: A Fantasy on Ice and Sleeping Beauty on Ice. He also worked on The Wizard of Oz on Ice and Toy Story on Ice.

For many years, Cousins was a guest presenter and commentator for BBC Sport. He covered the European and World Figure Skating Championships and the Winter Olympics. He was the head judge on the TV show Dancing on Ice from 2006 to 2014.

Robin Cousins has also performed on stage in theatre. He played the Prince in Cinderella. He was also in Cats, The Rocky Horror Show, Grease, and Chicago in the West End. He has also performed in pantomime shows.

In 2005, he was added to the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame. In May 2021, Robin Cousins was chosen as the Vice Chair of the British Ice Skating board. He was also appointed as its President.

Personal Life and Health

Robin Cousins has had eight operations on his knees. His knee problems started in 1974. He had his first two operations to fix his meniscus. By 1980, he had undergone major surgery on both his left and right knees. He had a knee replacement in his fifties.

In March 1980, he was featured on the TV show This Is Your Life. He was surprised by the host in his hometown of Bristol.

Robin Cousins got married in 2007.

He has appeared on TV game shows. In March 2012, he was on All Star Family Fortunes with his nephews. He also appeared on Tipping Point Lucky Stars in August 2013.

Helping Others

Robin Cousins is a big supporter of the Meningitis UK organization. He also supports the Starr Trust children's charity in Brighton.

See also

In Spanish: Robin Cousins para niños