Who was Dick Button? Gold medalist figure skating icon dies at 95

Two-time Olympic figure skating champion Dick Button, died on January 30 at 95 in North Salem, New York. News of his death was confirmed by his daughter, Emily Button, to The Washington Post.

Button was known to advance modern figure skating in the late 1940s and early 50s and gained popularity after completing the first triple jump in a competition. He also went on to win an Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in Sports Programming for teaching generations of TV audiences the ways of triple-toe loops, lutzes, and axles for five decades since 1960. He also explained how judges assess a skater's performance.

Apart from being a master figure skater and a prominent television personality, Button also held degrees from Harvard College and Harvard Law School.

More about Dick Button's life

Olympic Figure skating legend, Dick Button who died at 95 was born and raised in Englewood, New Jersey. Here, he began skating at an early age and went onto train seriously at 12.

He finished second to Jean-Pierre Brunet in his first competition, the 1943 Eastern States Novice Championship. In 1944, Button went on to win the Eastern States junior title giving him a chance to compete at the National Novice Championships. After winning a couple more championships, Button went on to attend Harvard College.

During the 1952 Winter Olympics, Button won nine first places, became the first person to complete a triple jump in competition, and became the third figure skater to win two Olympic gold models.

After retiring from competition, Dick Button pursued a short career performing in ice shows and founded Candid Productions, which headlined a variety of made-for-television sports events. He then began working as a TV analyst in 1960 with CBS, covering the Winter Olympics at Squaw Valley, Calif.

During the 2006 Winter Olympics, Button appeared on loan from ABC to provide commentary on the game. Dick Button also appeared in films, produced several Broadway plays, and was a known painter, who mastered the art of antique furniture and gardening.

Button is known as an incomparable male figure skater who once told NPR,

"I've always found that all through the competition, the really exciting thing that happened was skating well, making your body do what you want. That was the reward, much more than any medal."

Button's death on January 30 comes less than a day after several participants in the 2025 U.S Figure Skating championships, including Skating Club of Boston's skaters and coaches were killed in a mid-air collision over the Potomac River.