Ice Dancing, Mixed

World Championships for ice dancing had first appeared in 1952 but this event would not make the Olympic Program until the 1976 Winter Olympics. In 1968 an exhibition of ice dancing was performed shortly before the Closing Ceremony. There were no scores and no competition, but merely an exhibition. Per IOC President Avery Brundage it was called “rhythmic skating,” and he stated that if it was ever to become an Olympic event, it would have to be called “rhythmic pairs.”

Lynn Thomas wrote in the March 1968 issue of Skating magazine, “The demonstration started with several compulsory dances being skated with two couples on the ice. This produced the effect of shadow skating and was very attractive.” The pairs performed a compulsory dance, an original set dance, and a free dance. Ten couples participated with three pairs from Great Britain, two from the Soviet Union, and one each from Canada, West Germany, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and the United States. One of the British dance teams was the 1966-69 World Championship couple of Diane Towler and Bernard Ford.