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Frances Claudet

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Frances Claudet
Personal information
Born(1911-04-11)April 11, 1911
DiedOctober 17, 2001(2001-10-17) (aged 90)
Figure skating career
Country Canada
Medal record
Representing Canada
Pairs Figure skating
North American Championships
Silver medal – second place 1931 Ottawa Pairs
Fours' Figure skating
North American Championships
Gold medal – first place 1931 Ottawa Fours

Frances Claudet, also known as Fran, married surname Johnson, (April 11, 1911 – October 17, 2001) was a Canadian figure skater who competed in women's singles, pair skating, and four skating; outside of Canada, she primarily competed in pairs. With partner Chauncey Bangs, she won the gold medal at the 1931 Canadian Figure Skating Championships and competed in the 1932 Winter Olympics, finishing sixth.

Career

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Claudet won her first medal at the Canadian Championships at age 13 in 1925, when she won bronze in the pairs competition skating with Ted Beaument.[1]

She competed in four skating at the 1927 Canadian Championships, and her team won the silver medal.[2] In 1928, she was part of the only fours group that competed at the Canadian Championships, and she won the silver medal at the junior level as an individual.[3] The next year, she was third at the junior level in the singles event, and she again won silver in the four competition with her teammates, Guy Owen, Melville Rogers, and Katherine Lopdell.[4]

Claudet paired up with Chauncey Bangs in 1931. Theresa Weld-Blanchard, describing their second-place finish program at the 1931 North American Championships, noted the pair as having no jumps, spins, or lifts and lacking variety, though she also praised them for their speed, time to the music, and unison.[5] She also competed in the fours competition with the same group she had competed with in 1929, and their group won.[6] At the Canadian Championships that year, her fours team won bronze, and she and Bangs won the pairs competition.[7]

The next year, she and Bangs were the Canadian silver medallists.[8] They competed at the 1932 Winter Olympics, where they placed 6th,[9] and the 1932 World Championships, where they placed 5th, the highest of the three Canadian pairs at the competition.[10]

In 1935, she competed at the North American Championships both as a singles skaters and pairs skater; she placed 7th out of 7 skaters in the women's competition, and in the pairs competition, she and her partner, Donald Cruikshank, placed 5th of 7 pairs.[11] At the Canadian Championships, she won the bronze medal behind Constance Wilson-Samuel and Veronica Clarke.[12]

Claudet fractured her ankle falling during a summer performance. She announced later that year that she would turn professional and coach in Quebec.[13]

Professional career

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After her competitive career, Claudet skated in ice shows. She debuted in the show Gay Blades.[14] Later, Claudet became the "first woman star" for Ice Follies and acted as a director and choreographer; she also skated in the show and paired up with Osborne Colson.[14][15] By 1946, while she still skated in some group numbers, she primarily worked as the director.[16] She worked with the show for over 30 years.[17]

Outside of skating, Claudet was also interested in music.[16] She gave music lessons to a young Barbara Ann Scott, who eventually became Olympic champion; Claudet was the one who encouraged her to begin skating.[18]

Personal life

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Claudet's father, Henry Hayman Claudet, worked in the mining industry, specializing in the flotation process. She had a sister.[19]

Claudet married Worthington John, an investment banker, on August 7, 1959.[15] She became the stepmother to Johnson's son and three daughters.[17] She died at home on October 17, 2001, "during sunset, her favorite time of day."[17]

Results

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Women's singles

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Competition placements between the 1927–1928 and 1934–1935 season 
Season 1927–1928 1928–1929 1934–1935
North American Championships 7th
Canadian Championships 2nd J 3rd J 3rd

Pairs

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Competition placements between the 1924–1925 and 1934–1935 season 
Season 1924–1925 1930–1931 1931–1932 1934–1935
Winter Olympics 6th
World Championships 5th
North American Championships 2nd 5th
Canadian Championships 3rd 1st 2nd

Fours

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Competition placements between the 1926–1927 and 1930–1931 season 
Season 1926–1927 1927–1928 1928–1929 1930–1931
North American Championships 1st
Canadian Championships 2nd 1st 2nd 3rd

References

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  1. ^ "Melville Rogers, Minto Club, Singles Champion of Canada Is Also Winner in Doubles". The Ottawa Journal. February 21, 1925. p. 30. Archived from the original on April 27, 2025. Retrieved April 20, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ MacLean, John S. (April 1927). "1927 Canadian Championships" (PDF). Skating. No. 12. p. 35. ISSN 0037-6132. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  3. ^ MacLean, John S. (April 1928). "Canadian Championships" (PDF). Skating. No. 16. pp. 29–30. ISSN 0037-6132. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  4. ^ Gillmore, E.T.B. (May 1929). "Canadian Championships, 1929" (PDF). Skating. No. 21. pp. 21–24. ISSN 0037-6132. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 8, 2025. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  5. ^ Blanchard, Theresa Weld (March 1931). "Championships of North America". The Sportswoman. Vol. 7, no. 7. p. 20.
  6. ^ "Mrs. Samuels wins in figure skating". The New York Times. February 6, 1931. p. 27. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  7. ^ MacLean, John S. (March 1931). "Canadian Championships" (PDF). Skating. No. 28. pp. 23–24. ISSN 0037-6132. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 22, 2025. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  8. ^ MacLean, John S. (May 1932). "Canadian Championships" (PDF). Skating. No. 33. pp. 26–27. ISSN 0037-6132. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 23, 2025. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  9. ^ Official Report, III Olympic Winter Games, Lake Placid, 1932. 1932. p. 222. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  10. ^ "World Championships Figure Skating 1931/1932 - Results Mixed". www.the-sports.org. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  11. ^ "Canadians retain 3 skating titles". The New York Times. February 23, 1935. p. 19. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  12. ^ "Toronto Figure Skaters in Spotlight". The Ottawa Citizen. January 28, 1935. p. 11. Archived from the original on April 22, 2025. Retrieved April 20, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "The Minto Club" (PDF). Skating. November 1935. p. 33. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  14. ^ a b "New star in cast of the ice follies". The New York Times. November 28, 1940. p. 33. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  15. ^ a b "Frances Claudet Is Wed". The New York Times. August 8, 1959. p. 9. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  16. ^ a b "Past Champions" (PDF). Skating. Vol. 24, no. 2. December 1946. p. 30. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  17. ^ a b c "Paid Notice: Deaths JOHNSON, FRANCES CLAUDET". The New York Times. October 19, 2001. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  18. ^ Daane, Mavis Berry; Heydon, Naomi Slater (March 1944). "Meet the Canadian Champions" (PDF). Skating. Vol. 21, no. 4. p. 20. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  19. ^ "Henry Hayman Claudet". The Canadian Mining and Metallurgical Bulletin. Vol. 47, no. 509. Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. September 1954. p. 628.
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