Betty Callaway
Betty Callaway | |
---|---|
Born | Betty Daphne Roberts 22 March 1928 Reading, Berkshire, England |
Died | 27 June 2011 Seer Green, Buckinghamshire, England | (aged 83)
Other names | Betty Callaway-Fittall[1] |
Occupation | Figure skating coach |
Spouses | Roy Callaway
(m. 1949; div. 1975)
(m. 2003)William Fittall
(m. 1978; died 1988) |
Betty Daphne Callaway-Fittall,
Early life
Betty Daphne Roberts was born in
She joined the Blackpool Pleasure Beach ice show as a performer at the age of 16, where she met her future husband Roy Callaway, a principal skater there.[4]
Career
In 1950 Callaway and Roy, now married, became skating coaches at
Callaway became the national ice dancing trainer for West Germany in 1969,[1] where she coached Angelika and Erich Buck to gold at the 1972 European Championships.[4] After returning to the UK she coached Hungarian couple Krisztina Regőczy and András Sallay, who were world champions and Olympic silver medallists in 1980.[3]
In 1978, Callaway began working with
For the 1993–94 season, Torvill and Dean returned to amateur competition following a change in the rules which allowed former professional skaters to regain amateur status,[9] and teamed up with Callaway once again. They won the 1994 European title and took the bronze medal at the Lillehammer Olympics.[4]
During the 1990s, Callaway coached Marika Humphreys, who won the British National Championships five times with various partners,[4] and the Lithuanian couple Margarita Drobiazko and Povilas Vanagas.[6]
Personal life
She married Roy Callaway (1917–2014)[10] in 1949. The couple divorced in 1975, and in 1978 she married British Airways captain William Fittall. She was widowed in 1988 when Fittall died in a house fire. She later reconciled with Callaway and they remarried in 2003, remaining together until her death.[3]
Callaway was found dead at her home in Seer Green, Buckinghamshire on 27 June 2011. She had sustained a head injury thought to have resulted from a fall, and had been drinking according to toxicology reports. An inquest in September 2011 recorded a verdict of accidental death.[11]
See also
References
- ^ a b "Betty Callaway-Fittall, MBE". Debrett's People of Today. Debrett's. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
- ^ a b c "Dance Obituaries: Betty Callaway". The Daily Telegraph. London. 14 July 2011. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
- ^ a b c d Stevenson, Sandra (9 July 2011). "Betty Callaway: Skating coach who guided Torvill and Dean to the Olympic ice dance title". The Independent. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g Nichols, Peter (5 July 2011). "Betty Callaway obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
- ^ "Death of a skating legend". Nottingham Post. 2 July 2011. Archived from the original on 1 December 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
- ^ a b Stevenson, Sandra. "An Appreciation of a Remarkable Woman". iSkate. Archived from the original on 3 November 2011. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
- ^ Scott-Elliot, Robin (15 July 2009). "Great Sporting Moments: Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean win Olympic gold for ice dancing, Olympic Games, Sarajevo, 14 February 1984". The Independent. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
- ^ "No. 49768". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 1984. p. 12.
- OCLC 59149288.
- ^ Harding-Gosnell, Gennifer (24 April 2014). "Legend of Richmond Ice Rink dies aged 96". Richmond and Twickenham Times. London. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
- ^ Farr, Simon (4 September 2011). "Inquest: Torvill & Dean's Olympic coach Betty Callaway-Fittall died trying to call doctor". Bucks Free Press. Retrieved 29 November 2012.