Figure skating community mourns the loss of legend Dick Button in the wake of D.C. plane crash tragedy

Retired U.S. Olympic figure skater Nancy Kerrigan speaks at the Skating Club of Boston after the deadly plane crash near Washington, D.C.

The figure skating community experienced immense grief this week after 14 members of the community were tragically killed in a midair aircraft collision in Washington D.C. on Wednesday night. 

Their loss came just a day before two-time Olympic gold medalist Dick Button, a pioneer in the sport who would also go on to have a legendary broadcasting career, died at 95. 

FILE - Dick Button of Englewood, N.J., a North American men's figure skating champion and winner of the European title, executes a jump during a practice session at St. Moritz, Switzerland, on Jan. 19, 1948, in preparation for the Winter Olympics of 1948.  (AP Photo, File)

"On this terrible, sad day for figure skating with the loss of young upcoming talent and their family members and coaches in the plane crash, I am further heartbroken with the loss of figure skating legend, my friend, Dick Button," Brian Boitano, who won a gold medal in the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, wrote in a post on social media. 

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"RIP, Dick Button," former American sports reporter Michele Tafoya said in another post. 

"I like to think you went to heaven in time to welcome the young skaters and coaches who perished in Wednesday’s tragedy. May you all glide among the stars together." 

Everly and Alydia Livingston were killed in a plane crash between an American Airlines flight and an Army helicopter near Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia on Wednesday, January 29, 2025. All 67 people onboard both aircraft are presumed dead.   (Instagram/@ice_skating_sisters)

A winner of two Olympic