Olympic Speed Skating Skins worn by Eric Heiden during the 1980 Winter Olympics
date: label: Date made
content: 1980
name: label: maker
content: Descente
label: maker
content: Descente
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: In the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics, Eric Heiden (b. 1958 in Madison, Wisconsin) brought home an unprecedented five golds for the United States, setting three Olympic records and two world records in what he termed "The Big Whoopee." Heiden's superior skill and determination inspired a generation of young American skaters. Until Heiden's sweep in 1980, the greatest Olympic speed skaters had been either Norwegian or Dutch. The gold speed skins Eric Heiden wore when he skated to five gold medals in the 1980 Winter Olympics were manufactured by Descente. The skins bore the name of the company on the front of the cap, but Heiden blacked out the name when the company refused to sponsor him.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
topic: label: level of sport
content: Olympics
label: name of sport
content: Speed Skating
label: level of sport
content: Amateur
label: web subject
content: Sports
label: related event
content: Olympic Winter Games: Lake Placid, 1980
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Sport and Leisure
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Eric Heiden, through Arthur C. Kaminsky
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1982.0469.01
label: accession number
content: 1982.0469
label: catalog number
content: 1982.0469.01
objectType: label: Object Name
content: skins, speed skating
label: Object Name
content: skins, olympics
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: nylon (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: spandex (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 62 in x 15 in; 157.48 cm x 38.1 cm