Sunday, 22 December 2024

Frank Zamboni

Contest: The US Athletic Hall of Fame - Contributors 2024
Embed from Getty Images
Sport(s): Inventor
Statistics: Member of the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame
Member of the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame
Member of the National Inventors Hall of Fame
Member of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame
Member of the United States Speed Skating Hall of Fame.
Where would ice sports be without the ice resurfacer, or as we know it as the Zamboni?

The Zamboni family built the Iceland rink in California, and Frank Zamboni figured out how to eliminate rippling caused by the underneath pipes that were laid to keep the rink frozen. Patenting that idea, he invented a machine (which he also patented) that would resurface the ice in 15 minutes instead of the 90-minute/five-person job that it used to be. Zamboni did not foresee this revolutionizing the world of sports, but when orders came from former Olympic figure skater Sonja Henie ordered two and the Chicago Blackhawks ordered one, Zamboni patented the machine, and ice sports were forever changed.

Zamboni is a member of four different high-profile sports halls of fame and is our only nominee who was inducted to the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

We are proud to nominate Frank Zamboni for the United States Athletic Hall of Fame.