When gay ice skater Rudy Galindo captured the 1996 U.S. Figure
Skating Championship title in his hometown of San Jose, it was hailed as a Cinderella
story. Favorite Todd Eldredge was expected to win, and ABC later named it one
of the top 25 moments in sports history. (Photo by Barry Mittan)
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By ANDY ZEFFER
Friday, December 24, 2004
Though Rudy Galindo has been skating for years, it wasn’t until 1996 that
he captured the heart of fans around the world.
The year before, he had placed eighth at the U.S. National Figure Skating Championships.
He would rise through the ranks the next time around to capture the title.
Not bad for a kid who grew up poor on the East Side of San Jose.
Galindo quickly became vocal about being gay, despite his visibility in a largely
family-oriented sport. And when he revealed his HIV status to the public in
2000, he did so with the same bravery and independent spirit that brought him
to the top of one of the most fiercely competitive sports out there.
For the past three years, Galindo has been strutting his stuff with the touring
show, “Broadway on Ice.” Audience members at the Kravis Center in
West Palm Beach can look forward to his signature showmanship when his blades
hit the ice Dec. 31. There he will perform some of his favorite pieces and Broadway
routines.
“I am doing Judy Collin’s ‘Send in the Clowns,’”
Galindo says. “It’s a piece I perform a lot and incorporate rhythmic
gymnastics with a hoop.”
Getting started in a life of skating wasn’t easy for Galindo.
East San Jose is a community of largely low-income families, and his was no
exception.
Galindo’s father was a truck driver, and a big part of his $1,000 a week
paycheck went to young Rudy’s skating bills. It was insurance that Galindo
would stay off the streets.
Galindo was skating in national competitions around the time of another skater
from the wrong side of the tracks, Tonya Harding.
After her scandal, Harding often attributed her downfall to her less than affluent
background. Though Galindo is the first to tell you skating is an expensive
sport, his feelings about Harding are mixed.
“When we were growing up, Tonya and I were really good and won many competitions,”
he says. “So some funds started coming in to help support coaching and
costume expenses. But it is much harder for low-income families to break in.
As for as her situation, I feel bad for her, and I don’t. She made her
choices, and she didn’t really need to go that route. But at the same
time, I feel sorry for her, too. Because skating was her life and she knows
nothing else except throwing hubcaps. And the scandal did help boost the sport’s
popularity.”
To a lesser degree, Galindo sometimes finds himself the center of controversy.
When he came out, he did it with the same mindset that he does when creating
his programs: If people don’t like it, too bad.
For the most part, his programs do well in the family-friendly environment
of ice-skating, he says. Even a routine he does with a huge AIDS ribbon goes
over well in the Bible belt, he says.
But last year he encountered some reactions that make him think the skating
world, along with the rest of the country, is getting much more conservative.
It all started with a tour in Canada. Galindo created a routine around the
cult flick “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”
In the routine, Galindo rips away pants to reveal fishnets like that of the
character from the movie. In Canada, he says, he got standing ovations every
night. So he decided to keep the routine when the American part of the tour
started.
But before long, the tour manager told Galindo he could no longer do the piece
because audiences were in shock.
Galindo gave it another try in Pittsburgh and the reaction was split. Half
the audience was cheering, the other half, especially a lot of men, were booing
loudly.
It is a trend that Galindo finds not only disturbing, but also hypocritical.
“If a straight guy in the show did that number, they would love it,”
Galindo explains. “The fact I am gay and did it was a problem. They have
straight acrobats who do things with sexual innuendo and wear tutus and everyone
thinks it is funny. But I do something all-American like the ‘Rocky Horror
Picture Show,’ and they are respond with, ‘Shame on you!’”
And when he couldn’t do the piece in Vegas, that really surprised Galindo.
“I do think audiences are becoming more conservative, “ he declares.
“A few weeks ago I did Vegas. The place is full of showgirls, strippers
and drag queens. I thought the same piece would do great there. The production
managers loved it. But the female producer of the show had someone inform me
not to do it. I was told it was a family show and they were afraid of my fishnets.”
Surprisingly, going public with his HIV status has been better received than
flamboyant routines.
Galindo feels he has gotten more fans since he was diagnosed, and that HIV
is not a death sentence. He is quick to say he gets a lot of applause. He feels
the public is very supportive, and all the other skaters are comfortable around
him.
Three years ago he made a lot of appearances to bring attention to the HIV.
He soon found himself leading AIDS walks, partaking in candlelight vigils, and
as the spokesperson for the National Minority AIDS Council, a position he took
over from former MTV VJ Daisy Fuentes.
Galindo does not live with regrets, such as his decision to skip the Olympics
and go pro after his surprise win at the 1996 U.S. Championships.
“My goal was just to do the nationals and do a good job,” he says.
“After I won that, a lot of contracts came my way, like ‘Champions
on Ice’ and so many others. And I thought I might as well take the offers
and go with it instead of gambling on the Olympics.
“I could have gone to the Olympics, not placed, and the contracts would
be gone. I have been working as a professional for 10 years now, so I think
that was the best decision for me.”
Galindo now lives in Reno, Nevada, where he continues to beat the odds. Last
year he underwent bi-lateral hip replacement and was on the ice three months
later doing all his triple jumps.
He is very close to his sister Laura, who is also his coach. For now he is
single, and he doesn’t mind that at all.
He loves to skate and be in front of an audience, and finds that when he gets
thinking about someone in romantic terms, it can take away from concentrating
on his career.
And while he may not be looking for a long-time partner at the moment, he is
looking for a permanent gig.
“Id love to be in a show like Celine Dion’s at Ceaser’s Palace”
in Las Vegas, he says. “A permanent venue like that is so me.”
Andy Zeffer can be reached at azeffer@expressgaynews.com
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