Mabel Fairbanks

Mabel Fairbanks
Mabel Fairbanks
Born(1915-11-14)November 14, 1915
Florida, Florida Everglades
DiedSeptember 29, 2001(2001-09-29) (aged 85)
Burbank, California
Figure skating career
CountryUnited States
CoachMaribel Vinson Owen
Howard Nicholson

Mabel Fairbanks (November 14, 1915 – September 29, 2001) was an American figure skater and coach. As an African American and Native American woman she paved the way for other minorities to compete in the sport of figure skating such as Tai Babilonia, Debi Thomas, and Naomi Lang. She was inducted into the US Figure Skating Hall of Fame, as the first person of African American and Native American descent, and the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame.