Former Inline Speed Skating Champ Cheryl Ezzell to Poke Head Out of Retirement for Hall of Fame Induction

Racing News:

Ex Champ Cheryl Ezzell To Poke Her Head Out of Retirement for Award Ceremony

Former World Champion Skater Also Plans to Enter a Few Outdoor Races

By Robert "Just the Factoids" Burnson

Cheryl Ezzell was one hot skater in the 1990s.

Among her numerous awards were 12 speed skating gold medals collected at various Inline World Championships.

But then the slender Texan hung up her skates ...

Well, not exactly.

"She still skates on country roads to keep in shape," her mother, Cara Ezzell, tells the Planet.

And next week, she will be returning to the skate world to be inducted into the USA Roller Sports Hall of Fame.

The induction ceremony is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. Tuesday (July 19th) at the Pensacola Civic Center in Pensacola, Fla.

The ceremony will be part of the festivities at the 2005 U.S. Indoor National Speed Skating Championships, which start Sunday in Pensacola.

Fellow Texan Gypsy Lucas Tidwell will also be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Tidwell was a speed and downhill champion in the 1990s. She is now coach of the U.S. Junior World Team.

As an inline skate racer, Ezzell lived and trained in Spring, Texas.

Her coach was Paul Hedrick. Her skate buddies included Hedrick's illustrious son, inline and ice champion Chad Hedrick, and the current reigning women's world champion, Julie (Brandt) Glass.

These days, Cheryl lives in the small town of Hallettsville, Texas, (pop. 2345) a few hours outside of Houston.

She works as a manager for a hospice in a nearby town and is a mom herself with two young sons: Riley, 5, and Travis, 3.

She is also active in the church and involved in her son's t-ball league.

"All these things keep her really busy," her mother says. "But she really misses her skating."

But not for long.

On the invitation of a sponsor, she plans to join Julie Glass in a couple of outdoor races later this summer, her mother says.

(posted on July 14, 2005)