1990 US Figure Skating Pins: The Squiggles.

Last Updated on July 11, 2026 by Netropolitan Museum

Neon colors and an unmistakable 1990s style

Six years after Salt Lake City, Utah, hosted the 1984 US Figure Skating Championships—the first time the city welcomed the event—the championships returned to the Salt Palace. The 1990 US Figure Skating Championships pins reflected an improvement in quality over those issued for the 1984 competition, even if they still fell short of being especially memorable from a design standpoint. As noted in the March 1990 issue of Skating magazine, the official publication of the United States Figure Skating Association (today known as U.S. Figure Skating), the pins are “… a little larger than other National pins [and] are well made cloisonné with richly colored design.” That is perhaps the most generous assessment that can be made of the two official event pins. Even so, the pins are representative of an era when bold colors and contemporary graphic trends began defining sports memorabilia as much as the events themselves.

Pins Gallery: 1990 US Figure Skating Championships

The main logo pin features highly stylized skaters in red at the center with a distinctly early-1990s turquoise squiggle beneath them. The overall effect has an unmistakable neon aesthetic, a popular graphic treatment at the time. The unusual combination of red, turquoise, black, and white works surprisingly well, giving the otherwise straightforward design a bit of visual energy. Around the outer edge on a white background, all-capital lettering identifies the year, event, and location: “1990 United States Figure Skating Championships Salt Lake City, Utah.”

When the logo pin is displayed according to the orientation of the pinback, the lettering around the circumference is noticeably asymmetrical. Whether intentional or simply the result of the artwork’s layout is impossible to know, but it gives an otherwise ordinary pin a small measure of individuality.

By 1990, mascot pins had become an increasingly common part of the U.S. Championships tradition. In fact, of the previous eight championships, only the 1987 event did not include one. Much like its companion logo pin, the 1990 mascot pin shares the same general design, shape, and overall appearance. The mascot, a polar bear named “Polar Pet,” is depicted performing a well-executed stag jump with its scarf flowing behind. A differently shaped teal squiggle appears in the background, distinguishing it from the logo pin while maintaining a consistent visual theme. Interestingly, the lettering around the outer edge, although identical in wording to that of the logo pin, is also asymmetrical—but positioned differently. These small differences make the pair more interesting to compare side by side and add another detail to appreciate.

Salt Lake City opened the 1990s by hosting the U.S. Figure Skating Championships and, in a bit of serendipity, closed the decade by hosting the 1999 championships. Those later championships were commemorated with at least five different pins. The increasing number of official pins reflected a broader trend during the 1990s, when sporting events frequently expanded their collectible merchandise to appeal to all attendees. Spoiler alert: the pins only got worse. The third time for Salt Lake City most decidedly was not a charm.

This blog was originally published at The Netropolitan Museum of Figure Skating Pins on [DATE], and has been updated with new and expanded information.

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