Ice skates - Hockey skates, figure skates, speed skates
Hockey skates
Popular with recreational skaters, ice hockey skates are light weight, with tough boots and short blades, allowing for quick turns and maneuvers. Blades do not have toe brakes, so skaters can brake using standard or hockey stops.
Figure skates
Figure skates have similarly short blades, with the addition of toe brakes. The boots themselves are often black or white leather, with female boots including a small heel.
Speed skates
Recognisable from their particularly long blades, speed skates are far less maneuverable than hockey or figure skates, and so aren't suitable for recreation. Seen in the Winter Olympics, the blades pivot at the toe, like cross country skis, to allow a full skating motion.
