[2][4] As a compromise, in 1957, he began to take figure skating lessons[5] under the guidance of Ken Vickers at the Summerhill Road rink in Birmingham.

[2] After his father died from suicide when John was 16,[6] he moved to London to study with Arnold Gerschwiler, who coached him to his first British title in 1971.

In 1972, Curry found an American sponsor who enabled him to study in the United States with Gus Lussi and Carlo Fassi.

[1] He also won the British championships that year, giving him the coveted Grand Slam in figure skating with his four major titles in 1976.

Along with Canadian skater Toller Cranston, Curry was responsible for bringing the artistic and presentation aspects of men's figure skating to a new level.

At the peak of his competitive career, Curry was also accomplished both at compulsory figures and the athletic (jumping) aspects of free skating.

In his 1978 biography, Curry is clear that if he were to do it over, his choice would have been in favour of ballet due to its highly defined structure which was a basis for his ability to jump and spin in either direction thanks to his command of a true center line understanding.

As figure skater and writer Ellyn Kestnbaum states, he used his training in ballet to portray integrity of movement rooted in both dance and skating techniques.

The revelation had occurred in February 1976, when John Vinocur, a reporter from the Associated Press, interviewed him in the days prior to his Olympic victory.

His report,[20] which included quotes from Curry that were candid about his sexuality, was published 24 hours after the victory made headline news.