On a peaceful, pre-war winter in Czechoslovakia, the genial godfather, Jaroslav Haschek, of Vera Hascheck, presents the young girl with her first pair of ice skates. Soon, she astonished the warm-hearted people of her village with her skill, and she is acclaimed a marvel-on-ice. She wins the ice-skating championship of her country and is invited to skate at the fabulous Lake Placid Carnival in the United States. Vera receives an offer of a contract from eager showman, Carlton Webb, and his press agent Jiggers - but she turns them down. The financial backer for the two men is a wealthy, gabby, man-chasing woman called "Countess". Vera is a sensation at Lake Placid when she learns of Nazi Germany's move on Czechoslovakia, and she immediately attempts to abandon her career and rejoin her people. The trip can not be arranged and, alone in a strange country, she seeks an uncle, Carl Cermack, who has become a prosperous American citizen.