Figure Skating

• Rockers and counters, one-foot turns that involve a change of lobe as well as of direction.

• Mohawks, the two-foot equivalents of three turns and brackets.

• Choctaws, the two-foot equivalents of rockers and counters.

• Twizzles, travelling multi-rotation turns on one foot

Other freeskating movements which can be incorporated into step sequences or used as connecting elements include lunges and spread eagles. An Ina Bauer is similar to a spread eagle performed with one knee bent and typically an arched back. Hydroblading refers to a deep edge performed with the body as low as possible to the ice in a near-horizontal position.

Competition format and scoring

The International Skating Union (ISU) is the governing body for international competitions in figure skating, including the World Championships and the figure skating events at the Winter Olympic Games.

In singles and pairs figure skating competition, competitors must perform two routines, the "short program", in which the skater must complete a list of required elements consisting of jumps, spins and steps; and the "free skate" or "long program", in which the skaters have slightly more choice of elements. Ice dancing competitions usually consist of three phases: one or more "compulsory dances"; an "original dance" to a ballroom rhythm that is designated annually; and a "free dance" to music of the skaters' own choice.

The 6.0 System

The ISU Judging System

In 2004, after the judging controversy during the 2002 Winter Olympics, the ISU adopted the New Judging System (NJS) which became mandatory at all international competitions in 2006, including the 2006 Winter Olympics. The new system is often informally referred to as the Code of Points, however, the ISU has never used the term to describe their system in any of their official communications.

Under the new system, points are awarded individually for each skating element, and the sum of these points is the total element score (TES). Competitive programs are constrained to have a set number of elements. Each element is judged first by a technical specialist who identifies the specific element and determines its base value. The technical specialist uses instant replay video to verify things that distinguish different elements; e.g. the exact foot position at take-off and landing of a jump. The decision of the technical specialist determines the base value of the element. A panel of twelve judges then each award a mark for the quality and execution of the element. This mark is called the grade of execution (GOE) that is an integer from -3 to +3. The GOE mark is then translated into another value by using the table of values in ISU rule 322. The GOE value from the twelve judges is then processed with a computerized random selection of nine judges, then discarding the high and low value, and finally averaging the remaining seven. This average value is then added (or subtracted) from the base value to get the total value for the element.

The program components score (PCS) awards points to holistic aspects of a program or other nuances that aren't rewarded in the total element score. The components are (1) skating skills (SS), (2) transitions (TR), (3) performance/execution (PE), (4) choreography (CH), and (5) interpretation (IN). The only exception is the compulsory dance, which has no choreography or transistion marks because the steps are preset. A detailed description of each component is given in ISU rule 322.2. Judges award each component a raw mark from 0 to 10 in increments of 0.25, with a mark of 5 being defined as "average". For each separate component, the raw marks are then selected, trimmed, and averaged in a manner akin to determining a grade of execution. The trimmed mean scores are then translated into a factored mark by multiplying by a factor that depends on the discipline, competition segment, and level. Then the five (or four) factored marks are added up to give the final PCS score.

The total element score and the program components score are added to give the total score for a competition segment (TSS). A skater's final placement is determined by the total of their scores in all segments of a competiton. No ordinal rankings are used to determine the final results.

Other Competitions

There are also skating competitions organized for professional skaters by independent promoters. These competitions use judging rules set by whoever organizes the competition. There is no "professional league".

The Ice Skating Institute (ISI), an international ice rink trade organization, runs its own competitive and test program aimed at recreational skaters. Originally headquartered in Minnesota, the organization now operates out of Dallas, Texas. ISI competitions are open to any member that have registered their tests. There are very few "qualifying" competitions, although some districts hold "Gold Competitions" for that season's first-place winners. ISI competitions are especially popular in Asian countries that do not have established ISU member federations. The Gay Games have also included skating competitions for same-gender pairs and dance couples under ISI sponsorship. Other figure skating competitions for adults also attract participants from diverse cultures and sexual orientations.

History

While people have been ice skating for centuries, figure skating in its current form originated in the mid-19th century. A Treatise on Skating (1772) by Englishman Robert Jones, is the first known account of figure skating. The form of skating originally had a cramped and formal style until American skater Jackson Haines (considered the "father of figure skating") introduced his free and expressive techniques in the mid-1860s. Although popular in Europe, Haine's "International style" did not come to the United States until long after his death.

The International Skating Union was founded in 1892. The first European Championship --for men only--- was held in 1891 and the first World Championship -- for men only -- was held in 1896 and won by Gilbert Fuchs. In 1902, a woman, Madge Syers, entered the competition for the first time, finishing second. The ISU quickly banned women from competing against men, but established a separate competition for "ladies" in 1906. Pair skating was introduced at the 1908 World Championships, when the title was won by Anna Hübler & Heinrich Burger. The first Olympic figure skating competitions also took place in 1908.

On March 20, 1914 an international figure skating championship was held in New Haven, Connecticut which was the ancestor of both the United States and Canadian national championships. However, international competitions in figure skating were interrupted by World War I.

In the 1920s and 1930s, figure skating was dominated by Sonja Henie, who turned competitive success into a lucrative professional career as a movie star and touring skater. Henie also set the fashion for female skaters to wear short skirts and white boots. The top male skaters of this period included Gillis Grafström and Karl Schäfer.

Skating competitions were again interrupted for several years by World War II. After the war, with many European rinks in ruins, skaters from the United States and Canada began to dominate international competitions and to introduce technical innovations to the sport. Dick Button, 1948 and 1952 Olympic Champion, was the first skater to perform the double axel and triple loop jumps, as well as the flying camel spin.

The first World Championships in ice dancing were not held until 1952. In its first years, ice dance was dominated by British skaters. The first World title holders were Jean Westwood & Lawrence Demmy.

On February 15, 1961, the entire US figure skating team and their coaches were killed in the crash of Sabena Flight 548 in Brussels, Belgium en route to the World Championships in Prague. This tragedy sent the US skating program into a period of rebuilding.

At the same time, the Soviet Union rose to become a dominant power in the sport, especially in the disciplines of pairs skating and ice dancing. At every Winter Olympics from 1964 until the present day, a Soviet or Russian pairs duo has won gold, often considered the longest winning streak in modern sports history. (In 2002, Russians Yelena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze shared gold with Canadians Jamie Salé and David Pelletier, keeping the streak alive.)

Compulsory figures formerly accounted for up to 60% of the score in singles figure skating, which meant that skaters who could build up a big lead in figures could win competitions even if they were mediocre free skaters. As television coverage of skating events became more important, so did free skating. Beginning in 1968, the ISU began to progressively reduce the weight of figures, and in 1973, the short program was introduced. With these changes, the emphasis in competitive figure skating shifted to increasing athleticism in the free skating. By the time figures were finally eliminated entirely from competition in 1990, Midori Ito had landed the first triple axel by a woman, and Kurt Browning the first quadruple jump by a man.

Television also played a role in removing the restrictive amateur status rules that once governed the sport. In order to retain skaters who might otherwise have given up their eligibility to participate in lucrative professional events, in 1995 the ISU introduced prize money at its major competitions, funded by revenues from selling the TV rights to those events.

Figure skating is a very popular part of the Winter Olympic Games, in which the elegance of both the competitors and their movements attract many spectators. Not surprisingly, the best skaters show many of the same physical and psychological attributes as gymnasts. Many of the best skaters currently come from Russia and the United States which are traditional powers in the sport.

Notable figure skaters

• Olympic medalists in figure skating
• World Figure Skating Championships
• European Figure Skating Championships

See also

• Elements of figure skating named after people
• Artistic roller skating
• Winter sport
• Figure skating at the Olympic Games
• International figure skating

References

• [ISU Regulations]
• [ISU Crystal Reports official skaters' bios.]

External links

• [International Skating Union]
• [Skate Canada]
• [U.S. Figure Skating]
• [Chinese Figure Skating]
• [Ice Skating Australia]
• [Official Site World Skating Museum and Hall of Fame]
• [Polish Figure Skating Assotiation]
• [SkateWeb]
• [Figure Skating Universe]
• [Skatabase]
• [Golden Skate]

Navigation

Men

Ladies

Pairs

Ice Dance

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