Equipment and technique
Boots and blades
Skaters wear leather boots, sometimes custom-fitted, reinforced with thick padding to brace the ankle and with wide tongues for control and flexibility. The figure skate’s blade is about 3/16 inch (4 mm) thick. It is hollow-ground to emphasize its two edges, although the skater usually uses only one edge at a time. The front of the blade, called the toe pick, contains serrations, which are planted into the ice and help the skater in certain jumps. The blade also allows the skater to pivot quickly on the ice in order to perform rapid 360-degree spins. Ice dancers wear skates with shorter blades and looser padding to facilitate quick foot movement.
Figures and moves in the field
Figure-skating movements are performed on either the inside (the edge nearer the inside of the foot) or the outside edge of the blade while moving forward or backward. Most movements are based on what are called school figures, the elements of which are curves and turns performed in a precise manner to form two or three connected circles. Figures have many degrees of difficulty and develop edge control, balance, and turning skills on a single skate over a small area of ice called a patch. For mastering figures the USFSA required a skater to complete nine tests. In all there were more than three dozen separate figures to perfect, and many had to be traced with each foot. The simplest was the outside and inner figure 8, and the most difficult was the paragraph loop or the paragraph double three, which required two complete circles on one foot.
“Moves in the field,” instituted after the elimination of figures, are intended to develop balance, power, stroking, extension, and edge skills. Starting with such basic edges as crossovers, spirals, and 3-turns, skaters progress to more intricate moves called mohawks, cross rolls, and edge pulls. However, unlike figures, which were confined to a small patch of ice, moves in the field are performed on the full extent of the ice. In the United States the USFSA requires skaters to complete eight tests of these moves in order to reach the top, or senior, level.
Training and injuries
Most beginning skaters, whether children or adults, enroll in classes where they learn such basic skills as falling down, standing up, and forward and backward crossovers. As skaters advance in skill level, they turn to private coaches to provide more in-depth instruction.
Competitive skaters now spend more time on conditioning and weight training than they did in the 1970s and ’80s. Because they no longer have to spend up to four hours a day practicing figures, they can now spend that time on freestyle skating. To counterbalance the additional stress, they do more off-ice training, including lifting weights, endurance conditioning, stretching, and dance. On a typical day a skater may spend two or three hours on the ice and two hours in adjunct training.
The downside to the increased emphasis on athleticism is the increase in injuries. Skaters are also staying in the sport much longer than in the past, and this accounts for the high rate of injuries seen in male skaters starting in their late 20s. Triple axels and quads are very stressful on skaters’ ankles, knees, and backs. Younger skaters are also injured more frequently because they start attempting triple jumps at much earlier ages. Of course, medical care and technology are much more sophisticated as well, and all athletes are taking advantage of the medical advances. Conditioning, too, is starting at an earlier age, and it is hoped that this will cut down on injury rates.
Some injuries will continue to occur, however, such as the fall that U.S. pairs skater Paul Binnebose took in September 1999. He was practicing a lift with his partner when he fell backward, hitting his head on the ice. The injury nearly cost him his life, but he recovered enough to work as a skating coach. Now there is interest in requiring pairs skaters to wear special helmets in practice to prevent such catastrophic injuries.
Skating categories
Freestyle
Freestyle combines intricate footwork, spirals (sustained one-foot glides on a single edge), spins, and jumps. Footwork includes step maneuvers that are performed the length of the ice or in a circle and done in sequences demonstrating agility, dexterity, and speed. The skater changes position and moves in a straight line, circle, or serpentine patterns. Footwork also shows a skater’s ability to interpret the music. At most amateur competitions the programs (a short and a long for intermediate level and above) must be performed to instrumental music, and skaters wear costumes made out of lightweight fabrics that allow for maximum flexibility and rigorous body movement. The costumes should be related to the music and express the musical themes the skaters are trying to relay.
Jumps
Jumps are probably the most recognized element of figure skating. All jumps share the same rotational position in the air, and all are landed on one foot, but they are distinguished by their takeoff positions. They fall into two main groups: edge jumps (salchow, loop, and axel) and toe jumps (toe loop, flip, and lutz), which are edge jumps assisted by a vault off the toe pick. The axel is distinct for two reasons: it is the only jump requiring the skater to lift off while skating forward, and it contains an extra half-revolution. (The double axel is actually two and a half revolutions.) Jumps are further classified as single, double, triple, or quadruple, depending on the number of rotations in the air. Jumps can also be done in combination; for example, a jump such as a triple axel can be immediately followed by another jump such as a triple toe loop.
Spins
Spins are generally performed on either the back outside or the back inside edge of the blade. A sit spin is done in sitting position, with the body supported by the leg that controls the spin as the free leg extends beside the bent skating leg. The layback spin, usually performed by women, requires an upright position; the skater arches her back and drops her head and shoulders toward the ice. The camel spin requires one leg to be extended parallel to the ice as the other leg controls the speed of the spin. A scratch spin is done in an upright position, and, depending on which foot the skater is spinning on, the spin can be done on either a back inside or a back outside edge, with the toe pick occasionally scratching the surface of the ice for balance. Skaters simultaneously pull in their arms and free leg, creating centrifugal force, which transforms the athlete into a blur. A combination spin combines several spins as the skater changes feet and position. Even though the spins last for many seconds, a skater recovers quickly from dizziness after years of practice.
Pairs skating
Pairs skating consists of a man and a woman performing jumps and spins in unison as well as such partnered elements as lifts, throw jumps, and death spirals. Good pairs skaters demonstrate symmetry and parallel flow across the ice. Unison elements are important in pairs skating. When the partners are not touching, they perform identical elements, including double and triple jumps, spins, and footwork. The elements are executed side by side and must be performed in symmetry at the same rate of speed.
Lifts
Lifts are among the more spectacular elements of pairs skating. A basic lift is the overhead lift, in which the man raises his partner off the ice and balances her overhead with his arms fully extended as he moves across the ice. The star lift requires the man to raise his partner into the air by her hip while she forms a five-point “star” position with her extended legs, arms, and head. The twist lift requires both partners to skate backward as the man lifts his partner over his head and tosses her into the air. The airborne woman completes up to three rotations before being caught at the waist by the man and smoothly placed back on the ice. Another lift is the hydrant lift, in which the man tosses his partner over his head while skating backward; he then rotates one half-turn and catches his partner facing him. In the toe overhead lift the couple skates down the ice with the man facing forward and the woman backward. She taps her toe into the ice, assisting her takeoff, as the man lifts her into an overhead position before placing her back on the ice.
Spins and throws
Other moves unique to pairs include the death spiral, in which the man pivots on the toe pick of one skate and the edge of another while the woman clasps his hand with an extended arm. She then leans horizontally over the ice on a single edge and drops her head toward the ice, with her body in an arched position. Throw jumps begin with the couple skating together at a high rate of speed. The man then helps the woman jump by using his arm to propel her into the air; the momentum carries her forward as she performs as many as three rotations (quads have recently been attempted) in the air and lands skating backward. The type of throw—salchow, toe loop, loop, or axel—like jumps in singles skating, is determined by which edge the female skater uses on takeoff.
