Figure skating and Artistic roller skating cross paths

[Sk8swan]

Adding some more infos and videos here.
In my first post I mentioned the roller skating coach who helped developing the Italian pairs' skills, expecially on lifts. I'm talking about Patrick Venerucci 11-times World Pair Champion; I've managed to upload a video of his 2001 Worlds long program.

There you can see the UNREAL lifts he and his partner performed in their programs, having the crowd going totally wild! Rewatching that video, I was wondering if the hip lift with the lady in a split position which is so often done on the ice now, had already been performed before them or not... for sure the Italian pairs learnt it from him. Btw, his partner was so flexible that she could hit an even more difficult position than just a split, with one leg bent back in a Biellman position .
As his surname suggests, his daughter is Sara Venerucci, Matteo's partner in roller skating. See their CLASSY short program in their first Senior World debut in 2007

Fun facts: he was still competing when his daughter joined the Italian team at international competitions. Despite being 11-time World pair champion he's not the most decorated roller skater; Rebecca Tarlazzi is with her 16(!) World titles in both singles and pairs!

 

[Anna K.]

Speaking of roller figure skating.. im surprised that is not a summer Olympic sport

I posted my answer here because this seems to be a more appropriate thread.

As far as I know, roller skating is a summer Olympic sport. However, such is only one discipline of roller skating - street skating.
There was also a bid to add roller speed skating to Olympic sports but it was shortlisted. I don't know if there was such bid regarding artistic roller skating.

 

[Sk8swan]

I posted my answer here because this seems to be a more appropriate thread.

As far as I know, roller skating is a summer Olympic sport. However, such is only one discipline of roller skating - street skating.
There was also a bid to add roller speed skating to Olympic sports but it was shortlisted. I don't know if there was such bid regarding artistic roller skating.

Unfortunately artistic roller skating doesn't match the required criteria to aim to become an Olympic sport (not spread enough worldwide, only the same few nations always winning medals).

 

[Diana Delafield]

I posted my answer here because this seems to be a more appropriate thread.

As far as I know, roller skating is a summer Olympic sport. However, such is only one discipline of roller skating - street skating.
There was also a bid to add roller speed skating to Olympic sports but it was shortlisted. I don't know if there was such bid regarding artistic roller skating.

I posted an answer about this in another thread earlier this week. While roller skating as a recreational activity is popular in many countries around the world, competitive artistic roller skating is a niche sport. It's been proposed for summer Olympic inclusion, but although they have a competition series, their world championship, and the World Roller Games, artistic roller skating has too few organized national federations with too little money to support their skaters. Not a big enough sport worldwide to be included in a summer Games already overloaded with more than twice the sports included in the winter Games.

 

[Anna K.]

Unfortunately artistic roller skating doesn't match the required criteria to aim to become an Olympic sport (not spread enough worldwide, only the same few nations always winning medals).

I posted an answer about this in another thread earlier this week. While roller skating as a recreational activity is popular in many countries around the world, competitive artistic roller skating is a niche sport. It's been proposed for summer Olympic inclusion, but although they have a competition series, their world championship, and the World Roller Games, artistic roller skating has too few organized national federations with too little money to support their skaters. Not a big enough sport worldwide to be included in a summer Games already overloaded with more than twice the sports included in the winter Games.

I suspected that this was the case

However, it could be good news for figure skating because it indirectly motivates roller skaters to switch to ice skating if they want to go to Olympic games

 

[LolaSkatesInJapan]

I've been Googling roller skate boots for several days since my pairs partner and I have got all enthusiastic about trying artistic roller dance off the ice. It seems that inline "blades" (the wheels set all in a single row) and "quads" (not quad jumps but meaning a frame with the 4 wheels set in a square configuration) can each do some things more easily than the others. Quad skates are supposed to feel more stable, so that's what we're planning to buy, only our usual skate shop has been closed for several days because of heavy snow highly unusual for Vancouver. We're going to buy our usual make of boot and have a quad frame of wheels mounted on them.

My partner's wife goes off and does something else at our club while we skate, and last week she was playing bridge with a couple who were new members. She was telling the others at the table about this new enthusiasm of her husband and his skating partner, and the new couple said they had done roller dance in their last diplomatic posting in Spain and would love to continue here. So we asked around and the club is willing to let us all use a small gymnasium where they hold "wheelercise" classes -- exercise using sport wheelchairs -- which has suitable flooring and a sound system for music. The new couple offered to teach us the basics and the steps of the beginner-level dances. If we can get more members skating with us, the club may be able to hire a part-time coach.

Since there's been no one to answer the phone at my skate shop, I haven't been able to ask about the stiffness level of Risport Royal Pro boots. On one website it says they are 55 and on another it says 65. On ice I'm wearing Risport RF1 boots which have a stiffness of 90. That's overbooting for my skill level these days, not doing triples anymore at my age, but I have one weaker ankle from an old injury and need support there and besides, that's the stiffness I'm used to so it feels comfortable to me. I'm told that I need less stiffness for roller dance, that the wheel frame provides stability for my ankle and I need a bit more flexibility in the boot to compensate for not having the edges of a blade to use. I think, though, that if the Royal Pro is only 55 that would be too big a difference in stiffness. The 65 would be better. I'll find out whenever I can get to the skate shop again, or at least find someone at work there to answer the phone. Probably next week, since snow doesn't last long here and the shop is on a main road which will get ploughed.

If you Google "artistic roller skating group dance competition videos" you can see older couples competing in pattern dances similar to the figure skating pattern dances and looking pretty good! The faces may be older, but the bodies and their skating are youthful and the women's dresses are just as sparkly . You're younger than my daughter, so you'd be able to do more of the free skating moves. I understand the wheels are heavier than blades so while I still do double jumps on ice, I'd be doing well to get up to single jumps on wheels, which is why I'm going to aim for roller dance instead and leave the jumps for the ice.

Getting all eager just writing about it!

I'm so sorry I missed your reply to my post!!
I did a Google research and saw that besides the inline skates, there are also those with 2 wheels on each side, like the ones we see in the old films from the 80s
I haven't seen those around here but the inline skates/inline figure skating seems to have a following too, not quite as big as ice figure skating however. As I mentioned above there are 3 people in my rink who also practice inline skating and win inline skating competitions. Regarding the skates, they wear the same model of boots as their ice figure skating. but with the off ice/in line wheeled blades instead.
The place they practice is quite far, and I recently moved homes just to be next to the rink, just a few minutes walk so my coaches have even filled my calendar with more practices, if that was even possible . Inline skating does look like a lot of fun and the coach has invited me more than once to go check it out, even though I've told her I've never skated on wheels, only on ice blades. Maybe one day I will, just for a day of fun. I have zero time to start anything new, my calendar is full with figure skating and everything related to it (off ice practices, gym time with a trainer etc). I have another pair of Ice Flys besides the ones I wear on the ice, these are bladeless, I might ask around if a set of inline blades can be installed on them

This reply is months after your post, so did you end up starting wheeled figure skating?

 

[Sk8swan]

I suspected that this was the case

However, it could be good news for figure skating because it indirectly motivates roller skaters to switch to ice skating if they want to go to Olympic games

Yes, definitely. I bet Italian pair figure skating will continue to grow with that legacy. Plus there are rumors about *very* interesting single skaters planning to make the switch. If that happens, I can tell you Spain and Portugal will have eventually their own figure skaters on Olympic ice

 

[Anna K.]

Yes, definitely. I bet Italian pair figure skating will continue to grow with that legacy. Plus there are rumors about *very* interesting single skaters planning to make the switch. If that happens, I can tell you Spain and Portugal will have eventually their own figure skaters on Olympic ice

Fingers crossed

 

[Diana Delafield]

I'm so sorry I missed your reply to my post!!
I did a Google research and saw that besides the inline skates, there are also those with 2 wheels on each side, like the ones we see in the old films from the 80s
I haven't seen those around here but the inline skates/inline figure skating seems to have a following too, not quite as big as ice figure skating however. As I mentioned above there are 3 people in my rink who also practice inline skating and win inline skating competitions. Regarding the skates, they wear the same model of boots as their ice figure skating. but with the off ice/in line wheeled blades instead.
The place they practice is quite far, and I recently moved homes just to be next to the rink, just a few minutes walk so my coaches have even filled my calendar with more practices, if that was even possible . Inline skating does look like a lot of fun and the coach has invited me more than once to go check it out, even though I've told her I've never skated on wheels, only on ice blades. Maybe one day I will, just for a day of fun. I have zero time to start anything new, my calendar is full with figure skating and everything related to it (off ice practices, gym time with a trainer etc). I have another pair of Ice Flys besides the ones I wear on the ice, these are bladeless, I might ask around if a set of inline blades can be installed on them

This reply is months after your post, so did you end up starting wheeled figure skating?

Yes, and thoroughly enjoying learning the roller dances. But I use the quad wheels (one pair side-by-side under the ball of the foot, one pair under the heel), not the inline ones. When I was posting about why roller skating isn't in the summer Olympics, one reason is that both types of wheels are used in separate events in competitions, which makes for too many events with too few competitors in each. I believe the inline wheels are not used for pairs and dance, however, at least not widely. The traditional quad wheels are the variant with the most competitors in artistic roller skating and the type that's meant when artistic roller is suggested as an Olympic sport. The inline wheels are, I'm told, the type used more in races and roller hockey, although there are some skaters who use them like figure skates for fun. In South America and in Italy, the powerhouse country for artistic roller skating, it's quad wheels for the competition stream up to their world championships and the World Roller Games.

There are many differences in technique using wheels instead of blades. You might find it confusing if you tried to do both considering how much time you spend concentrating on the ice version of skating. At my sports club we do both, and the roller dance is done indoors on a sprung wood floor which is safer. You might enjoy just skating outdoors on inline wheels for fun, but if you were to want to try figures and free skating you'd need a coach and proper lessons, and I'd be afraid it might negatively affect your skating on ice if you had to keep switching techniques back and forth in your brain

 

[jorge2912]

There are many differences in technique using wheels instead of blades.

Also technically use edges as lexicon for refers to jumps identification but is true there is some difference like speed of execution, criteria of judging , fluidity and way to do spins and sometimes if there's error of execution of elements is more noticeable because speed slow down and is like is telegraphing a spin by example. Is more fluid ice skating than roller skating in execution of elements because can't develop more speed on roller skating because surface (wood floor) and in ice skating allow a bit more speed for enter to a spin by example

 

[Diana Delafield]

Also technically use edges as lexicon for refers to jumps identification but is true there is some difference like speed of execution, criteria of judging , fluidity and way to do spins and sometimes if there's error of execution of elements is more noticeable because speed slow down and is like is telegraphing a spin by example. Is more fluid ice skating than roller skating in execution of elements because can't develop more speed on roller skating because surface (wood floor) and in ice skating allow a bit more speed for enter to a spin by example

Yes, I was thinking most of spins. Mainly I'm learning the pattern dances, but I'm learning some of the other elements and am finding spins the most challenging. So far, that's where I'm finding the most difficulty switching from blades to wheels. For jumps it's just the weight of the wheels that is limiting me to single jumps.

 

[Sk8swan]

Now that the figure skating season is over... Roller skating season is starting.
Calling in Spanish and Portuguese fans... You better watch out for two rare gems you have got in your hands. They are sure going to *dominate* the roller skating World for years... Unless they decide to make a switch to colder rinks . Then I bet you will have again your Olympians! (Dunno if Portugal has ever had a lady single skater competing at the Olympics...)

Guillermo Gomez 16yrs old already twice European Champion.
If you check his insta stories you'll find out he owns also the Guinness World record for number of spins on a spinner 92 in a minute Aside from that he is an outstanding spinner and skater.

Madalena Costa 14 yrs old already a World Junior Champion! They let her compete at Junior Worlds despite being in the "cadets" category age wise... She could have easely won in Seniors too.. Her jumping ability is something we had never seen on rollers.