2019-20 US Qualifying Pipeline | Golden Skate

2019-20 US Qualifying Pipeline

concorde

Medalist
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
In July 2017, President Sam Auxier appointed a Competitions Task Force, with the goal of pulling together a number of issues, challenges and opportunities affecting the U.S. Figure Skating qualifying pipeline, into a comprehensive proposal to present a re-imagined competitive pipeline. The theme of this proposal is: Identify. Develop. Promote.

A PowerPoint presentation outlining this proposal can be found at http://www.usfigureskating.org/content/Competitions Task Force - PP Presentation.pdf
The Rationale and Details for this proposal can be found at http://www.usfigureskating.org/content/Competitions Task Force - Details.pdf

This voted "in" May 2018 and it will start next summer.

In a nutshell, skaters will have two ways to qualifying for Sectionals:
- The Traditional way for placing top 4 at Nationals OR
- Through a newly developed qualifying series (similar to the Ice Dance Solo Qualifying Series). As I understand stand it, skaters will sign up to participate in a designated series (June 1 - August 30). Skaters choose how many competitions in the series they wish to skater in. Competition scores (short + long at s single competition) are maintained in a USFS database and the top 4 scoring skaters in a Section then get a bye to Sectionals. If a top 4 skater opts to skate at Regionals, their placement becomes irrelevant - the top four skaters besides Sectional bye skater gets a spot to Sectionals.
This will allow the number at Sectionals to increase from 12 to 16 so 4 more spots in each of the 9 Regions.

Top 4 skaters at Sectional in Juvenile, Intermediate, and Novice are placed on "Developmental" Team USA. They will a special camp (timed around Nationals) and also get a Team USA jacket. Juvenile, Intermediate, and Novice Nationals are eliminated.

Junior Nationals basically remains unchanged EXCEPT Top 2 scoring Novice skaters then gets bumped to skates in Juniors Nationals. Basically Nationals for Nationals increase from 12 to 14 (+ those with a JGP bye).

Senior Nationals basically remains unchanged EXCEPT there will be now be a minimum score to reach it.

At least that is is the way I understand it.

Why is this good? If a good skater is consistent, they will be rewarded. Also from what I have seen, there are 1 or 2 skaters at Regionals that clearly should be going to Sectionals. Then there is a "pack" right behind them of another 4-6 skaters. This qualifying process will give more of the pack skaters a chance to go to Sectionals. If you look at both Med and Zag in their early teen years, they were probably a "pack" skater not a "given" (may be even Gracie, Ashley, and Bradie). With attrition rates what they are, USFS needs as many "pack" skaters to get that Sectional experience since they may later be the very top skater.
 

Princessroja

Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 22, 2015
Country
United-States
Interesting... I will say I'll really miss watching nationals at the lower levels though.
 

Ice Dance

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 26, 2014
I will especially miss novice nationals and the chance to see who can hold up under the pressure of a major competition.
 

concorde

Medalist
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
Interesting... I will say I'll really miss watching nationals at the lower levels though.

Then you better watch the Juv, Intermediates, and Novices at Nationals this year.

The primary argument I heard last year in favor of eliminating then was "injuries." This year it shifted to saving the families money. At least to me, both are pretty strong reasons to get rid of them.
 

concorde

Medalist
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
I will especially miss novice nationals and the chance to see who can hold up under the pressure of a major competition.

Top two Novices you will see skating as Juniors at Nationals. Talk about pressure!
If you look at last year's scores, I believe the top Novice lady would have gotten 2nd as a Junior lady.
 

Ice Dance

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 26, 2014
Top two Novices you will see skating as Juniors at Nationals. Talk about pressure!
If you look at last year's scores, I believe the top Novice lady would have gotten 2nd as a Junior lady.

I often find that the more consistent athletes are not necessarily the more exciting or interesting athletes so I'm not sure if the top two via this system will be who I would consider the top two. Alysa Liu was my favorite novice lady in 2017, and she finished third that year. It was quite a good novice ladies event overall. This year not so exciting. The quality & excitement value in different groups fluctuates, of course. Including our own tastes as individuals.

I watched all the levels in dance and all the other levels from novices up at Nationals this year. (With the exception of events that had conflicting times and the novice men's free--because I was literally freezing in the arena).

Interestingly, I often find the novice ladies more interesting than the junior ladies. Was not true this year though.
 

VegMom

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 25, 2017
The opportunity to qualify at chosen competitions rather than only at Regionals is a pretty big deal for some skaters.

For instance, there are a lot of competitions that are easier to drive to for us but that aren't in our "Region." All the competitions in our "Region" (besides the ones in our city) are so far away that I perceive them as require flying, which quickly drives up the cost. And if you drive instead, then you miss a ton of school and work just in travel-time.

This new method allows kids to qualify DURING Summer, when they are not in school. So no missed school! And then if they qualify, then it's much more justifiable to miss school for that competition. We take our son's education very seriously and it's been a big issue for us trying to manage both school and skating even at the low level that he skates. These types of changes are extremely welcome in my book!
 

NaVi

Medalist
Joined
Oct 30, 2014
Junior Nationals basically remains unchanged EXCEPT Top 2 scoring Novice skaters then gets bumped to skates in Juniors Nationals. Basically Nationals for Nationals increase from 12 to 14 (+ those with a JGP bye).

It's top 2 from each sectional... so 6 total.

The proposal is great. I've been harping since I became a fan in 2014 that the US competitive system is not very good for developing talent and this proposal makes all the right decisions.And I don't really see any stone left unturned. I could see us ladies as a group(instead of a few prodigies like Alysa Liu) start to become a force by 2026 with these changes.
 

Spirals for Miles

Anna Shcherbakova is my World Champion
Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 25, 2017
Hmm... well it's good that the best get to compete up. But... don't we want more competitive experience for the younger ones at the big stages (for them, that's nationals) to learn how to compete at something more than sectionals?
 

Princessroja

Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 22, 2015
Country
United-States
Then you better watch the Juv, Intermediates, and Novices at Nationals this year.

The primary argument I heard last year in favor of eliminating then was "injuries." This year it shifted to saving the families money. At least to me, both are pretty strong reasons to get rid of them.

Oh I will, just as I have in past years. I watch almost all of it. Don't get me wrong, I think the changes have promise and it sounds like it'll be a better system for the kids and parents. But that doesn't mean I won't miss watching! Hopefully some of the smaller comps will be watchable.
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Sectionals will probably be more high pressure for novices but slightly more relaxed for juv and int. Plus some of the sections will also have all top pairs it dance teams competing. If you enjoy watching those levels it might be worth attending. But the venues are usually no frills rinks sometimes with limited seating.
 

StitchMonkey

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 31, 2014
I like most of this.... but I think getting rid of Novice nationals is a mistake. I am not sure it is very fair or kind to potentially send skaters off to a JGP without at least a Nationals under their belt. Heck even only only one Nationals first is a bit... well interesting.

Starting to compete at nationals at the junior level just seems to be starting rather late, it worries me a bit.
 

tothepointe

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 4, 2018
I like most of this.... but I think getting rid of Novice nationals is a mistake. I am not sure it is very fair or kind to potentially send skaters off to a JGP without at least a Nationals under their belt. Heck even only only one Nationals first is a bit... well interesting.

Starting to compete at nationals at the junior level just seems to be starting rather late, it worries me a bit.

But assumeably if your a contender to be sent to a JGP then you are more likely to have been one of the ones to place top 2 in your section and then be able to skate up at the junior level and get the experience of skating in one of the big arenas.

I think also I read/heard somewhere that the developmental camp is where they will be picking skaters for more international experiences on the novice level which would be a good step before sending skaters to the JGP.

Did they decide to keep the proposal for some juniors to be able to skate up at the senior level?
 

VegMom

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 25, 2017
The Competitions Task Force PDF linked in the OP says this:

"The National High-Performance Development Team Camp would culminate with the acceleration of athletes (primarily at the
intermediate and novice levels) to Team USA: to international competitions, domestic high-performance competitions and
other high-performance programs. The expectations at the world level have grown exponentially just in the past four years,
and a U.S. weakness, especially in singles skating, is that our athletes are getting to the junior world scene later, and with less
experience than their Russian and Asian competitors. The new pipeline will allow the International Committee and highperformance
team to better evaluate the body of work of an athlete, including performance and element markers from
throughout the NQS, from sectional / U.S. Final results, and finally observing athletes together in a competitive training
environment. This will allow for much more focused and effective decisions about how U.S. Figure Skating can support
individual athletes in reaching their potential.
Athletes at the National High-Performance Development Team Camp would have the potential to be selected for:
 ISU competitions, including spring internationals, advanced novice and junior internationals, and Jr. Grand Prix
 ISU developmental seminars
 The North American Challenge Skate, which will be coming back beginning in 2018
 The National High-Performance Development Challenge (currently U.S. Novice & Junior Challenge Skate)
 Assignment to other high-performance support and training programs, such as the Athlete High Performance
Development Pool (AHPDP)"
 

VegMom

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 25, 2017
More changes!!!

I just read in the most recent USFSA figure skating magazine that now Juvenile will allow a triple jump in the freeskate program. And the age for boys Juvenile is a year older. There were other changes too to Novice and Intermediate.

To me it looked like everything was just more competitive. I wonder if they're trying to 'force' skaters, coaches, and parents to more firmly choose which path - competitive or recreational.
 

ArenaWings

On the Ice
Joined
Jun 2, 2018
I hope that they also help the skaters with things other than just skating itself. There are other difficulties related to being a professional skater. For examples, getting the funding/scholarships; ways to do effective home schooling (and what are the available resources), emotional support etc.
I think these will reduce the burden on the families to some extend.

The Russian and the Japanese seem to provide these things in more packaged ways.
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
I hope that they also help the skaters with things other than just skating itself. There are other difficulties related to being a professional skater. For examples, getting the funding/scholarships; ways to do effective home schooling (and what are the available resources), emotional support etc.

Are you referring to the high-performance camps? Yes, I would hope so.

I think these will reduce the burden on the families to some extend.

Not very much, most likely. The expenses will still be high regardless, and the logistics of getting the kid to the right coaches and appropriate training time will still put burdens on families that don't already happen to live easy commuting distance from a training center.

The Russian and the Japanese seem to provide these things in more packaged ways.

Also in more centralized ways.

Japan's land area is much smaller than the US.

Russia is bigger, but almost all the elite training takes place in Moscow and St. Petersburg. A talented kid from Perm or Vladivostok is going to have to leave home as a preteen to get the packaged benefits.

Talented US kids from remote areas also may need to relocate or travel long distances weekly or almost daily in order to train at high levels. Currently there are more options than in Russia, but as you note less centralized support.
 

VegMom

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 25, 2017
I hope that they also help the skaters with things other than just skating itself. There are other difficulties related to being a professional skater. For examples, getting the funding/scholarships; ways to do effective home schooling (and what are the available resources), emotional support etc.

I agree this is important.

Parent education is available at some rinks. There are also camps and seminars that offer it. I know for instance about this camp has a ‘parent track’
https://grassrootstochampions.com/training-camp/

About homeschooling: every state has different laws and every parent has different ideas of what’s important. I know a lot of homeschoolers and they vary widely! I don’t think this is really a topic for national skating organizations - too much state diversity. But it’s a good topic for individual rinks. Rinks that have parent education classes/seminars should at least have a handout about state law and homeschool options as well as some recommendations for how to make it work with full time traditional school.

In regards to funding - it’s just not there. I don’t think there are any seriously good options for figure skating in the US. It’s just plain expensive. The scholarships are small and there aren’t a ton of them. You can crowdfund. You can beg borrow and steal from your retirement. But it just a huge financial burden.
---

I looked over the info from the second link in the original post and it says there will be some parent support at the National high Performance Development Team Camp. Here are the specifics:

"Programming would also be offered for parents and coaches. High performance parenting sessions would include discussions
with the parents of former international medalists and information on how to support a talented athlete navigating their
journey through the competitive figure skating world. Coaches would work with their own athletes, network with one another
and with international officials, learning the most cutting-edge coaching information available. "

“High Performance
Parenting”
 Seminars
 Mentoring
 Parent Information
about how to
support their athlete
in their journey.
 Networking with
other parents

note how there is nothing about funding your skater's dreams or about homeschooling etc.
 

Ladskater

~ Figure Skating Is My Passion ~
Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
When I see the word "Pipeline" I automatically think - Kinder Morgan Pipeline a hotbed of controversy here in BC, not Figure Skating!



:biggrin:
 
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