What it takes to be a successful skater

What does it take to get to the mid/top tier of figure skating? I'm thinking the skaters who are getting Grand Prix invites but not necessarily skating in the final group at international competitions. More specifically, how much of it is natural talent and how much is having a good coach/being privileged enough or being supported by your fed enough to train more intensely. I'm asking this because it seems like there are quite a few skaters from small federations who could have so much potential if they had luckier circumstances.

This is how I see it.
1. Good health (minimal injuries)
2. Supportive family. In the US this is key. In other Federations, it is not as important.
3. Good coaching
4. Natural talent
5. Lots of luck

Being from a country that hosts a GP would be one of the factors (it certainly boosts the chances of getting invited with less than stellar results).

Being resilient mentally. Being able to keep focus even after a mistake in skate and being able to shake things of.

Flexibility and stamina.

Loving what you do, even if you do not always win win win.

1. Raw talent - perform the most difficult elements with the highest GOE with no URs or edge calls
2. Training - have the stamina to do the program, skate with speed, and knowing your body condition so that you can peak at the right time
3. Consistency - landing jumps cleanly even if they are off slightly
4. Musicality - being able to stretch and move in time with the music
5. Adaptability - knowing how to get the most out of the ISU system when the rules change, and to change technique of any problem areas
6. Tenacity - having the willpower to push through and continually improve no matter what

sekhmets said:

What does it take to get to the mid/top tier of figure skating? I'm thinking the skaters who are getting Grand Prix invites but not necessarily skating in the final group at international competitions. More specifically, how much of it is natural talent and how much is having a good coach/being privileged enough or being supported by your fed enough to train more intensely. I'm asking this because it seems like there are quite a few skaters from small federations who could have so much potential if they had luckier circumstances.

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Money, and access to a full-sized rink and a capable coach. That's what it comes down to, for me, in the end. You can work on everything else, or work around it, but if you don't have those two things one way or another, from the outset, it seems to be be very very hard to get anywhere no matter how talented you are.

concorde said:

This is how I see it.
1. Good health (minimal injuries)
2. Supportive family. In the US this is key. In other Federations, it is not as important.
3. Good coaching
4. Natural talent
5. Lots of luck

Click to expand...

Money.

Considering Hanyu, I'm not convinced as to no 1.

My list.

1. Physical predispositions and talent.
2. Mental resilience and will to continue
3. Financial support. and everything it entails: good coaches, top training conditions, medical support.
4. Being American or Russian.

The only crucial one is numer 3 though.

In addition to the advantages already listed - desire/love of skating, athletic talent and a body type favorable to skating, access to a full-size rink, a capable coach, a motivated parent to drive the skater to that rink/coach and pay for the ice time and lessons, and mental/emotional makeup to train single-mindedly on a distant opportunity and outcome - I think the most important attribute is the ability to perform well under pressure, to put it out there in competition and not freeze up. So many talented skaters go through so much training and preparation only to have so much trouble with laying it down when it matters, and a lucky few seem to have the big event constitution to be at their best when they need to be. If you don't have it, I think it's hard to learn or develop. Kids may love to skate and have a talent for it, but when you get to the level of competing nationally and internationally it is a whole different game - and exhausting to have to travel, keep yourself in top condition while living in a hotel room and being away from your usual routine/diet, etc., dealing with media, large arenas, tv cameras, competing sick, competing injured, as they so often do. Think of how tiring travel is in general, and then picture yourself having to travel and do what skaters do. If you don't really love it and get naturally charged up by competition, it's hard to bring your best out there. Even at a lower level, competing local and regionally without a lot of hype, some very talented and well-prepared skaters just freeze up in competition. Unless you've skated out there yourself and competed, it's hard to understand the feeling of lightheadedness and unreality that can overcome you under those bright lights, and the feeling of tension that can completely throw off timing and sense of your axis on jumps and your ability to get into your knees and skate with your usual speed - and how fast and physically relentless a program is - it just feels totally different when you're outside your home rink with an added level of tension - and how beat up and desperate you can feel after a first fall, with no time to recover before you have to jump again. Having tried to compete and failed dismally nearly every time as a kid, I really appreciate skaters who can bring it - I really don't know how they do it. It's magic.

I always remember the time when I was a kid skater and overheard a parent ask the rink owner/coach "What's most important to succeed in this sport? Hard work? Talent?"

His response was "Money and access to an ice rink."

Of course all of the above are necessary, and also access to good coaching. But you won't get anywhere if you can't put in the time on the ice.

And, I would add, starting from a fairly early age.

mental control

Besides raw talent, money support and good coaching, I’d say luck and context count a lot. A good sequence of events can give you an Olympic gold.

Training to be a top tier skater is like a full time job, so it requires that type of time commitment. IMO, it requires too much time commitment from a young person for he/she to have a balanced life, but we all benefit from their sacrifice I guess! Honestly, a part of me cringes when I hear a skater is home-schooled or goes to school online.

"My coaches have told me my muscles and body structure are perfect for skating. I was born with a good instrument, maybe more so than the talent. I was lucky my coaches noticed early on and helped me develop that. A lot of people don't know they are born that way."-Yuna Kim

No matter how much natural talent you have, you're not goin' anywhere without a good coach and enough money. You could be built like Anna Shcherbakova and be doing spirals by the end of your first hour ever on the ice, but that won't help if you can't afford private lessons and no one ever tells you that your skates are way too big. Not that I know from personal experience or anything.

In the U.S. you need parents who know what they are doing(getting you to a good coach to learn good basics) and are willing to pour A LOT of money in to a sport that isn’t very lucrative besides the very rare cases.

Rissa said:

Money.

Considering Hanyu, I'm not convinced as to no 1.

My list.

1. Physical predispositions and talent.
2. Mental resilience and will to continue
3. Financial support. and everything it entails: good coaches, top training conditions, medical support.
4. Being American or Russian.

The only crucial one is numer 3 though.

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1. bein Russian girl
2. train under Eteri
3. have a name starting with A
4. broke leg and arm in age about 13

Honestly I think success in skating does not always mean winning the gold so the only rule is:
You have a passion for skating.
Skating is one of the hardest and most expensive sports. Ice time is expensive. Hockey players also require ice but top skaters get paid dimes compared to hockey players. So lets add it up:
Skaters:
- have a relatively short career
- end up with arthritis at 16-20
- make very little money (with a few exceptions)
- are required to spend thousands on costumes, ice time, skates, coaching etc.
-spend their entire childhood/teens on ice missing out on crucial academic development that prepares a person for future careers
- are subjected to bias judging in which scoring is heavily influenced by reputation rather than what they executed
It takes undeniable passion of the blade to look past all the cons of the sport and become successful in figure skating.
I applaud ISU for this new scoring system that is somewhat better at separating good and excellent quality elements, but the scoring by reputation needs to go. Most importantly, ISU should pay their skaters more and build a financial aid program for skaters.

In no particular order:

The right body type including ability to withstand the pounding
Willingness to forgo a "normal" life and work very hard
Mental resilience and control
Money
Some natural talent
Access to ice and coaching or the ability to find it
Supportive family

concorde said:

This is how I see it.
1. Good health (minimal injuries)
2. Supportive family. In the US this is key. In other Federations, it is not as important.
3. Good coaching
4. Natural talent
5. Lots of luck

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Let me clarify my "supportive family" comment. Having "just" a family that can finance a skater is only part of what is necessary. In some ways, that is the "easy" part. The really tough part is the ability of the family to get the skater to / from from all practices (on ice and off) as well as providing the skater the necessary emotional support at competitions. In short, supporting a elite figure skater is a full time job.

Yes, this level of sport requires it to be the family's way of life. It has a massive effect on the other kids, the parent's relationship, etc.

The careers of Johnny Weir, Jeremy Abbott, and Evan Lysacek make for an interesting comparison. Lysacek was the least gifted of the trio but had the most success on the back of his extreme discipline. A lot of rink mates were in awe of his workhorse approach to training.