Random Figure Skating Questions

[anonymoose_au]

In light of Artur Daniellian loses his necklace during his FS - which was fortunately picked up by the camera so it was quickly found and returned to him - and the resulting 1 point deduction.

Why are skaters allowed to wear necklaces when gymnasts for example are not? Is it because skaters - single skaters at least - don't actually work with an apparatus? In which case are there rules forbidding pairs skaters and dancers from wearing necklaces, in case it gets tangled up with their partners hair/costume?

Seems like a weird oversight because thinking on it, I don't think competitors in any other sport are allowed to wear jewellery while competing.

 

[hanyuufan5]

In light of Artur Daniellian loses his necklace during his FS - which was fortunately picked up by the camera so it was quickly found and returned to him - and the resulting 1 point deduction.

Why are skaters allowed to wear necklaces when gymnasts for example are not? Is it because skaters - single skaters at least - don't actually work with an apparatus? In which case are there rules forbidding pairs skaters and dancers from wearing necklaces, in case it gets tangled up with their partners hair/costume?

Seems like a weird oversight because thinking on it, I don't think competitors in any other sport are allowed to wear jewellery why competing.

I'm not sure about pairs or dance (too much going on for me to notice if anyone's wearing jewelry), but singles skaters are never upside down like gymnasts are, so pretty much the only hazard is a necklace smacking you in the face or falling off, I guess. Not too big a deal. If it gets caught on your blade or something, you were probably already in trouble having your blade so close to your neck! I wear jewelry skating, and it never gets in the way.

Russian volleyball players are definitely allowed to wear jewelry (and makeup and fancy nails). Along with the game, you get a bonus fashion show at the women's matches.

 

[cl2]

I'm not sure about pairs or dance (too much going on for me to notice if anyone's wearing jewelry), but singles skaters are never upside down like gymnasts are, so pretty much the only hazard is a necklace smacking you in the face or falling off, I guess. Not too big a deal. If it gets caught on your blade or something, you were probably already in trouble having your blade so close to your neck! I wear jewelry skating, and it never gets in the way.

Russian volleyball players are definitely allowed to wear jewelry (and makeup and fancy nails). Along with the game, you get a bonus fashion show at the women's matches.

Seeing how there's a spin position dubbed "hair cutter", it's only time before someone comes up with a position called "neck slasher".

Sorry, couldn't help the lame joke

 

[Schpanky]

I always think about the beautiful costumes with all the gems and be-dazzle style sequins/crystals. Even a lot of the boots these days have jewels. I just wonder if they always stay on or if they ever fall off. Is it a rule everywhere that skaters can't wear/use Bobby Pins? Did your gems ever fall off?

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

I always think about the beautiful costumes with all the gems and be-dazzle style sequins/crystals. Even a lot of the boots these days have jewels. I just wonder if they always stay on or if they ever fall off. Is it a rule everywhere that skaters can't wear/use Bobby Pins? Did your gems ever fall off?

Embellishments fall off of costumes often. As far as hair, I'm sure it happens, but by the time you are at the Senior level you know to have everything very secure and there's usually so much product in your hair, it stays in anyway.

Also, deductions happen, enjoy this article.

 

[Ducky]

Incredibly stupid question time! For US skaters who are competing internationally as juniors, have they only passed the junior freestyle test and are just waiting until USFA allows them to compete as seniors to try the senior freestyle test or does it not matter at that level?

 

[concorde]

Domestically the test matters.
Internationally, age is the criteria (not USFS test).

 

[gkelly]

Some of them compete internationally as juniors and domestically as seniors. If they're competing at regionals/sectionals/Nationals as seniors within the US, they have passed the senior test. If they're competing domestically as juniors, then they have not passed the senior test.

Anyone who is good enough to get international assignments would have no problem passing the test.

 

[vlaurend]

To add the the above explanation, there is no standard test that qualifies a skater for anything internationally, since every ISU member country has its own test structure and requirements and equivalencies have not been established. This is why, as mentioned above, age is the only limiting factor in international figure skating competition. Many U.S. skaters who have passed the U.S. Senior freeskate test but are young enough to compete at the junior level internationally have both Junior length and Senior length versions of their freeskate programs that they use depending on whether they are competing domestically or internationally.

 

[concorde]

As an fyi. A good juvenile has the ability to pass the senior freeskate test. Whether or not they choose to take the test is an entirely different matter.

 

[lupina015]

When you are a senior ice-dance couple in Canada - which "sections" do you need to pass (by placement or points???) to be allowed to compete at nationals?
I tried to look it up on their web page, but found it very confusing and didn't quite get it. Do you get a pass at certain competitions the following year if you placed 1st or 2nd or 3rd at previous nationals?

 

[NanaPat]

When you are a senior ice-dance couple in Canada - which "sections" do you need to pass (by placement or points???) to be allowed to compete at nationals?
I tried to look it up on their web page, but found it very confusing and didn't quite get it. Do you get a pass at certain competitions the following year if you placed 1st or 2nd or 3rd at previous nationals?

Here's the reference.

https://skatecanada.ca/athletes/qualifying-structure1/

Qualifying is sections (by geography) --> Challenge (one for the whole country) --> Nationals

It says:
"The top placements in pre-novice, novice junior and senior advance to the Skate Canada Challenge." So it's by placements, not by marks.

There's a table showing all the sections and indicating how many skaters from each section go to Challenge (depends on section and level. It's different for different sections to account for the numbers of skaters in each section).

Advancement from Challenge is also based on results. The number advancing is given for each discipline. However, the number of qualifiers from Challenge is reduced by the number of byes.

There is also a section on Byes. Some skaters can skip either sectionals or (sectionals + challenge). It's based on previous results or international assignments or medical reasons.

For your example, a senior ice-dance couple in Quebec would first need to be in the top 8 at the Quebec sectionals (it isn't clear if this number would be reduced by byes). They'd then need to go to Challenge and be in the top (15 - number of couples given byes to nationals in ID).

If your couple were in BC, they'd have to be top 3 in BC sectionals to get to Challenge. From there, it would be the same as for the Quebec couple.

 

[VegMom]

US Nationals

How much do they matter?
Does USFS provide scholarship or sponsorship opportunities for skaters who do well in the Regional/Sectional/National system (beyond the camp that will occur at Nationals for Juv-Novice)?
Can skaters compete at the same level multiple years (over and over)?
Are the judges usually the same judges or do they change every year?
Are there big regional differences (some regions much more competitive than others)?
I've heard that boys and pairs often have so little competition that most (sometimes all) are a shoe-in to get past Regionals to Sectionals, is that true?

 

[lupina015]

Here's the reference.

https://skatecanada.ca/athletes/qualifying-structure1/

Qualifying is sections (by geography) --> Challenge (one for the whole country) --> Nationals

It says:
"The top placements in pre-novice, novice junior and senior advance to the Skate Canada Challenge." So it's by placements, not by marks.

There's a table showing all the sections and indicating how many skaters from each section go to Challenge (depends on section and level. It's different for different sections to account for the numbers of skaters in each section).

Advancement from Challenge is also based on results. The number advancing is given for each discipline. However, the number of qualifiers from Challenge is reduced by the number of byes.

There is also a section on Byes. Some skaters can skip either sectionals or (sectionals + challenge). It's based on previous results or international assignments or medical reasons.

For your example, a senior ice-dance couple in Quebec would first need to be in the top 8 at the Quebec sectionals (it isn't clear if this number would be reduced by byes). They'd then need to go to Challenge and be in the top (15 - number of couples given byes to nationals in ID).

If your couple were in BC, they'd have to be top 3 in BC sectionals to get to Challenge. From there, it would be the same as for the Quebec couple.

Thanks a lot!

 

[gkelly]

US Nationals

How much do they matter?

At junior and senior level, they matter in terms of determining who is considered for international assignments. And of course the national championship (senior level) is a big deal.

At lower levels, they have been a way for skaters to get experience in higher stakes competition as they move up the ranks and to get known by national and international judges from outside their areas. But they will no longer be held at lower levels after this year, so clearly not sufficiently important to outweigh the expense and volunteer burden according to the powers that be.

Does USFS provide scholarship or sponsorship opportunities for skaters who do well in the Regional/Sectional/National system (beyond the camp that will occur at Nationals for Juv-Novice)?

Nothing automatically based on placement aside from the team envelopes (see http://www.usfigureskating.org/story?id=84105&menu=TeamUSA), which will change at the Envelope D level once there are no longer national novice competitions.

See http://www.usfigureskating.org/story?id=84089 for information about scholarships etc.

Can skaters compete at the same level multiple years (over and over)?

Yes. However, there are upper age limits for Juvenile and Intermediate.

Are the judges usually the same judges or do they change every year?

The US has more national (and sectional and regional) judges than are needed to cover those events. So not every national judge gets assigned to Nationals every year; ditto for sectionals and regionals. However, some are more valued and active and do get assigned most years.

Also, which specific events they get assigned to judge will change from year to year, so if the same skater competes in the same event two years in a row, chances are that the majority of judges for that event will be different the second year than the first.

Are there big regional differences (some regions much more competitive than others)?

Yes. Size of the region (total number of skaters at juvenile level and above) and also the number of training centers or other strong coaches with access to plenty of ice time in each region affects how strong the region is in general. But the actual field in any given event will fluctuate from year to year depending on which skaters are doing well, which are injured or have byes or elected to move up to the next level (or skip a level) or not to compete at all that year or to compete somewhere else, etc.

I've heard that boys and pairs often have so little competition that most (sometimes all) are a shoe-in to get past Regionals to Sectionals, is that true?

Pairs and dance teams have not gone to regionals at all for the past 10-15 years and start their qualifying season directly at sectionals. That's going to change somewhat with the restructuring next year -- the teams will compete in October at the same venue as one of the regional championships in their section, but it will essentially be a sectional competition, and their November competition, at the same venue as one of the sectionals, will essentially be a nationwide competition.

Some regions have fairly strong fields of male single skaters at least at some levels in some years. Other regions that are smaller in general may have too few boys/men at a given level, especially the higher levels, to need to hold an event.

Last I heard, the rule was that if there are four or fewer skaters registered for specific event within a given region or section, all will advance to the next qualifying phase (sectionals and nationals, respectively). When registering for the qualifying season (registration deadline Sept. 1), the skaters need to indicate whether they want to compete even if they will automatically advance. If at least two skaters check Yes, then the event will be held and those skaters will be required to compete in order to advance. Anyone who checked No does not need to compete and can start at the next phase.

Because of byes, it's very rare for there to be a need for senior men to compete at regionals, and sometimes not even at sectionals, but some choose to do so if there's at least one other person to compete against.

It's slightly more common for junior men's events than seniors' to be held at regionals, but still most regions don't need to hold them.

At juvenile through novice level, it's more common for there to be at least four competitors, but often one of those three levels might have four or fewer, and in smaller regions it could be two or all three that don't need to hold a competition.

 

[concorde]

I wanted to follow-up on gkelly's comment on scholarships and numbers of skaters in a Region.

For novice and down, the top 6 skaters at Nationals are eligible for some USFS financial assistance but I believe that parent's finances play into that determination. And even if the family qualifies, what a skater actually receives is very minimal. Some boot/blade manufacturers (Jackson) do give freebies to those top 6 finishers.

USFS also has some scholarships based on merit. For those scholarships, family finances are not considered.

Regarding Regions, South Atlantics typically has one of the highest numbers of skaters at any Regional competition. Historically, there are 100+ female skaters at both the Juvenile and Intermediate levels. This year there were 4 Male Juvenile skaters. So at the Juvrnile level, about 4% of female skaters moved to Sectionals whereas 100% of the males. The #1 placing boy would have been #16 in the same girl's event.

 

[VegMom]

Thank you.

I am curious about figure skaters' rights to their images. Every competition we've been to has had professional photographers and videographers. I've spoken to them and there seem to be no set standard about how long the keep the images, who has rights to them, etc. Some competitions have announcements to "only take video of your skater and no one else" but then that's never enforced.

I also noticed that videos from Regionals, Sectionals, and Nationals in the past are available for purchase at usfigureskatingdigital.com and that surprised me. These skaters are often minor children, so I assume parents have to agree to the use and sale of these videos?

I am just wondering about rights to privacy. Anyone have any information on that? Opinions?

 

[Ducky]

Thank you.

I am curious about figure skaters' rights to their images. Every competition we've been to has had professional photographers and videographers. I've spoken to them and there seem to be no set standard about how long the keep the images, who has rights to them, etc. Some competitions have announcements to "only take video of your skater and no one else" but then that's never enforced.

I also noticed that videos from Regionals, Sectionals, and Nationals in the past are available for purchase at usfigureskatingdigital.com and that surprised me. These skaters are often minor children, so I assume parents have to agree to the use and sale of these videos?

I am just wondering about rights to privacy. Anyone have any information on that? Opinions?

Did someone "rights to images"?

I would assume that when you sign up to compete at Regional, Sectionals, and Nationals you and/or your parents sign a release form allowing your image and likeness to be used for promotional and commercial purposes by USFA or it's affiliates (so like NBC could use footage from a regional for a Nationals advert but say Jackson couldn't buy a copy of the video, take out 5 seconds and put that in a commercial for their skates).

 

[icesk8er]

How much do elite coaches (Orser, Arutyunyan, Gambill, etc.) usually charge for a lesson?

How many minutes/hours a day do elite skaters usually take lessons from their coaches? (Not including practicing time on their own.)

How much does a choreograph cost?

Do skaters pay for their coaches' travel expenses when they compete? Or do coaches actually want to travel with their skaters because they get to appear on TV?

In competitions, do sitting close to the rink and sitting far from the rink make much difference for you? I've been to a skating competition where I sat very far from the rink. And to be honest... I preferred watching it on TV than in real life, because on TV I could see the facial expressions and jumps more clearly. Is it worth paying more to sit closer to the rink?

 

[Harriet]

I am curious about figure skaters' rights to their images. Every competition we've been to has had professional photographers and videographers. I've spoken to them and there seem to be no set standard about how long the keep the images, who has rights to them, etc.

In law, the copyright of an image belongs to the person/company who takes the image, unless it has previously been agreed otherwise eg via a signed contract. Presumably, as with other junior sports, minor skaters who go events like the JGP would have to have a consent form signed by a parent or guardian and that would include permission for photographs to be taken/their image to be used for promotional purposes (a lot of images from the JGP turn up on sites like Getty Images, for example), videos to be placed online etc, and if that permission wasn't given, photographers would be instructed not to photograph that skater. But because any image taken belongs to the photographer or their employer, they can retain it for however long they like.