Why no costume deductions?

[Olympia]

I think it's more fun just for the fans to weigh in on it on GS without any official decisions involved. And we do it so well!

 

[karne]

I've seen it at a local comp...the girl skated in a dress with bolero pattern...the were tassels hanging off the "bolero" all the way round...whether the dress had been made small or whether she'd grown I don't know, but two of the tassels were in very unfortunate positions on her chest...she got a deduction. She was maybe twelve or thirteen.

 

[skateluvr]

Costumes should be in one of 4 categories, maybe 5 these days
1)APPROPRIATE-NON OFFENSIVE

2)INAPPROPRIATE-OFFENSIVE DUE TO MORE THAN 50% ILLUSION FABRIC. Overly sexualized or shock value for example.

3) APPROPRIATE or not GIVEN THE MUSIC, PROGRAM AND AGE OF SKATER

4) REALLY BAD TASTE DETRACTING FROM THE PROGRAM

5)GOOD TASTE ELEGANT, ADDING TO THEME OF THE PROGRAM

Every costume this year could fit one of those. And if they were stricter about using deductions, the costume would stop offending the aborigines, mothers of 17 year old skaters who cant compete with negligee thong at 17, overly feminine glitz on male skaters who just confuse us with their "fashion" statements.

I'm all for practice blacks to see who has beautiful lines and who does not. The costume should help not hinder and if the lines are not drawn for better presentation, then these people are wussies trying to please every fed, fashionistas in the 'sport.'

 

[chuckm]

There was a costume deduction in a JGP last year for a 13-year-old black French skater who wore an "African" costume which consisted of a body suit that exactly matched her skin tone over which was a skimpy simulated grass skirt and two breast plates. When she came out to skate it really did look as if she was nearly nude.

The deduction was for the excessive appearance of nudity.

I thought Adelina Sotnikova's FS costume in the GP this year did give the appearance of nudity even though a body suit covered all her private parts.

 

[aftertherain]

If I'm not mistaken, Daisuke Takahashi got a costume deduction at 2012-2013 Japanese Nationals ... because a single feather came off of his costume at the very end of his program.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtoUoiorSQ8&t=5m20s

 

[Kinga]

I think that the only time there should actually be a costume penalty is for immodesty. The rest of the rule is basically pointless, because everyone has different tastes and no one could decide what counted as "garish", especially since it can "reflect the character of the music". However, in the case of immodesty, I think they should be able to make deductions. It is distracting from the program, plus the fact that no one wants to see that. I think that very few skaters have immodest costumes, where the essentials aren't covered, but I do think there should be a rule preventing it. Sotnikova's dress was inappropriate, in my opinion - the panties under her skirt were sheer! But I think that the rest of the rule could be done away with, because judges shouldn't be able to stick people with penalties just because they didn't like the costume.

I completely agree with this poster. It is difficult to judge if a costume is garish/theatrical, but I think it is much less subjective to judge immodest/age inappropriate costumes. If this is impossible to judge, then all other aspects of skating competition should be impossible to judge either - for example PCS, GOE etc. Yet they are judged, and so should be the costumes.

 

[dorispulaski]

I've seen it at a local comp...the girl skated in a dress with bolero pattern...the were tassels hanging off the "bolero" all the way round...whether the dress had been made small or whether she'd grown I don't know, but two of the tassels were in very unfortunate positions on her chest...she got a deduction. She was maybe twelve or thirteen.

There was a costume deduction in a JGP last year for a 13-year-old black French skater who wore an "African" costume which consisted of a body suit that exactly matched her skin tone over which was a skimpy simulated grass skirt and two breast plates. When she came out to skate it really did look as if she was nearly nude.

The deduction was for the excessive appearance of nudity.

I think this is the costume that got a deduction
Nadjma MAHAMOUD
http://www.isuresults.com/results/jgpfra2012/jgpfra2012_JuniorLadies_FS_Scores.pdf


You can see the deduction on the protocol.
http://sky.geocities.jp/hshwh793/_gl_images_/tumblr_m9wdhtCOFJ1rxoozco1_500.jpg

 

[Olympia]

There was a costume deduction in a JGP last year for a 13-year-old black French skater who wore an "African" costume which consisted of a body suit that exactly matched her skin tone over which was a skimpy simulated grass skirt and two breast plates. When she came out to skate it really did look as if she was nearly nude.

The deduction was for the excessive appearance of nudity.

No kidding? That costume sounds as if it was inspired by Josephine Baker, who (when she was the toast of Paris) wore some famously brief costumes in her stage acts. That gorgeous and talented African American woman, who couldn't succeed in her chosen career in the racially backward America of that day, was adored in France. One of her stage outfits involved a string of bananas around her waist and little else. Of course, Baker was an adult, and she was performing in venues that expected naughtiness and daring. But I wonder whether a bit of hommage was involved in this youngster's skating attire, which of course was entirely modest except for the color of the bodysuit. I'd be tempted to give her the benefit of the doubt on those grounds alone...

 

[chuckm]

Big BIG difference between Josephine Baker singing and dancing nude in the Folies Bergere (where the chorus girls all dance pretty much au naturel as well) and a 13-year-old in a skating competition who at first glance appeared to be nude.

It was because she appeared to be nude that she got the deduction.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNSlAW7tHIs

That's her skate. And yes, that is WAY too revealing, even if she is evoking a cabaret theme. What on earth was she thinking?!

 

[Olympia]

Big BIG difference between Josephine Baker singing and dancing nude in the Folies Bergere (where the chorus girls all dance pretty much au naturel as well) and a 13-year-old in a skating competition who at first glance appeared to be nude.

It was because she appeared to be nude that she got the deduction.

Now that I see the actual outfit, I understand the deduction, of course. I'm curious, though: how'd she make it all the way to the JGP without anyone tipping her off that this ensemble would be provocative? I mean, presumably she competed in individual Grand Prix events.

 

[Amei]

I completely agree with this poster. It is difficult to judge if a costume is garish/theatrical, but I think it is much less subjective to judge immodest/age inappropriate costumes. If this is impossible to judge, then all other aspects of skating competition should be impossible to judge either - for example PCS, GOE etc. Yet they are judged, and so should be the costumes.

I think there might be a hesitation to give deductions on costumes because it's subjective and might cause a superstorm of controversy if a costume deduction resulted in someone not winning a gold or being left off a podium at a competition.

 

[dorispulaski]

Olympia, Courchevel was the first Junior Grand Prix event in 2012-her costume would only have been seen in France before that.

Does France have an equivalent of Russian Test skates, or US Champs Camps? If so, it might have been caught there. French Masters is in October, well after the first JGP event.

 

[Olympia]

Olympia, Courchevel was the first Junior Grand Prix event in 2012-her costume would only have been seen in France before that.

Does France have an equivalent of Russian Test skates, or US Champs Camps? If so, it might have been caught there. French Masters is in October, well after the first JGP event.

Thanks, Doris. That makes more sense.

(The costumer sure managed to match the color of the fabric to her skin tone! You really can't tell that she's almost completely covered up.)

 

[LiamForeman]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNSlAW7tHIs

That's her skate. And yes, that is WAY too revealing, even if she is evoking a cabaret theme. What on earth was she thinking?!

Oh dear. I didn't even notice her costume in this number. I focused on her face, shoulders, and toe point. I mean, yeah, there's a TON of 'illusion' fabric just like every other junior skater. But a costume deduction? I was taking off points from her bad skating. Costuming is inconsequential.

I mean does anyone NOT remember Venus Williams in THIS???? http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?id=H.4679849150254400&w=256&h=180&c=7&rs=1&pid=1.7

I triple dog dare any skater to show up and skate in Venus' dress. I'd give extra credit. This is at least worthy of PCS increased by a point just for plain chutzpah.

 

[LRK]

Olympia, Courchevel was the first Junior Grand Prix event in 2012-her costume would only have been seen in France before that.

Does France have an equivalent of Russian Test skates, or US Champs Camps? If so, it might have been caught there. French Masters is in October, well after the first JGP event.

But, if they do, would those necessarily be in costume? I've seen vids of at least a few Russian test skates where the skaters were either wearing last year's outfits, or simply their training outfits. Maybe that early, the costumes aren't even ready yet.

 

[skateluvr]

It is clearly a body suit, and not as bad as it sounded, but really, 13 years old and the hanging things. Sorry but the French and Russians make the most horrible costumes.

Does anyone know if Carolina's butterfly inspired costume was inspired by effies dress in hunger games two? orange monarch butterflies on caro tho far less than ffie the fashionista in Hunger Games 2

 

[chuckm]

"Humoresque", a piece by Antonin Dvorak, became the setting for a series of humorous verses such as:

"Passengers will please refrain
from flushing toilets
while the train
is standing in the
sta-a-a-a-
tion"

I think the butterflies on Carolina's dress are meant to stress the whimsical humor of the piece rather than anything else.