I appreciate your analysis. I was watching a couple of youtube videos of Janet Lynn who in essence was the reason skating figures were devalued in the first place. I don’t think people realize that when Peggy Fleming won the Gold, that was half of the results were from school figures. In the last article by Janet Lynn, she was commenting about the fact that they gave skaters control and discipline on the ice. I think part of the problem could be that pairs and dancing skaters didn’t have to be judged by it yet single skaters were and that the new emphasis on difficult jumps and twists and bielman twirls are causing skaters to end their careers too early. Janet Lynn had such musicality and arm movement to her skating. I do see that in ice dancing but not so much in the current singles. I think Janet Lynn had some ballet which helped and I would think would be an essential for any skater. (like it is with the Russian skaters). It is honestly sad to watch these skaters at the highest level repeated fall and not succeed and one has to wonder that if these things are that difficult to do, is it more luck than true mastery for skating success.
Agree with you entirely on Janet Lynn. IMO, she’s the greatest female freeskater of all time. Once they hear about her, young skaters idolize her.
robwar, forgive me if you already know this. I’m posting the following for those who aren’t familiar with the sport of figure skating.
The pairs did not have to compete with school figures, but they had to TEST them in order to take their Singles tests, which were necessary for them to be good Pairs skaters. School figures kept a lot of skaters out of Pairs, just as they prevented a lot of kids from competing in Singles.
Pairs have a series of tests that they have to pass in order to compete at the Senior level (Olympic-level–all Olympic figure skating in any discipline, including synchronized if it ever makes it into the Olympics, is SENIOR-level skating–the highest test level).
Dance competitors test the Dances from Preliminary, Pre-Bronze, Bronze, Pre-Silver, Silver, Pre-Gold, Gold. These tests are absolute killers, and many skaters take them over and over to pass. Skaters actually fail the Preliminary dance tests! Yes!
The judges do not give one little 8th of an inch! They expect every little edge and turn to be perfect. In addition, they want the skater to correctly interpret the dance and present it properly. E.g., the Argentine tango (one of the Gold dances) is supposed to be fiery and have sharp movements, while the Hickory Hoedown is obviously more rollicking and folksy!
Also, the ice dancers have to test each dance solo AND with a partner. Part of ice dancing is the ability to partner the dance, not just dance all by yourself. The skaters can test the dances with their coaches (same sex or opposite sex), but it’s really hard for many of the coaches to keep up the skills to test the higher-level dances. Also, a lot of the coaches are short, and a lot of the females testing (especially synchro skaters) are very tall, and this makes it hard for the coach to test with them.
So often, a male partner will be recruited or even brought in/flown in to test with all the female skaters. (A young man can make some very good money doing this on weekends! Mamas, DO get your sons involved with ice dancing!)
No one has to test ice dancing in order to compete in Singles, Pairs, or Synchro, but it is required for Ice Dancers, and many synchro coaches require the ice dance tests for their team members.
The school figures were replaced by a series of tests called “Moves in the Field (MIF).” There are eight of these tests. Each test includes ten-twenty minutes of stroking, turns, edge moves, even a school figure at the younger level! Part of what makes the tests difficult is that the entire MIF test has to be done; it can’t be broken into several pieces like the School Figures or the Ice Dances. The reason for this is that the tests are supposed to develop strength and endurance as well as precision in edge work.
Each MIF test has to be passed before the skater can attempt to test the corresponding freestyle test.
A lot of skaters never or seldom compete, but stay in the sport to work on and pass the tests. It is a great accomplishment for a skater to pass any of the “Gold tests” (Senior tests). U.S. Figure Skating gives these skaters a pile of stuff–not only the certificate, but a jacket and lots of letters of congratulations, signed for real (not by a computer) from all kinds of figure skating high-ups! It’s a real thrill.
My older daughter passed her Gold MIF test before the jackets were given out. She has been working on her Ice Dance tests since she was 14 years old–she’s now 30. She’s passed one of the four Gold dances, and has hopes that now that she is living in NYC, she can find a rink that has ice dancing coaches and get some serious practicing done so that she can finally achieve that Gold Dance level and get all the stash from U.S. Figure Skating. After that, she plans to keep practicing and pass what are called the “International Ice Dance” tests. She never competes and has no interest in competing.
I have to brag a little and say that she has never failed an ice dance test.
My younger daughter (28) got inspired by the Olympics, and plans to resume working on her Gold MIF test, which she never had time to do in high school or college due to competing and coaching and school. She needs a new pair of skates first–her skates are 15 years old and are actually rotting! A pair of figure skates useful at that level, BTW, costs around $800-$1000 or more.
I hope this little tutorial is helpful. A lot of people have no idea that figure skaters have to take tests in order to compete–much different than hockey, snowboarding, or many other sports.
Wish we did. You might be watching synchronized skating on television this weekend if we had a Dick Button.
