Winter Olympic Sports

Figure Skating

History

Gold Medal Ice skating was first used as a helpful way to travel during winter in Scandinavian countries as far back as 5,000 years ago. They used animal bones like cattle and horses and would attach them to the bottom of their feet.

Gold Medal Figure skating became a trendy pastime for people in the years to come. Still, people at this time skated formally and usually very stiffly, with someone calling out different positions for the skater.

Gold Medal In 1860, a man named Jackson Haines modernized the sport of figure skating by combining ballet moves and music to figure skating.

Equipment Used

Silver Medal Ice rink, ice skates, performance costume with thick tights to keep the athlete’s legs warm.

Rules

Bronze Medal Each event has its own set of rules. See below.

5 events in this category

Single events

Women Single Skate: Each athlete must skate in a “Short Program,” about 2 min and 40 seconds long. Each performance must have some elements like spins, jumps, and footwork. Only the top-scoring skaters will advance to the “Long Program.” The athlete’s second program is about 4 minutes long and must show their technical skills. The skater with the highest total score from both performances will win. (This event was added to the London (England) Summer Olympics in 1908, the 1920 Antwerp (Belgium) Summer Olympics, and then permanently added to the first official Winter Olympics in Chamonix (France) in 1924)

(1998 Nagano gold medal winner (USA) Tara Lipinski (both programs))
Men Single Skate: Each athlete must skate in a “Short Program,” about 2 min and 40 seconds long. Each performance must have a certain number of elements, like spins, jumps, and footwork. Only the top-scoring skaters will advance to the “Long Program.” The athlete’s second program is about 4 minutes and 30 seconds long, in which they must also show their technical skills. The skater with the highest total score from both performances will win. (This event was added to the London (England) Summer Olympics in 1908, the 1920 Antwerp (Belgium) Summer Olympics, and then permanently added to the first official Winter Olympics in Chamonix (France) in 1924)

(Short program)

(Long program)
(2022 Beijing gold medal winner (USA) Nathan Chen)

3 events in this category

Mixed events

Ice Dance: This is a partner skate. It is made up of 2 events, “Short Dance” (about 2 minutes and 50 seconds long) and “Free Dance” (about 4 minutes long). Skaters do not perform big tricks like jumps and flips in these events. It is more about spins, lifts, and being in sequence without being no more than two arm lengths apart. (Added to the Innsbruck (Austria) Winter Olympics in 1976)

(Free Dance)

(Short Dance)
(2018 PyeongChang gold medal winners (Canada) Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir)
Pair Skating: A pair of skaters must skate in a “Short Program,” about 2 min and 40 seconds long. Each must-have performance element like spins, throws, jumps, footwork, and more acrobatics. Only the top-scoring pairs will advance to the next round, the “Long Program.” The pair’s second program is about 4 minutes and 30 seconds long, in which they must also show their technical skills. The team with the highest total score from both performances will win. (This event was added to the London (England) Summer Olympics in 1908, the 1920 Antwerp (Belgium) Summer Olympics, and then permanently added to the first official Winter Olympics in Chamonix (France) in 1924)

(Short Program)

(Long Program)
(2018 PyeongChang gold medal winners (Germany) Aljona Savchenko and Bruno Massot)
Team Event: Each country chooses one athlete or pair for each event: Men Singles, Women’s singles, Ice Dancing, and Pairs. Each event is scored like the individual events but with the four events’ combined scores. The country with the highest score after all the events will be the winner. (Add to the Sochi (Russia) Winter Olympics in 2014)

(2018 PyeongChang gold medal winners (Canada) Patrick Chan, Gabrielle Daleman, Kaetlyn Osmond, Meagan Duhamel, Eric Radford, Tessa Virtue, and Scott Moir)