“Tutberidze students have been repeatedly accused of pre-rotation. Perhaps this explains all the innovations of the ISU? — Vedenin

Champion of the Soviet Union in men’s singles, coach of the USSR national team and former judge Alexander Vedenin, in an interview with , spoke about the decision of the ISU to even the scores for stunts and the sequences.

The International Skating Union (ISU) Congress at the organization’s congress in Phuket decided to equalize the cost of combinations and jump sequences in figure skating. Previously, the cost of sequences (stunts with a longer preparation for the second jump, sometimes the second or third element is an axel) was lower than that of combinations – the base cost of elements there was multiplied by 0.8. The cost equalization proposal passed with an overwhelming majority – only one delegate opposed it.

Sequences are often used in their programs by the Russian world and European champion figure skater Elizaveta Tuktamysheva .

– Equalization will do nothing! The score will always depend more on the quality of the performance than on the content of the jumps. More complex stunts will not lose their importance. Let’s take an example. Judgment of jumps is tightened: they will be punished for “pre-spinning” (spinning as a way to enter the twist during repulsion – “”). We have always paid little attention to it, and everything depends on the rhythm of entry into the repulsion. How will they judge? So far, no one knows. Personally, I expect long-term problems for athletes and judges.

There is experience to judge the accuracy of the edge when taking off on the lutz and flipping. To be honest: terrible hemorrhoids! How many judges, so many opinions. So far it is not very clear when the edge should be fixed. The arbitration of this parameter is accompanied by disputes and quarrels.

Very often we are dealing with such a psychological characteristic of new judges: they are convinced that since they have been entrusted with the refereeing console, they need to find a mistake, even if there is none . And we’re not just talking about water pumping championships in different countries – it happens regularly at major competitions.

For example, at the Grand Prix in 2020 Alena Kostornaya counted the wrong edge on the flip in the short program and the wrong edge on the lutz in the free program. This usually doesn’t happen. If an athlete makes a mistake in one of these elements, he makes it on the same element in both programs. And the case with Alena only says that a judge entered the brigades of both programs of Alena and still wanted to find a mistake. I’m very afraid that’s exactly what will happen in pre-rotation arbitration.

Of all these changes, I do not see any help for the progression of figure skating. By the way, Tutberidze’s students have repeatedly been accused of prerotation – especially when performing quadruple jumps. This is perhaps the explanation of all the innovations? Vedenin told .