Answers

Skating Politics, Rules, Judging, Ice Dance

Hi! I'm going to have a lot of things to say because I've been searching the web forever and can't seem to get the answer off the web, hopefully you'll be able to help me. Okay, I'm doing a position paper for my english class at college, and the postion, or stand I am taking is how judges judge on an unfair basis. Well, I'm not an ice skater, so I don't know the rules that are involved in ice skating- could you tell me all that you can possibly remember? Please. Could you tell me the rules that the ISU has over the skaters? Is freedom of costume not allowed in this sport, or if it is allowed, will the skater most likely be punished? That's the first question. The second is, do you know the inside stories to celebrety skaters and their dieting? Because I might also tie into- or add that into my research paper. Or any other athlete for that matter (ex. a celebrity gymnast???)Because it is very obvious that they (figure skaters, gymnasts, and ballet dancers) don't eat the same things ordinary people eat. If you could help me out with these questions- I would greatly appreciate it. Most likely I'll have questions later on, so hopefully, it'll be ok to write back??? Thanks for all your time and help!
Kristy
Ellisville, Missouri, United States - Friday, April 5, 2002 at 08:13:15 (MET DST)
 

Hello, Kristy,
so we only can try to help you in that way, that you can find something on the homepage of the ISU: http://www.isu.org/. We have a lot of rules as eligible skaters belonging to the ISU and it would take hours for us to write everything down.
To the question of costumes we can tell you about ice dancing. It has to fit to the music, the ladies must wear a skirt and men are not allowed to wear tights and the costum shouldn't seem to be to nude. The judges can make deductions for the costums.
O.k., Kristy we hope we could help you a little bit, may be you can buy over the ISU even a regulations book to get more information about everything you want to know. Good luck in your searching.
Greetings to you from Oberstdorf Kati and Rene

Hi Kati & Rene!
First off, I just wanted to let you know I love all your programs. This year's original & free dances are no exception. I think you are one of the most versatile dance teams in the world, and you bring a lot of excitement to the sport. I fell in love with your creative Millennium free dance last year. You have a style all your own, and I'm sure that helped you win over many skating fans. I just wanted to wish you the best of luck for this season, especially for the upcoming European Championships. Hope you'll turn in a great skate!
On to the question part:), I heard Kati will have to change her OD costume for the Grand Prix Final because judges indicated the team would be penalized if you kept on wearing the garters you currently have. I'm not all that familiar with ISU's costume rules, or why they enforce certain rules, and ignore others, but could you explain why you have to change your costume? I thought the dress was very well suited to your Cabaret theme. Hopefully, this won't be too big a distraction for you! Lastly, this made me wonder, do judges usually offer advice/feed-back about things they like or dislike in your programs?
Good luck for the rest of the year!
Ioana
Wichita, Kansas, USA - Saturday, December 16, 2000 at 00:25:32 (MET)
 

Hallo, Ioana!
Sorry we could not answer earlier, but we are really busy in the moment, because of competitions and shows and practice.
Yes, we will change our costume for cabaret for Europeans and Worlds, because it will be to risky to get penalized for it. We also thought it was well fitting for the theme, but the judges thought, it's to much show. Some liked it, some didn't, but especially the audience liked it. We will go on to wear it for shows, but for competitions we will change. At least they were all talking about us :-)
Especially in the first competitions the judges give feedback/advice for the programs. It's good, but sometimes we have the feeling, if they want to find something, they find something. But we also don't want to be a judge. We think it is a very difficult job, especially in ice dancing to be correct and common with all the rules. But you are right, they deduct for some couples nothing, for others they do. But this we also can not explain...
We wish a Happy New Year!
Bye and greetings from Oberstdorf to you Kati and René

Dear Kati and Rene,
Congratulations on your successful season so far! I have enjoyed watching you so much, and am very impressed with your programs this year!
My question is, which competitions have you felt were unfairly judged, even if the decisions didn't involve you? Ice dancing judging is always criticized, and I was just wondering what decisions you thought were right or wrong. Drobiazko and Vanagas mentioned they thought Anissina and Peizerat should have won Worlds last year.
Also, who out of the amateur skaters this year, are your inspirations or role models?
Keep up the good work!
Love, Jen.
Eugene, Oregon, USA, Saturday, January 29, 2000
 

Hi Jen,
thanks for your entry on our web site and your complements. Well, we thought that Anissina/Peizerat should have won the Europeans. The Russians were a lot stronger at worlds than at europeans, they improved until Helsinki, so that we think that it was right that they won the worlds, because they had good speed and a excellent footwork. The French were nice and pretty, but not that difficult.
We're glad for Drobiazko/Vanagas this year so far. They beat the 2. Russians and the Canadians, what we think is right, because they really deserve that. Also the Italians are pretty strong this year. They improved and surely go for a Medal this year. We'll see. It will be quite interesting, we think.
Best wishes to you!
Rene and Kati

I would like to ask you if you felt anybody, especially North Americans exaggerated the judging problems in Nagano. Did you feel the complaints were all fair, or certain supporters of a team displayed a "sour grapes" attitude?
David Brown
Bathurst, N.B., Canada - Sunday, August 16, 1998
 

Kati: We always have in ice dancing judging problems, because ice-dancing is sometimes to hard to judge, sometimes it's just the taste, which finally decides. But especially in Olympics the fight gets harder, everyone wants to be treated fair, so we can understand that not everyone feels treated right sometimes. But how will you make it right for everyone??
We think, it was a bit exaggerated in Nagano, but you can not do anything against it, the marks you will get, you get. We also know that politics play an important role in ice dancing, but I think everyone of us ice dancers has to live with that, and it will always be like that, when humans judge humans. So the complaints are not always fair, because we all have to live with the same judging system.

I an writting a paper on ethnicity in figure skating for english. I was wondering how or if you think that figure skating plays an important part in cultural diversity, and improving race relations. How well do the different ethnic groups mingle within the sport on a overall level? I would really appreciate your response and the permission to use your quotes if nessesary in a essay for one of my college english classes.
Brandi Wood
Lubbock, TX, USA - Monday, March 30, 1998
 

Kati & René: It doesn't matter which race or culture, in figure skating we are all together like a big family, our skating is the binding point and there are really no problems for us and all the others. Everyone tries to bring in the performances some of their cultural things and this makes our kind of sport more interesting and multicultural.
(Webmaster's note: Following the copyright terms you are allowed to use the answer.)

How do you see Germany's ice dance future?
 

Kati: With Miriam Steinel and Vladimir Tsvetkov, skating with us in Oberstdorf, and Christina Beier and William Beier in Dortmund, we have good couples for the future. Hendryk Schamberger teaches also some good couples in Berlin. I think it doesn't look bad at all for ice dancing in Germany.

Ice dance competitions are considered to be hard to judge. Only insiders are familiar with the difficult rules and can notice the finenesses between the dance couples. Additionally the judges' decisions include subjective judgements on artistical impression. Almost always they cause heavy discussion by the audience and insiders. The International Skating Union tries to work against this problems since a few years. Which rule changes of the last years do you consider as the right way?
 

Kati: We think, it is good to try to change some things in judgement, but now with the new system it is even getting harder to understand. They want to lay more eye on the technical things, maybe it helps.
But like we always say, it is hard to judge, I also don't want to be a judge. It will always be subjective, if humans are judged by humans.
And our sport ist sport and art. And how can you judge art sometimes? But maybe with the new system there is a little better way.

From time to time suggestions have been made to abolish the compulsory dances. What would that result in? What do you think about it?
 

Kati: We think, it is already good to skate only one compulsory dance. Sometimes it would feel good, to abolish compulsory dances, because it is very boring to watch for the audience, if everyone is skating the same and as a spectator you can't see the differences, when you don't
know what's important to look for.
But as a skater you can see differences and also for the judges it is quite good to see differences if everyone is skating the same.
So it is maybe better to leave one compulsory dance to divide couples and to see technical qualities, because in original dance and free dance you can easier go over technical problems, you have more the flow of the program.

Still ice dance couples have to fight with the fact that often they do not get the reward for their hard work. How do skaters get over that frustration?
 

Kati: I love to skate and it's great to see the audience smile because we can make them happy with our skating, that's what takes away frustration. Noone can take this feeling to skate for the people away from you.

René: On the other hand every couple has sometimes problems with that "politics", so you can get easier over it.

Kati & René: And as we always say: "Good programs and couples reach sometime that what they deserve."

Kati, from 1996 to 2003 you were spokes person of the German figure skaters. Which scope of duties did counts to that function?
 

You have to work together with the federation and to speak for the figure skaters of Germany, you also have a voice in the DSB (Deutscher Sportbund - German Sports Union).
I was spokes person together with Mirko Müller, but never found to much time for it, because I'm living in Oberstdorf, and it was always too much time for me to get away, so Mirko did most of the work, because he is living in Berlin.
Since the elections of 2003 the function is divided in spokes persons for ice dancing and single and pair skating. It is better to divide the problems of each discipline.

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