Dick Button: "What Went Wrong With Figure Skating"

Nowhere are foxes put in charge of the henhouse—nowhere, that is, except in skating. For more than a decade, the International Skating Union (ISU) has been presiding over the decline of figure skating: television ratings, television coverage and overall popularity are all down. How does the ISU respond? For almost 40 years, it has been run by speed skaters. The current president frankly admits, “I am a speed skater. I know nothing about figure skating.” He can’t even whistle as the ship sinks.

Indignation has erupted at the Winter Olympic Games that just concluded in Sochi. Many found it unbelievable: Adelina Sotnikova, a 17-year-old with athletic ability but questionable artistry, took the gold over the South Korean Olympic champion of 2010, a skating icon. The Korean Olympic Committee and the Korean Skating Union filed a joint complaint with the ISU decision, already clouded by the fact that one of the judges had previously been suspended for trying to fix an event in 1998, and another was the wife of the president of the Russian Figure Skating Federation. An online protest petition has garnered almost 2 million signatures.

But whatever the merits of the dispute, the issue should not be limited to this one event. The question is bigger! What we need to ask is: Why are speed skaters running the world of figure skating?

Speed skating is a sport judged by metrics; figure skating is judged by both metrics and subjective judgment. You can’t have artistry without technique, but neither can you have technique without artistry. The judging system for figure skating needed to be changed; no one is arguing otherwise. But the system imposed in 2004 by the speed skater in charge of the ISU—in hopes of preventing scandals like those at the 1998, and particularly the 2002, Games in Salt Lake City or at the 2013 World Championships at London, Ontario—has only made the problems crystal clear. Giving points for technique but slighting artistry is turning the sport into a monotonous series of cookie-cutter routines. But when a judging system rewards a fall over creativity and flair, what else do you expect? And with the identity of the judges and their scores kept secret, where is the accountability?

Meanwhile, the fox guards the henhouse.

It is time for figure skaters to take back their sport. It is time for the ISU to split into separate federations, one for speed skaters, one for figure skaters. It’s going to take a fight. Figure skating still is what brings in the money. Speed skaters get the cash but care little about the rules for figure skating. They happily support Ottavio Cinquanta, the foxy force behind the disastrous changes in judging—both the system and the secret selection of judges—and even went along with his violation of the ISU constitution and gave him an extra, and illegal, two more years in office. At a time when new thinking and new leadership are most needed, speed skaters continue to vote their interests, not those of figure skating.

It will take a fight. But the events at Sochi have shown that the skating public is getting more and more outraged. The current World Championships in Japan won’t even be televised live in prime time by a network! This has to stop. The ISU needs to change: It should return respect to judges, stop rewarding failure, educate more judges, create real and effective controls and return figure skating to popularity. And we can find allies in associations from Australia, Japan, South Korea and (hopefully) others. Figure skaters of the world, The opportunity is now. Take back your sport. Get the foxes out of the henhouse.

Source: Newsweek

Misha Ge: "Time for Some Changes"

I prepared a text which i can call "Time for some changes" Its might be surprising at some point but hope you can understand. Thank You.

***Words below is a personal toughs of the person who wrote it. Love all of you without any bad thinking in minds***
Its hard to be bright and let everyone agree with your brightness. Cause of that you can see many people are happy when you are fail .
Because you do it in your way, way you feel from heart and let thousands of people enjoy you and moved by you, but i realize.
No matter how much i try i cant change the rules i cant change the system i cant change sk8 to take me this way: unique future way.
I realizes more creative you be to let world love you, more i got hold on that spot(place) without moving forward.
I realize that i cant go to much over rules if i want to move up, i need be more like everyone then i can move more forward.
Not cause i bad skate this time,it was for few seasons already.But this time cause failure let me confirmed these thoughts.
But i dont want to stop to be me(unique) and creative, but to go UP in skating and keep be Entertaining need some changes.
I will be creative and unique off the ice and TV/Screen as Entertainer, and on the ice be more like most sk8er,more Athletic.
I will work to be a more skater with rules, points,jumps ,levels, and be more similar style like most of skaters.
But then i will flame my uniqueness, creativity, futuristic and fire in to entertaining field, because sk8 don't like and want me this way.
I will keep work hard to improve in overall sk8 to became better then this season.
But not sure if you will see me on future competition same crazy bright like this season, but i have no choice to make this changes.
I know some might dont like that text,but It whats in my heart for years, and make me confirmed on this competition again.
I Love everyone, Fans,Friends,Competitors,Judges,Officials,Media,Everyone.No hate please. Everyone is Talent and Great.
With Love. Yours MG.

Source: Misha's Twitter

I'm so sad that Misha feels this way, but of course he will always be one of my favorites no matter what he does with his career. I thought that when he didn't get a music deduction in Sochi, it was a subtle sign of support from the ISU, especially since vocals will be allowed next season. But I guess not? It's so sad that he feels he needs to change in order to get better results. That said, IMO his lack of progress has less to do with style and more to do with his speed and 3A issues, which I'm not sure becoming a cookiecutter skater will solve, as that strategy only seems to work for headcase skaters who struggle with consistency, but Misha's problems are more rooted in technique--I think he just needs to dedicate some sessions to power stroking and train jumps with a weighted vest.

In honor of Misha's announcement, let's revisit one of the most iconic short programs of the last quad:


Update: Part 2 from Misha

Part2
*****"Time for some changes-Part2"*****
There many people send me messages after see my 1st part of post, saying "Misha Be yourself, be unique and dont change ! A: i want to, and im so so hard tried it for these few years since day one that i stepped on international competition. But the way i did is not working for the system. I said previously that im not rushing for medals and trophies , but i want to improve and go up. Me, my team and my parents(my coaches) who working so hard. We dont have condition and huge financing for huge team like big countries do, we dont have 5 coaches,medicals,choreographers for one skater , but we working hard to trying use 2 people power to do 5 or more people work, even till the level to not sleep at the nights and keep thinking on improvements.
i know i might not a fast growing athlete be, but it doenst mean that work we done is not improving and not visible so that i should be almost at same place where was every new year. I want to go up, to improve, and if you make that much people around the world love you or go crazy about you and your style then why im still on same spot ? is the the feedback around the world is nothing for go up ? Sometimes feel that audience is nothing for skating anymore, nothink like it use to be in 70s,80s,90s, when they reaction is also a judgment and feedback for skaters, and if they like they performance then there is something good about it. Their positive reaction, their crazy aviation, they love, their scream is no long a feedback for performance and points.
But if things we do, been love by worldwide even from small or not skating countries place like Brazil,Chili,Argentina,Mongolia many more and many other skating countries worldwide why we not moving up ? Because we are different ?
Well I guess because you kind of out of the rules sometimes and not going mainstream, doing in your own way in your own league to let people enjoy you in different and new way. I do it all because i do it with passion from my heart and want to make more people enjoy and love this beautiful sport , make more kids to envole to this amazing sport , to make it more enjoyable for people who know and dont know so much about skating to start became part of it, bring more audience,TV,sponsors,media, that can make this sport bigger and more popular. And all because i passion about it, and passion about make this sport more popular, better and beautiful.

I hear hundreds, thousands times when people around the world said "watching everyone now on competition it basically same thing everyone do, and not showing their unique and individual sides".

Everyone is talent in their own way , everyone have something amazing in their heart, body, or talent to show. And im sure they wish it too, but they cant , cause if they do show it this way, the way to be unique then our scores will go low, and thats why they cant go show their unique side and thats what is hurting .

I know a lot of people will turns they heads out of me, i understand(not first time) but i write it to said : i tired it be unique, be me, be creative,be enjoyable, be individual and make people and world love you. And i wished that all of us can shows their individually and talent in their own way , from bottom of our heart. But seems like it doesn't worked, and i and it cant changed that fact.
And it seems, there no other way to do it then to change yourself to be more mainstream, to keep swimming in the river and not stuck at the same spot. #Hurts and #Hearts.

With Love and Hearts To All of You, With no hate to Anyone.
Loves you All,
Yours Misha Ge.

P.S. Sorry for mistakes in text.

Source