Decisions of the ISU Council announced in their latest communications 1671

[Visaliakid]

ISU Membership Singapore Ice Skating Association (SISA)

The Council decided to grant with immediate effect full ISU Membership to SISA for the Figure Skating Branch and to grant provisional ISU Membership for the Speed Skating Branch.

Olympic Winter Games (OWG) 2014 – Sochi – inclusion of Figure Skating Team event

The ISU Council was pleased to acknowledge the decision of the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirming the inclusion of the Figure Skating Team event into the program of the Olympic Winter Games (OWG) of Sochi 2014. As previously announced, the 10 best national teams, composed of one Single Lady Skater, one Single Man Skater, 1 Pair Skating couple and 1 Ice Dance couple shall participate in the Short Program of the Team Event. The best 5 teams after the Short Program will then skate the Free Skating. Basically the same skaters who qualified for the individual Figure Skating disciplines (Ladies, Men, Pair Skating, Ice Dance) in the OWG , or the entered substitute/s, are permitted to participate in the Team event. Subject to IOC confirmation there may be some limited possibilities to change some Skaters between the Short Program and the Free Skating.

The ISU in cooperation with the International Olympic Committee is currently working out the detailed qualifying system to determine the 10 teams competing in the Figure Skating Team event at the Sochi 2014 OWG. The qualifying system will be based on the results of ISU Figure Skating Events preceding the 2014 OWG. The qualifying system under preparation will also indicate the applicable entry/substitution procedures, in particular for Members qualified among the 10 teams but not having qualified individual skaters/couples in all the disciplines of the individual Figure Skating events of the OWG. The qualifying system and entry rules and procedures will be announced as soon as submitted to and approved by the IOC.

ICE - International Cup of Skating Excellence (Invitational Series event in Figure Skating

The ISU Council gave its agreement in principle to create a series of annual Open International Competitions which shall be skated over a period of three separate television competitions, to be held on three separate weeks in three different geographical locations, in principle one in Asia, one in Europe and one in North America. The participants in this series may be among eligible and ineligible skaters and should be a medallist of either a ISU World Championships or Olympic Winter Games in their respective discipline within the previous ten years.

The initiative was presented by a United States based organization called ICE - International Cup of Skating Excellence, LLC (hereafter called "ICE"), who includes as its Chief Creative Officer the 1984 Olympic Figure Skating Champion, Mr. Scott Hamilton.

Subject to receiving a satisfactory detailed proposal of ICE (location, dates, confirmed cooperation/understanding with the concerned ISU host Members, invited skaters, event format and technical package (free skating only), prize money etc), the ISU is available to sanction three competitions during the season 2011/12 that cannot be in conflict with any ISU Event and/or national championships of the concerned host Members.

Further details and the Announcement shall be released as soon as the specific ICE proposal has been received and approved.

Social media – video production

The Council in principle agreed to pursue an initiative to become active in the social media for a tentative launch during the summer 2011 and also to produce a series of new videos for use during ISU Events and other promotional activities.

.

[Frau Muller]

"ICE" - Did "Chief Creative Officer" Scott Hamilton come up with this one? Har-dee-har-har. More important than the cutesy acronym: So we're back to having ISU-sanctioned Pro-Am cheesefests? We're going to get Alyssa and Sasha and Ryan and the Kerrs some international ISU 'World Champion" titles by hook or crook, doggone it!

I dunno. Just hate the general cheapening of the sport...a Team Event in the Olympics and now this. It all seems calculated to make it easier for 'SOI Fave' skaters to claim ISU World Championship medals when it's almost impossible for them to earn the Real Thing (true ISU Worlds, which will take place next week in Moscow). [I don't count Davis/White in this group, as they have a genuine chance of winning The Real Thing next week!]

If the eligible 'SOI Faves' win fair-and-square in Moscow next week, then all the power and honor to them! I wouldn't mind that at all. I just don't like the blurring of 'World' titles that may result from all of this. Winning Worlds should count more than winning 'ICE' or being on a winning 'World Team.' The various titles should be marketed correctly when a skater is introduced at a show, for example....the winner of 'ICE' should not be announced as "...and the reigning World Champion is..."

[Garden Kitty]

I'd love to see a real pro am event again, and I hope Scott is able to arrange it. There are a lot of retired competitive skaters I'd love to see in "competition" again.

[sk9tingfan]

Is this a Plushenko consolation prize?

[Frau Muller]

Is this a Plushenko consolation prize?

BINGO! I thought about that one, too, although Creative Officer Scott H. probably did not have that one in mind.

[IceIceBaby]

We're going to get Alyssa and Ryan and the Kerrs some international ISU titles by hook or crook, doggone it!

They couldn't compete in ICE because they aren't world medalists.
I like the idea of ICE so far, I don't think anyone would confuse it with the World Championships. Maybe we will see Lambiel competing there next season. I just hope the judging won't bee too cheesy.

[skatemommy]

Team Event at the Olympics? Kinda sounds like a high school competition

[WildRose]

The more skating on TV the better. Lambiel, Joannie Rochette, Jeff Buttle - there are lots of skaters I'd love to see skating in ICE. I just wish it wasn't limited to medalists - I would have loved to have seen Shawn Sawyer do something like this. Good for Scott - I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with this.

[Frau Muller]

They couldn't compete in ICE because they aren't world medalists....:

My bad - apologies. I thought ICE would include medalists in past ISU int'ls, such as Grand Prix Finals or Euros/Four Cs. Well, plenty of SOI faves who didn't quite win Worlds would still be in it, e.g., Sasha & Joannie.

I'm not in the "the more skating on TV the merrier" camp, sorry. I prefer Quality (Worlds, Natls, Euros, G-P series) to Quantity (Disson pop concerts or Rock n' Roll Cheesefest Pro-Am Ch'ps).

Whatever, I fear that it may be cheesy and diminish the importance of THE World Championships, especially among ordinary TV viewers who don't know the difference. Just saying.

[PDilemma]

Whatever, I fear that it may be cheesy and diminish the importance of THE World Championships, especially among ordinary TV viewers who don't know the difference. Just saying.

Where does it say that the event will be called anything similar to "world championships"? And how dumb do you think viewers are? The broadcasts (when there are broadcasts) usually make the nature of any given competition very clear to viewers who can hear or read captions.

[skatesindreams]

The more skating on TV the better. Lambiel, Joannie Rochette, Jeff Buttle - there are lots of skaters I'd love to see skating in ICE. I just wish it wasn't limited to medalists - I would have loved to have seen Shawn Sawyer do something like this. Good for Scott - I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with this.

I'm glad that we will have more skating competitions available
We can argue the details later.

Frau Muller, no one will force you to watch, if they "offend" you.

[minignome]

If the participants have to be medalists in the past 10 years, I think the cheese factor will be fairly low -- this won't be Dorthy Hamil vs. Yuna. Whether you will get Olympic eligible skaters competing given their schedules is iffy, but, if nothing else, this will give some of the recent "retired but not official" skaters a chance to compete again without committing to a full season.

[centerpt1]

Anyone else think this was done to show off SOI skaters like Evan?

There are a few I'd love to see compete again-

[manleywoman]

I applaud Scott for providing one of the few places where skaters can make a living.

Having said that, It doesn't hurt his coffers either.

[mysticchic]

Just FYI could open the door for the Kween to skate!

[Susan M]

We're going to get Alyssa and Sasha and Ryan and the Kerrs some international ISU 'World Champion" titles by hook or crook, doggone it!

I don't see anything here that suggests the winners of the ICE events will be called world champions.

if nothing else, this will give some of the recent "retired but not official" skaters a chance to compete again without committing to a full season.

I think you've got it. My guess is also it will be mostly for pro and post-eligible competition skaters. If it had been held this year, for example, we probably would have seen Lysacek and Weir at this event. I am kind of disappointed about the 10 year cut-off for medalists, though. I'd like to see some competitions come along that might motivate Kulik to train his jumps back up. Prettiest triple axel ever and I miss it.

From the announcement, it sounds like ISU free skate rules will be used for one portion of it, but the details about the rest are still TBD.

I dunno. Just hate the general cheapening of the sport...a Team Event in the Olympics and now this.

I agree with you about the team event part. At least this has been reduced from the singles-heavy format of recent team events. I wonder though, how many countries had Olympic entries in all 4 disciplines?

I still think it would be best if this event was held last, like the swimming & track relays. I think the ISU has made way too many bad decisions already looking only to gymnastics for ideas.

[Cherub721]

The pool should be pretty small if it's just World/Oly medalists from the past 10 years. That's too limiting, I think. It would exclude skaters like Ilia Kulik and Surya Bonaly who seem to be in pretty good shape. Even someone like Yagudin would only have one season where he'd still be eligible.

[JerseySlore]

I'm digging the pro-am competition idea.

[casken]

If it gets skaters like Lambiel, Arakawa, Buttle, Weir, Cohen, Berezhnaya & Sikharulidze, Annissina & Peizerat, Delobel & Schoenfelder, etc, back in competition, I'm all for it.

I do HATE the fact that it's associated in any way with Scott Hamilton, which means high quality international skaters will probably get passed over for lower quality NA skaters.

[misskarne]

Is this a Plushenko consolation prize?

He is getting reinstated. They already said it would likely be in June. Why is it so hard for people to get through their thick skulls that he was not banned for life?

The pool should be pretty small if it's just World/Oly medalists from the past 10 years. That's too limiting, I think. It would exclude skaters like Ilia Kulik and Surya Bonaly who seem to be in pretty good shape. Even someone like Yagudin would only have one season where he'd still be eligible.

Exactly...10 years is crazy. I mean, Kulik still has a 3A ffs. Are they seriously going to stop him from competing in this thing? His skating is probably better than half the current men! (lol, maybe this IS the problem!).

Basically if it's Olympic medallists within 10 years, after next year we're talking Torino and Vancouver only. World medallists...you're not getting much variety. Variety IS needed in something like that.