Lookism in Ice Dancing

[chapis]

So, basically you can be gold medalist if your appearence is average while your skating, personality, artistic skills and politics are good enough but there are people who are reaching further than they would if they looked like... me, lol.

 

[Anyasnake]

So, basically you can be gold medalist if your appearence is average while your skating, personality, artistic skills and politics are good enough but there are people who are reaching further than they would if they looked like... me, lol.

We have to ask ourselves if some federations accept what they consider pretty or not...

Am I entering forbidden territory if I ask anyone here if some skaters have been under the knife ? Some people are quite sensitive about it (but that's their choice). There have been speculation about Yuna but looking at her, she didn't look like she was different at all.
(But if it's offensive to some, forget it.)

 

[Lara111]

For the record, I don't know which young junior dance teams that are being discussed as not being conventionally attractive enough for dance, and I would rather not try to guess, but my instinct is that they'll probably be fine. Most people don't peak at thirteen, and young skaters are still figuring out what styling works for them. Many(I might even say most) attractive people had an awkward phase in their teenage years before they grew into their features/changed their hair or makeup/ etc.

There are couple Junior Ice dance teams which are not conventionally attractive

 

[MelDee]

We have to ask ourselves if some federations accept what they consider pretty or not...

Am I entering forbidden territory if I ask anyone here if some skaters have been under the knife ? Some people are quite sensitive about it (but that's their choice). There have been speculation about Yuna but looking at her, she didn't look like she was different at all.
(But if it's offensive to some, forget it.)

As far as I know, Tessa Virtue got a nose job.

 

[arakwafan2006]

The op must be new here. There’s no way any seasoned member would ever post this thread, then defend it. You’ll be called a reprehensible human being before it’s all said and done lololol.

Really , what were you thinking ?

 

[Anyasnake]

There are couple Junior Ice dance teams which are not conventionally attractive

Key word But really, all the seniors now weren't as well presented when they were juniors. Becoming an adult helps you for your presentation (at least being aware of it).

 

[Lara111]

Lookism exist in ice dancing. It is more Internationally then it is in the US. My opinion one cannot be very successful in ice dance at a higher level and internationally if you are overweight or couple does not look well matched. In addition, taller couples tend to be more successful in ice dance. This is a huge rink and taller skaters just look more impressive.

 

[SmallFairy]

The sport world is nothing different than the rest of our society. People seems obsessed with "beauty". Is there more vain men than soccer players?? I can't even take them seriously anymore...
https://cdn2.trend.az/media/thumbnails/410x307/2008/05/08/Cristiano_Ronaldo_020508.jpg
http://cdn.primedia.co.za/primedia-.../c_fill,h_289,q_70,w_463/wiwhnkc4qcimmqdg3fzy

Didn't Kiira Korpi get a lot more sponsorship deals than the other Finnish ladies, because she fit the beautiful-mold?

A lot of wise words have been said in this thread about hair and make-up and about what makes people "beautiful". To me, a person who shows confidence and joy and is happy with him- or herself, carries body and head tall is a lot more beautiful than a conventionally beautiful person who couldn't care less about anything...charisma goes such a long way. Happiness goes such a long way! Being a good person makes you beautiful, because it will shine through.

About the people being mentioned in this thread....just nuts? Maurizio not handsome? Oh dear... Christopher Dean not handsome? Oh dear.... Gabby not beautiful? Did someone really write that??? As for Sergei S., ok, not conventionally beautiful, but darn interesting to watch, and sexy, indeed! But even more important, all the skaters I have met through the years have been such nice people, I can't remember one who wasn't, even in awkward situations, and that makes beauty.

And about conventional beauty vs. interesting.... I would rather watch Steve Buscemi any day, than some mainstream teen idol pretty....

And btw thankfully beauty and style preferences changes. Watch some 70ies footballers:
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/7b/d2/11/7bd211a46f085e73eb23c612f7515ebf--kevin-keegan-kevin-oleary.jpg

 

[Anita18]

I don't think all ice dancers are physically attractive. Different strokes for different folks. But there is totally lookism in ice dance.

I do think that on the whole, ice dancers are unnecessarily thin for what they're doing. You don't need to be stick thin to do dance lifts. And they also unnecessarily have to be immaculately groomed (full face of makeup, hair done), wherever they might be within sightlines of a judge. I volunteered at 2009 Worlds and off-ice, I could tell an ice dance couple even if I didn't recognize the pair specifically. They all had a particular look, even waiting in line at Starbucks. I'm already underweight and standing next to female ice dancers always made me feel huge.

I think that's all dumb, and has nothing to do with what happens on competition ice. But there it is.

 

[Lara111]

I don't think all ice dancers are physically attractive. Different strokes for different folks. But there is totally lookism in ice dance.

I do think that on the whole, ice dancers are unnecessarily thin for what they're doing. You don't need to be stick thin to do dance lifts. And they also unnecessarily have to be immaculately groomed (full face of makeup, hair done), wherever they might be within sightlines of a judge. I volunteered at 2009 Worlds and off-ice, I could tell an ice dance couple even if I didn't recognize the pair specifically. They all had a particular look, even waiting in line at Starbucks. I'm already underweight and standing next to female ice dancers always made me feel huge.

I think that's all dumb, and has nothing to do with what happens on competition ice. But there it is.

I think it is great. I also recognize most ice dancers because they are tall and thin. I think you should be for this sport.

 

[aliceanne]

If you have the talent, work ethic, and ability to perform under pressure required of an elite athlete, you are a rare being, and someone can probably work with your look whatever it is. As previous posters have pointed out, looks are the easiest thing to fix. I can think of just as many pretty skaters whose career didn't go anywhere because their talent was merely adequate. If you take away their skating, very few top skaters are classic beauties.

 

[snoopy]

If you take away their skating, very few top skaters are classic beauties.

I think that is true in all disciplines except ice dance.

On the opposite end, I think being really pretty is a detriment in ladies skating. Not because the judges will ding you but 1) higher expectations and 2) more distractions.

 

[Anyasnake]

I do think that on the whole, ice dancers are unnecessarily thin for what they're doing.

Some of them are just more of the skinny/slim type. Based on what you see, I don't think Gabriella or Meryl are starving themselves at all, that's how they are. Some people have a faster metabolism.

Now, Tanith did have eating disorders. She said that her coach told her to eat and put on muscle if she wanted to skate better - with more flow - and she saw how much it was working. Isabelle Delobel stated how much issues there are in figure skating about eating disorder too and that it's too overlooked.
This year, one of the change I saw was Stepanova. While still being one of the thinnest out there, she has clearly been training for the Olympics, she has much more muscles than before. And that is helping her skating big time compared to the previous years.
Look at Tessa or Maddie Hubbell - they are not the "common" skinny type, yet easily 2 of the best ice dancers out there.

But I agree that some of them, even if they don't look slim (since they have a lot of muscles), might be putting less in their plates than what they need to be healthy. The danger of an "artistic" sport. I'm guessing there is the exact same things in ballroom and gymnastics.
It's not the Ice dancers I'm more worried about though... female pairs skaters really are thin. I'd like to believe some of them are this way, but 100% of them ?

EDIT : to continue on the weight "issue", Maddie Chock for me this year has lot so much compared to 2 years ago. Didn't she say she started being vegan ? Now, when I'm looking at Meghan Duhamel (and what she shows us on social medias), I see that sport and a vegan diet are compatible for sure. But if it's brand new and you have to adapt I'm guessing your body changes, and I was surprised to say the least.

 

[lala]

The thinness is not just an aesthetic factor, but the pair's male member is easier to lift her.

 

[Bigbird]

The thinness is not just an aesthetic factor, but the pair's male member is easier to lift her.

They have to be not only thin, but actually well coordinated and strong to be able to help themselves within lifts. If her partner is not strong with health and coordination issues himself, no matter how thin she is, it won't make much of a difference. Because if she's too thin and emaciated she won't be powerful enough to do justice to the other elements within the SD or FD.

 

[lala]

They have to be not only thin, but actually well coordinated and strong to be able to help themselves within lifts. If her partner is not strong with health and coordination issues himself, no matter how thin she is, it won't make much of a difference. Because if she's too thin and emaciated she won't be powerful enough to do justice to the other elements within the SD or FD.

yes, I agree.

 

[Anita18]

The thinness is not just an aesthetic factor, but the pair's male member is easier to lift her.

Right. It's still bothersome that some pairs skaters are SO thin, but at least there's a physical reason for it - the overhead lifts and throw jumps.

Talk about aesthetics all you want, but there is no reason for ice dancers to be as thin as most of them are. Sure it may be natural for some, but for all of those elite athletes to be runway-model thin? It's not all natural. Tessa and Maddie look like they're normal weight on camera, but believe me, the camera really does add 10 lbs. I'm always surprised by how tiny skaters are in person.

 

[soogar]

Papadakis (who isn't like ugly or anything but I wouldn't say she is stunning or beautiful), but she is blessed with a good-looking partner so I don't know if she counts

We can disagree because she is exceptional looking and I think she is stunning and her looks complement his.

I think that female ice dancers tend to be tall and skinny which mirror the images in fashion magazines. Similar to ballet and rhythmic gymnastics where physical characteristics such as long lines are valued equally to athletic ability. In the other disciplines, there isn't as much emphasis on long lines as there is in ice dance. A team would have to be exceptionally athletic and charismatic to overcome "deficiencies" in lines.

 

[skateboy]

the pair's male member is easier to lift her.

I know what you mean, of course, but the way this was worded caused me to entertain a dirty thought...

 

[lala]

I know what you mean, of course, but the way this was worded caused me to entertain a dirty thought...

probably my poor english, sorry..Thank you for your patience.. (but if you enjoyed the dirty thought...... )

 

[Vagabond]

Am I entering forbidden territory if I ask anyone here if some skaters have been under the knife ?

Yes.

 

[skatingguy]

We have to ask ourselves if some federations accept what they consider pretty or not...

Am I entering forbidden territory if I ask anyone here if some skaters have been under the knife ? Some people are quite sensitive about it (but that's their choice). There have been speculation about Yuna but looking at her, she didn't look like she was different at all.
(But if it's offensive to some, forget it.)

Yes.

Why? It's not like plastic surgery is uncommon. Thousands of teenagers have plastic surgery every year so I'm sure that some skaters have had some work done. I don't care to speculate as to which skaters or why but I don't think the topic of plastic surgery should off limits because it makes people uncomfortable. I'm sure that a number of skaters have probably had dermabrasion and rhinoplasty, as those procedures are relatively common place and we know that having a good face in figure skating doesn't hurt. There's probably some female skaters who have had breast reduction as well. Not many athletes will choose to talk about these issues, but some have - going back to tennis, current World #1 Simona Halep of Romania had breast reduction to help her with range of movement.

The Newest Back-to-School Must-Have for Teens? Cosmetic Surgery
http://people.com/bodies/thousands-of-teens-are-undergoing-cosmetic-surgery-procedures/

French Open 2014: How a breast reduction helped Simona Halep unleash her full potential
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/te...-Simona-Halep-unleash-her-full-potential.html

 

[Seerek]

I believe Debi Thomas and Linda Fratianne discussed their nose jobs during their respective interviews with The Skating Lesson.

 

[Vagabond]

Why? It's not like plastic surgery is uncommon.

Because it's idle gossip at best and, if the person hasn't publicly mentioned having it, it's speculative and may be even malicious.

I realize that this is FSU, where we have very wide-ranging discussions, but there does come a time (usually over the summer between eleventh and twelfth grade ) where one should be elevating the tone of one's conversation.

 

[Japanfan]

I also agree that makeup, hairdo and costume go a long way. Not in ice dance, but look at how Shen and Zhao looked when they started and how they looked later.

They both had unattractive teeth IIRC - Shen did for sure - presumably they couldn't afford to get them fix. The dental issues were addressed once they became successful. It was the primary thing that tremendously improved their appearance.

 

[Bigbird]

But seriously what junior ice dance teams are we really really liking right now? I know they might be young but I find Arina and Maxim from Russia totally engaging and I wouldn't say they have classically beautiful features. They are attractive though, have a great connection and have mad skills. These things in my mind transcend mere physical beauty. Silverstein and Pekerek were not classically gorgeous but they were an exceptionally beautiful ice dance pair IMHO. So in my mind beauty in ice dance transcends the exterior. It's just that apart from the usual suspects the pickings are pretty slim right now. But, I am hopeful.

 

[nuge]

Because it's idle gossip at best and, if the person hasn't publicly mentioned having it, it's speculative and may be even malicious.

In Tessa's case I don't know whether she's ever mentioned it but she doesn't have to you can see it's a lot different.

 

[Jot the Dot Dot]

probably my poor english, sorry..Thank you for your patience.. (but if you enjoyed the dirty thought...... )

Well, you should learn to keep abreast of our nuances, as some of them are outstanding.

Yours truly, J.T.D.D., Elene Gedevanishvili fan, and former leg-man.

 

[Vagabond]

@nuge

When you quote me, please don't put things in the quotations that I didn't say.

So someone's nose looks different! Don't you have better things to do than comment about other people's noses?

 

[lala]

Well, you should learn to keep abreast of our nuances, as some of them are outstanding.

Yours truly, J.T.D.D., Elene Gedevanishvili fan, and former leg-man.

Yes, I should..