Should the rules on age be tightened up? | Page 2 | Golden Skate

Should the rules on age be tightened up?

bsfan

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 10, 2011
I feel that there is double-standard from the initiator of this thread. When Mao and Kim were not able to compete in 2006 OG due to age limit, there were cries all over the place against the rule. Now someone is saying they need to tighten the rule so no juniors can compete in their own Nationals.

A girl looks like 10 to someone doesnot mean she is 10. She has her birthday in documents consistantly. Didn't someone question Polina K's birthday last year saying she should be older than what was in doc and they hided her age to make let her compete in junior?
 

Buttercup

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 25, 2008
I feel that there is double-standard from the initiator of this thread. When Mao and Kim were not able to compete in 2006 OG due to age limit, there were cries all over the place against the rule. Now someone is saying they need to tighten the rule so no juniors can compete in their own Nationals.
Unless CaroLiza_fan was among those who complained about the age limits in 2006, I fail to see why her original post in this thread constitutes a double standard. You can agree or disagree with her opinions, but it's not fair to accuse her of something she didn't do (while ignoring the substance of her post).

A special citation goes to Buttercup for the splendidly vivid phrase "misused illusion mesh." I have a feeling I'll be calling that phrase to mind many times in my future viewing.
My pleasure :)
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
(FYI, I think CarolLiza_fan is actually a guy.)

I agree with Buttercup's point about a poster being entitled to state an opinion about age designations. For one thing, it's important to remember that we on GS have no power to make or change regulations. We get no vote, and in this issue even the court of public opinion doesn't exist, because the skating authorities don't give a fig for our views on any subject. So why not express an opinion? One can disagree with a stated preference, but one can't designate posters who have a right to support or oppose that preference. After all, we never know when any of us will need such an indulgence in the future!

My reasons for supporting (in general) an age requirement for girls is the realization that in some countries with national programs, the skaters live in sports compounds, and their entire lives are consumed with competition and training. (I generally have in my mind the haunting images of Chinese gymnasts when I think about this issue, which is relevant to me though it may not be to everyone.) It's not a great life for kids, though some may be fine with it.

Again, I understand that a few skaters are astonishing at an early age, and interestingly, those tend to be the skaters who don't burn out before they mature: Michelle, Janet Lynn, YuNa, Mao. (Tara is a special case because her body burned out, though her talent might have remained and matured had she had the chance to compete further.) I don't know what to suggest as rules that would keep them in consideration while protecting everyone else. But it is definitely an issue to think about for me. So much hinges on the fact that girls do mature sooner than boys in terms of talent, and also that girls' achievements often seem on the surface to benefit from immature bodies, while boys' achievements almost invariably improve with increased size and strength. Does this mean that we value the wrong things in ladies' skating? It's definitely a pressing question to ask.
 
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CaroLiza_fan

EZETTIE LATUASV IVAKMHA
Record Breaker
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Oct 25, 2012
Country
Northern-Ireland
FYI, it was Zhang Dan who retired, I know it's a bit confusing as Dan is a Western male name, but Dan's name in Chinese is a girl's name!

Ach! I knew I would do that at some stage!

Sorry about the mix up. I have been getting confused about which was Dan and which was Hao ever since I first saw them all those years ago. So it was inevitable that I would make that mistake on here at some time! Better get it out of the way early on! ;) :biggrin: I suppose it doesn’t help that they have the same surname. At least if the surname was different, then it might help me remember that Dan is the girl and Hao is the fella!

I'm not sure exactly what makes you uncomfortable. Is it the skimpy outfits and whether those are age appropriate? If so, I'm 100% with you; it also troubles me seeking a 13 year old with heavy make-up and a skimpy outfit. However, restricting the age of senior competitions seems to not address that particular issue. I don't like that someone who is among the best in the world is not able to compete against the best in the world solely for being too young, like Mao in 2006.

Yeah, it was the skimpy outfits that was making me feel uncomfortable. Like, if somebody my age (27) is feeling uneasy watching children that are, at the most, only 15 years younger than me wearing stuff like that, what must older people be thinking?

You know, there are ways around that problem that can actually look very good. For example, in one of my favourite photos of my favourite female skater (Liza Tuktamysheva), she is on the ice wearing just a T-shirt and a pair of trousers (Here is a link to the photo, as taken from her vKontakte profile: http://cs10027.userapi.com/u38537529/147439574/x_b6305cb8.jpg ) Another example is Li Zijun’s current gala costume of a checked shirt and denim shorts (Here is a video of her gala performance at the NHK Trophy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oa1fGljdbD4 )

But, the point I was trying to make is that Junior skaters should be in Junior competitions, and Senior skaters should be in Senior competitions. There should not be an overlap.

At least that way, you can avoid feeling uncomfortable at the Junior skaters wearing skimpy outfits by just not watching the Junior competitions!!! ;) :biggrin:

Since the 2014-2015 season, the skater must be at least 15 to compete in the GP, too, so we won't see skaters competing the the GP and then at Junior Worlds (like Sotnikova, Liza, Lipnitskaya and 90% Radionova next season), there will be 100% Junior seasons and 100% Senior seasons, since the skaters aren't allowed the compete in both the Senior and the Junior GP anymore...
But I like the idea of having all the skaters entered in at least one event competing in two events!

Thank you to “FSGMT” for letting me know in the other thread I started last night ( http://www.goldenskate.com/forum/showthread.php?39697 ) that they are changing the rules in the GP Series so that you do have to be 15 to participate. So, no more overlaps!

I think kids competing as seniors is less common in countries where there's a huge pool of older skaters. The young ones just don't make it through the crowd at the top.

In general, I worry about all the very young skaters (even more so the gymnasts) competing at senior levels. I worry on two grounds: physical damage and inappropriate costumes and music. In terms of the physical demands, junior skaters do fewer jumps and skate shorter programs. The relentless pounding of triple-triples, and the extra hours of training have effects on the body that are by now well documented.

Well said! I was that busy thinking about how the youngsters looked and how I was feeling, that I never even thought about what the youngsters themselves must be going though physically! I think you have just made an even better case for why Juniors and Seniors should not be competing in the same competition!

As for presentation, including costumes and music, was it Liza or Julia whose ensemble last year was just a bunch of green Band-aids? It wasnt even flattering. 't least Tara Lipinski dressed like a youngster and skated to music that didn't pretend to project overly adult emotions.

As for the costume you are describing, it sounds like the sort of thing that would stick in your mind. So, seeing as it’s not in my mind, that suggests that it must have been Julia, because I hadn’t seen her before until this season. And anyway, if it was Liza, I would definitely have remembered it!

Talking about “projecting overly adult emotions”, did you notice Elena Radionova acting suggestively in the gala at Russian Nationals?! Totally wrong on so many levels! Mind you, I will forgive her this once as it was SOOOO cute the way she latched onto Elena Ilinyk in the finale, and never left her side! I think Nikita was a bit miffed when “wee Elena” even stood in between him and the older Elena!!!

But as a rule, I look at these super-young skaters (especially now when the very difficult jumps are in demand) and worry that I'm watching not a sport but violations of the child labor laws. It makes me squirm with unease and even some guilt.

I know what you mean! But, that is the way sport seems to be nowadays. Start them young, and get them up to the top as quickly as possible. What happened to having a childhood?

By the way, has anybody found out what ages Anastasia Gubanova and Alexei Sintsov are? I am still curious as to just how young they are!

CaroLiza_fan
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
But, the point I was trying to make is that Junior skaters should be in Junior competitions, and Senior skaters should be in Senior competitions. There should not be an overlap.

The question is, how do you define what "Junior skaters" are and what "Senior skaters" are? Who gets to define it, and on what basis?
 

CaroLiza_fan

EZETTIE LATUASV IVAKMHA
Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 25, 2012
Country
Northern-Ireland
I feel that there is double-standard from the initiator of this thread. When Mao and Kim were not able to compete in 2006 OG due to age limit, there were cries all over the place against the rule. Now someone is saying they need to tighten the rule so no juniors can compete in their own Nationals.

I am not saying that Juniors cannot compete in their own Nationals. I am just saying that Juniors and Seniors should not be competing in the same competitions. There should be separate Nationals for Seniors and Juniors (and Novices).

But, I suppose that it is finances that is is not letting that happen.

The question is, how do you define what "Junior skaters" are and what "Senior skaters" are? Who gets to define it, and on what basis?

Well, in my original post, I said that the skater's 15th birthday shouild be the dividing line between being a Junior and being a Senior. And, according to "FSGMT", they have decided to go with that for the 2014/15 GP Series.

But, the problem is what to do in the Pairs and Ice Dance where there is an age difference between the partners. I have said to define them by the younger member of the partnership, but that would still leave a "Senior" skater competing with Juniors. If you go with the older member, then you have the opposite problem. It's a nightmare to legislate for, so I'm glad I'm not the one making the rules! ;) :biggrin:

A girl looks like 10 to someone doesnot mean she is 10. She has her birthday in documents consistantly. Didn't someone question Polina K's birthday last year saying she should be older than what was in doc and they hided her age to make let her compete in junior?

Hey, I'm notorious for being bad a judging girls ages! So, I know better than most that just because she looks a certain age doesn't mean she is that age!

Call me cynical, but ages (and the documents supporting them) can be faked! Examples have already been pointed out in this thread. And, since I mentioned them in my original post, what about the confusion over Zhang Dan and Zhang Hao's ages? Whichever set of ages you go with, you still come to the conclusion that they were in a competition that they were outside the age range for.

But, for your example, I wouldn't have said Polina K was older than she is claiming to be. Sure, she is very tall. But, apart from that, she does look her age! When I was at High School, I fancied a girl that was 4 years younger than me. Although she was very tall for her age, you would have still known she was younger.

(FYI, I think CarolLiza_fan is actually a guy.)

Oh, and yes, I'm a guy!

CaroLiza_fan
 

Dragonlady

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 23, 2003
Here are some US skaters competing as seniors before age 15 (i.e., ineligible for ISU championships under the current rules):
Nicole Bobek 1991

Lisa Ervin 1992

Michelle Kwan 1993

Michelle Kwan 1995

Tara Lipinski 1996

[current age rules introduced, with some exceptions]

Tara Lipinski 1997

Naomi Nari Nam 1999

Sarah Hughes 1999

[age rules tightened further]

Bebe Liang 2001

Rachael Flatt 2007

Caroline Zhang 2008

Mirai Nagasu 2008

I snipped the skaters from the figures era and left in those names from the "triples" era since 1990. Every generation seems to have had one skater who survives the riggors of training and competition and is successful from an early age. But they are the exception, the very rare exception. So very many of the girls who arrived at senior Nationals before age 15, end their careers with hip surgery, including the seeming poster child for early arrival: Michelle Kwan.

Bebe Liang, Deanna Stellato, Tara Lipinski, Naomi Nari Nam, all worked on the 3L/3L and all had serious hip problems which impeded or ended their careers. All skated at senior Nationals before age 15.

Zhang and Nagasu have also had their share of injuries to deal with and neither has lived up to their early promise, to date. Since both are still competing, it's too early to say how their careers will finish.
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
That's a really excellent point. I forgot about Stellato, which is a terrible thing to say about such a splendid skater. She isn't remembered by many because she had to leave skating so early with hip and/or back injuries that ended her career. Certainly Lipinski and Nam are prime examples of bodies damaged way before their time. Kwan for some miraculous reason lasted a good long time, to the benefit of skating in general and Kwanbots (like me) in particular.

You're smart to take out the skaters from the figures era because they didn't face such heavy demands on their bodies.(Though Karen Magnussen did have stress fractures that even put her in a wheelchair for a short stretch.) But as long as we're talking about how wearing the triples era has proved to be, look at how early Midori Ito was hampered by injuries. Even in "her" Olympic year, 1992, she was held back by injuries. She was just about a sure shot to win otherwise.
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Well, in my original post, I said that the skater's 15th birthday shouild be the dividing line between being a Junior and being a Senior. And, according to "FSGMT", they have decided to go with that for the 2014/15 GP Series.

Not exactly.
What's changing is that the minimum age for the senior Grand Prix and senior B events will now be the same -- 15 as of previous July 1 -- as for the senior championships. So you won't get skaters competing on the Grand Prix who are too young for Worlds or Euros/4Cs.

But the maximum age for juniors is still not-yet-19 as of July 1. So there will still be plenty of 15-, 16-, 17-, and 18-year-olds competing internationally in juniors. Just not, for the most part, the same ones who compete internationally in seniors. Especially in disciplines other than ladies singles.

I guarantee that between next season and whenever they change the rule again, we will see some skaters in that age range (15-18) compete JGP in the fall and turn up at Euros, 4Cs, or senior Worlds the same season.

If the rule is that skaters can do one senior international and still be eligible for junior internationals, than I think it is highly likely we will see some skaters compete at one senior B or one Grand Prix in the fall and then turn up at Junior Worlds that year.

All this just applies to international competitions. Rules for what individual federations do at their domestic competitions have never been the same as each other and there's no reason why they need to be. Different federations have different needs.

Also different individual skaters have different needs, which is why some 16-year-olds might be winning Worlds and others might be just getting their feet wet in junior-level competition for the first time.

Individuals' bodies also mature at different ages and to different final shapes and sizes. Just because a spectator wants to look at ladies who look like young women rather than little girls doesn't mean that an age cutoff at 15 (or other mid-teen years) will keep all mature-looking girls on one side and all undeveloped-looking ones on the other.

16 years old
17 years old
18 years old

14 years old
13 years old
14 years old

Maybe the ones who look mature earlier will also achieve senior-level skill sets earlier and maybe not.

For girls jumping ability (but not skating ability or presentation) tends to peak in the early to mid teens. Those who mature early are least likely to ever get the top jump content.

The more triple jumps count toward the results, the more that the early-teen girls are likely to outjump the older teens and young adults.

Bebe Liang, Deanna Stellato, Tara Lipinski, Naomi Nari Nam, all worked on the 3L/3L and all had serious hip problems which impeded or ended their careers. All skated at senior Nationals before age 15.

Stellato was born in June 1983 and debuted at senior Nationals in 2000, at age 16.
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
Individuals' bodies also mature at different ages and to different final shapes and sizes. Just because a spectator wants to look at ladies who look like young women rather than little girls doesn't mean that an age cutoff at 15 (or other mid-teen years) will keep all mature-looking girls on one side and all undeveloped-looking ones on the other.

16 years old
17 years old
18 years old

That was interesting. To me, of this trio only Katerina Gordeeva looked like a little girl (Sergei looked pretty young, too). Kristi was a little slip of a thing and so was Tara -- they still are. (OK, maybe Kristi's legs are not quite so skinny now as when she was 17. ;) ) But they didn't look like children. In particular Tara looked fine doing the hootchie-kootchie at 18.

But your point is well taken. You can't mark the division between junior and senior by bust size.

The main question that I have is this. What is the reason for holding junior championships in the first place? Is it for young kids at various ages to have fun, like the World Series for under 14 Little League baseball (which is often won by a team with a ringer -- a seventeen-year-old pitcher passing for 14.)?
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
The worst costume I have ever seen was worn by a 14-year-old French skater in the JGP. She is black, and she wore a skin-toned costume, with bright metallic sprinkles in uh, strategic places. It really did look as if she was skating in the altogether.

BTW, she did get a costume deduction.
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
The main question that I have is this. What is the reason for holding junior championships in the first place? Is it for young kids at various ages to have fun?

First of all, we need to define what we mean by "junior championships."

The main definition at issue for skating is what happens in international competition sponsored by the ISU.

The World Junior Championships started in the mid-1970s, at which time I think the upper age limit was 16 and either there was no lower limit or it was younger than 13.

This was an international competition for talented young skaters to represent their countries internationally.

The skill level expected is just below that of senior competition. It's an elite developmental event, not a recreational one.


Within any individual federation, the meanings would be different because the makeup of the skating community is different.

Some federations might be focused only on producing senior-level champions. All their lower level events would be geared toward narrowing down the field to those with senior championship potential and weeding out all the also-rans. There would be less and less room for skaters of modest talent the closer you get to senior level, no room for late bloomers, no recreational opportunities. The skaters are being trained to do a job (winning medals for the homeland). I suspect that China is probably the best example of this approach today, but the Soviet Union and other eastern bloc nations used to be as well.

Some federations have few rinks in one or a handful of cities, and few skaters. Most are essentially recreational in the sense that they don't have the resources (ice time, experienced coaches, access to nearby competitions with more advanced skaters) to reach an international/elite level at all, regardless of talent. The federation has no need of domestic qualifying competitions because the numbers are small enough that every single member can sign up for the national championships, which can be completed over the course of a weekend.

They probably have very few skaters who can do triple jumps. When they do get someone who is especially talented at skating and jumping, and/or who has access to more sophisticated coaching and training in other countries, that skater will dominate at their nationals, often from an early age, and will be sent to internationals as soon as they reach the necessary age limits.

The division of events at their national competition(s) would probably be largely by age, with overlapping age groups, so that older teens/young adults might be required to compete at junior and then senior level even if they do not have junior- or senior-level skills.

A slightly larger federation might have a handful of internationally worthy skaters at a time -- if within the same age cohort and discipline they who will fight against each other at their nationals as they rise through the ranks, and by senior level the competition will be between all who meet the minimum age and skill requirements, up to still-competing adults in their 20s or beyond.

Some small federations might be funded and run entirely by a few wealthy families of talented skaters who are more interested in getting their own kids to international competitions than in developing recreational opportunities for the less talented or less wealthy.

Some large federations might be similarly aimed at developing elite skaters, with qualifying competitions to narrow down the field to selecting the best representatives for international competition and high-level also-rans who can carry on the traditions as the next generations of coaches and officials. But there would be little welcome for late starters or those without the talent and financial resources to reach high levels. (I would put the USFSA in this category as of the 1970s when I was a late-starting, low-average-talent teen skater with more commitment to school than to training. There was no place for me to compete or participate in other events then so I didn't last long.)

Some large federations might be focused not only on developing elite skaters to win international medals but also on maintaining an active grassroots participation base of casual and serious recreational skaters as well as more serious competitors than there are international opportunities available for. (I would put the current US program in this category.)

When there are thousands of skaters involved, covering a wide range of ability, it makes more sense to divide the competitions by skill level first and then if necessary by age afterward.


Because of the proximity of European nations, there have been international competitions in Europe that function similarly to the larger club competitions in North America, with events at all levels, as well as some that focus specifically on novice and/or junior levels. They may or may not require entrants to be nominated by their federations. And since 1998 there is also a Junior Grand Prix.

Many of these countries divide their national events by age, and so the ISU's international guidelines also set age limits for senior, junior, and novice. But there is some overlap on either end of the juniors.

The IOC defines "junior" differently and often purely by age. Many of the sports it governs are racing sports where age and size are more meaningful distinctions than ability to execute specific skills.
 
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Joined
Jun 21, 2003
gkelly said:
When there are thousands of skaters involved, covering a wide range of ability, it makes more sense to divide the competitions by skill level first and then if necessary by age afterward.

In the U.S. are there upper age limits to compete as Intermediate (skill level), Novice, etc. Could you have a Novice competition with promising 11 year olds against not so promising 19 year olds?

In adult skating, is there anything to prevent an Olympic champion from coming back at age 28 and grabbing up all the medals? (I think Midori Ito has done some adult skating competitions in the last couple of years.)
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
In the U.S. are there upper age limits to compete as Intermediate (skill level), Novice, etc. Could you have a Novice competition with promising 11 year olds against not so promising 19 year olds?

Currently within the US the only standard-track events that have age limit are juvenile and intermediate. There is no age limit for novice. (Although there was a split between novice A and novice B for a few years in the 1990s.)

So yes, it would be very possible to have 11-year-olds and 19-year-olds compete against each other in a novice-level competition. I have even known a couple of adults in their late 20s/early 30s who have competed in standard novice-level events.

In adult skating, is there anything to prevent an Olympic champion from coming back at age 28 and grabbing up all the medals? (I think Midori Ito has done some adult skating competitions in the last couple of years.)

Adult skating has both "masters" divisions for those who had reached high skill levels before they were adults -- now divided between junior/senior and intermediate/novice within the US -- and pre-bronze, bronze, silver, and gold divisions that are mostly for skaters who started as adults or returned after years away without having reached higher levels as kids.

Without looking it up, I think the Oberstdorf adult competition Midori competed in has a division between "masters" and "elite masters" (i.e., those with significant high-level accomplishment in standard events)



Going back to the mid-teens skaters from a US perspective,
In the US, a 15- or 16-year-old skater might be

*one of the very best skaters in the world at the time, competing as a senior internationally and contending for medals at the highest level

*a very good skater, better than the national champions of many other federations, worthy of international assignments -- but with 20 or 30 other girls at the same level across the country, she has to fight for those opportunities and make strategic decisions about whether to compete as a junior or a senior domestically (internationally, the choice of, e.g., JGP vs. senior B assignment may be made strategically by the federation not the skater) -- once she passes the senior test she can't compete juniors within the US again, but she can be assigned to junior internationals as long as she's under the age maximum

*an above-average skater who has put in the training time since early childhood who wants to make the most of her competitive opportunities -- a trip to sectionals, or Nationals, or possibly even an international if the stars align for her -- before the time comes to dedicate herself to college and adult life -- again she may decide strategically based on the strength of the field in her region whether to compete as a senior, junior, or novice, but by US rules once she passes the test for a given level she can't go back domestically

*a skater of average ability who has put in the time but whose jumping ability has maxed out at double lutz; at this point, a serious recreational skater; again, she might choose senior, junior, or novice -- her skills are below average for junior or senior, but the fields at club competitions and regionals are smaller

*a skater who started as a preteen, has average or below-average talent, and/or has less time for training because of where she lives (access to ice time or experienced coaching), how much money her parents are able or willing to spend, how seriously she takes academics or other outside commitments, etc. -- double jumps up to lutz are inconsistent and/or not high quality -- a serious recreational skater at this skill level would compete as an intermediate, one with less time or commitment in Open Juvenile (nonqualifying level in the US; no short program required)

*a skater who started already in her teens or whose body type and talent level work against advanced skills or who skates only a couple hours a week -- struggles with double jumps or doesn't try them at all -- a purely recreational skater who would compete in nonqualifying competitions (pre-juvenile or below, where the numbers are large enough that at many competitions the events will be divided by age) or in Basic Skills or ISI competitions only

A skater with good basic skills but less interest or talent for jumps might compete in synchronized skating or ice dance at a high competitive level, or a medium or lower level depending on skills and degree of commitment.
 

mskater93

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 22, 2005
In the U.S. are there upper age limits to compete as Intermediate (skill level), Novice, etc. Could you have a Novice competition with promising 11 year olds against not so promising 19 year olds?

In adult skating, is there anything to prevent an Olympic champion from coming back at age 28 and grabbing up all the medals? (I think Midori Ito has done some adult skating competitions in the last couple of years.)

Juvenile: 14 and under, Intermediate 17 and under by cut off dates.
As gkelly mentioned Midori has skated at O'dorf in the Elite Masters group which was developed for formerly high level skaters and it was really exciting to have her (the videos circulated all over the adult skating community). Beyond Midori, Craig Joeright, a former national pairs medalist with his wife, competed at US Adult Nationals in Championship Pairs for several years with an adult-start skater. Of course, he was like a man among boys, but it was certainly fun to watch). :) There is nothing to stop a former Olympic champion from coming back to snap up all the medals, but a lot of them don't see the adult skating community as "real skating" and avoid it. ;) There was talk that Lloyd Eisler was going to compete in Championship pairs a couple years back, but he got injured by training only sporadically, and hasn't rumbled about it again...
 

blue_idealist

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 25, 2006
Luc Bradet, 1997 Canadian pairs champion with Marie-Claude Savard-Gagnon, competed in adult singles at the Canadian adult national championships. I think it was in 2010.
 

noskates

Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 11, 2012
How many times have we seen a great skater in their mid-teems have great success and then they grow a few inches and are flummoxed. Marai Negasu comes to mind, Oksana Baiul, and there are a host of others. I would like to see the rules tightened up. Bodies are still developing in the early teens and the constant pounding their knees and backs take before they ARE fully developed hurts them in later years and possibly their later life.
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
What are reasons for "tightening up" the age rules, and what kind of tightening is wanted?

Is the idea to

lessen injuries to children

lessen emotional pressure on children competing at the highest level

protect audiences from getting attached to promising skaters who don't live up to their promise

present an image of maturity in the highest level of the sport

protect audiences from watching children performing and dressing as if they are adults

protect mature cmopetitors from losing to immature "jumping beans"

simplify rules to be more black-and-white with less room for confusion

What else?

Depending what the goals are, the specific rules would be different.
 

sarahspins

Rinkside
Joined
Mar 30, 2011
The worst costume I have ever seen was worn by a 14-year-old French skater in the JGP. She is black, and she wore a skin-toned costume, with bright metallic sprinkles in uh, strategic places. It really did look as if she was skating in the altogether.

I had to go figure out who you were talking about.. and yeah, it is really bad! If it was just a different color it might come across much differently..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNSlAW7tHIs
 

skatel80

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
How many times have we seen a great skater in their mid-teems have great success and then they grow a few inches and are flummoxed. Marai Negasu comes to mind, Oksana Baiul, and there are a host of others. I would like to see the rules tightened up. Bodies are still developing in the early teens and the constant pounding their knees and backs take before they ARE fully developed hurts them in later years and possibly their later life.

Regardless of what the age rules say these children will still do the same technical elements whatever level they compete at, have you seen junior worlds for the past couple of years? those ladies are doing way more technically than the seniors by and large. If the age rules prevent them from competing as seniors they will just be juniors doing triple triples. If they were to learn the difficult jumps after they were done growing they would never learn any of them. True alot of phenoms lose their jumps, but not all and many get them back, Mirai got hers back.
 
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