The Biellmann Spin | Page 3 | Golden Skate

The Biellmann Spin

BusyMom

Medalist
Joined
Jan 10, 2014
I absolutely love those who can form a tear drop shape. I think that's the most important characteristic in a Biellmann :biggrin:

So beautiful

I second to that. Also like Biellmann's, I like skaters who can keep skating leg straight. Many of them have their knees bend. Not so pretty to look at. :no:

My favourite are Mao and Radionova. But Mirai's Layback combination is amazing. At least her body changed didn't effect her spins. :clap: Surprisingly Ashley has a pretty Biellman.
 

Interspectator

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 25, 2012
So true. I don't think anyone likes the but-spin.
Shoma Uno did a variation that I would like to see used more because it looks better. The free leg is crossed behind the spinning leg and held.
 

kwanatic

Check out my YT channel, Bare Ice!
Record Breaker
Joined
May 19, 2011
So true. I don't think anyone likes the but-spin.
Shoma Uno did a variation that I would like to see used more because it looks better. The free leg is crossed behind the spinning leg and held.

I'm not sure if Kanako Murakami started that tucked position or not (she was the first one I saw do it), but I think it's a much more aesthetically pleasing position that butt-up position.
 

desertskates

Medalist
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
So true. I don't think anyone likes the but-spin.
Shoma Uno did a variation that I would like to see used more because it looks better. The free leg is crossed behind the spinning leg and held.

Thank god I'm not the only person who calls it the butt spin :) And it became kind of mainstream when Jeffrey Buttle was doing it, so my inner 12 year old kicked in with my name for that spin.
 

skateluver

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 12, 2014
Back to Biellmann from Butt spins. I also think that Ashley has a very good Biellmann spin.

My favorite is Mao, with both her classic teardrop position and her one handed Biellmann. I also like Irina's, Mirai's and Adelina's Biellmanns.

As many have said, I would add Julia, but her spins are in a league of their own. That girl has amazing flexibility.

I agree that the skating leg should be straight. I much more prefer that non flexible girls don't do Biellmanns, because they can't get good positions. Other variations can look so much better for them. Yes, one of my favorite skaters Yuna is in this group. I never liked her Biellmann position, it looked too laboured.
 

kwanatic

Check out my YT channel, Bare Ice!
Record Breaker
Joined
May 19, 2011
Yes, one of my favorite skaters Yuna is in this group. I never liked her Biellmann position, it looked too laboured.

Agreed. She was never able to transition up into it as seamlessly as a lot of the others did/do.

However, before she stopped doing it she'd improved the position. To me her Biellmann at worlds in 2011 looked better than her Biellmann in Vancouver. It seemed slightly more extended at worlds...
 

gotoschool

Medalist
Joined
Mar 5, 2014
I think I'm one of the only few people who don't find Julia's biellmann spin pretty. Impressive, yes. Pretty, no.

Off the top of my head, I liked Radionova's from GPF. I like Mao's too, whether it be the classic kind, with one hand or the half-biellman.

I agree with you about Yulia's Biellmann. It is just too extreme a position to be pleasing to me. This probably isn't fair to say because it must be awfully difficult to do. Like you and TheCzar, I like Mao's classic tear drop shaped Biellman two handed, but especially in Bells of Moscow with the black glove on one hand cupped against her chest. I also really like Zijun Li's, Mirai's and Denise Biellmann's Biellmann. I must confess I haven't seen Radinova enough to remember. Irina Slutskaya had the most surprising Biellmann for me because she was able to do the spin well even into her mid 20s even with a muscular build. Does anyone know when or if Slutskaya stopped doing it?
 

Sam-Skwantch

“I solemnly swear I’m up to no good”
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Country
United-States
^when Yulia was little...she used to do a classic Beillman like this. This was when she was barely 10yrs old :eek:

https://pp.vk.me/c540109/c540102/v540102213/13aeb/Y6ToKNl88N8.jpg

I'm with Kwanatic and don't even say what she does on her layback spin to be a true Beillman. I thought it was called a candle spin but Kwanatic says it is a needle spin which is named after the Rythmic Gymnastics move and that works for me. Honestly the closest thing to a Beilman she does is after her doughnut spin...right?

https://pp.vk.me/c311117/v311117213/8e34/HFv9GB5ove4.jpg

Radinova has a great Beillman...enjoy.
http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/23/bc/33/23bc337eabbbdb7258cea2558f2a5806.jpg


You should see it in motion though. The way she delays it is :love:Her SP was my favorite last year and her Beillman is the last few seconds of her program. 3:34-3:44:eek:

http://youtu.be/2KyO3ltU38s
 

starlight97

Final Flight
Joined
Jun 14, 2014
Not to be outdone in the insane flexibility department, then there's Julia. I don't even consider this spin a Biellmann because unlike in the Biellmann where both hands are gripping the boot of the free leg, Julia grips her shin and pulls it straight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdsHy2X7QGY#t=178. I usually call it a needle spin because it's like the needle they do in dance. Like Julia's position the free leg is extended straight and the leg is held with both hands. What makes Julia's spins so impressive is the fact that she doesn't lose speed as she transitions up into it, but actually gains speed. I've seen other needle spins but hers is by far the most impressive, even though I don't always find it that attractive. She definitely wasn't the first to do it but she is popularizing it (for those fortunate enough to be that flexible) and she does it best.


.

So true!
I'm training/doing rythmic gymnastics on a pretty serious level and the only reason why I became THAT involved with skating is Julia.
When I first watched her programm, more by accident then, I thought " That spin looks just like the needle I'm doing!?" ( funny that it's the word needle in English as well :D ) and then I became a real fan of hers and when I found out that she aspired to be a rhythmic gymnast as a child as well I really got involved!
I have a lot of respect for her, beause we work on our flexibility ( only pure stretching ) aprox. 1,5 hours a day from the age of 3 here and we continue to stretch practically throughout the whole training session, since you're always contorting in some way at least.

But with figure skating there are so many other aspects she has to work on.... so I love how she has all those other skills AND the flexibility of a rhythmic !:clap:
 

skateluver

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 12, 2014
Agreed. She was never able to transition up into it as seamlessly as a lot of the others did/do.

However, before she stopped doing it she'd improved the position. To me her Biellmann at worlds in 2011 looked better than her Biellmann in Vancouver. It seemed slightly more extended at worlds...

I agree!! Her Biellmann at worlds in 2011 actually looks really good. I had forgotten that she actually did execute it well.
 

Pepe Nero

On the Ice
Joined
Dec 11, 2011
I love Czisny's Biellmann; she maintains speeds and her center on ice.

I have never thought much of Liptnitskaia's, which seems designed for a circus side-show.

I've long had an appreciation for Shawn Sawyer, who was the first male figure skater I saw do that spin.
 

YLFan

Match Penalty
Joined
Apr 3, 2014
Girls with really good flexibility like Yulia and Proklova are able to just grab their shin and straighten all the way out instead of just grabbing the skate blade. If more girls could do it like that I am sure they would.
 
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