Measuring Skater Jump Height | Golden Skate

Measuring Skater Jump Height

Vanshilar

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 24, 2014
This thread is about quantitatively measuring the jump height of different skaters. This post is about how to analyze videos of performances to do so, for anyone that might want to calculate a skater's jump height on their own. As you can imagine, it may be somewhat conceptually dense, though I think it's simply a matter of thinking through the various issues, and I try to lay out the reasoning in detail.

The TL;DR version is this: Take a video of the skater's jump, usually 25 FPS or 30 FPS. If it's 30 FPS, watch on frame-by-frame and look for identical (repeated) frames. If it has any, it's likely really just 25 FPS (with frames inserted). If it doesn't, then it's 30 FPS. Take the difference between the first frame where the skater is in the air, and the first frame where the skater lands (touches the ice). Then plug that number of frames into the following:

Height (in centimeters) = 981 * (frames/FPS/2)^2 / 2

For example, if the skater's first frame in the air was frame 2526, and the skater's first frame on the ice was frame 2539, then the number of frames was 13. For a 25 FPS video, this becomes:

Height = 981 * (13/25/2)^2 / 2 = 981 * (0.26)^2 / 2 = 33 cm

The error in measurement varies from 5 cm for a 25 FPS video to 2 cm for a 60 FPS video.

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A skater's jump height is an important indicator of how many rotations they can achieve in the air. The greater the height, the more time they have to rotate and thus the more rotations they can do. Height is also one bullet point for a jump's GOE (Grade Of Execution) score.

Making some basic assumptions about the skater, such as that air resistance is negligible and that the skater's legs are fully extended (or similarly extended) for takeoff and landing, the height can be calculated from the jump duration by the following:

height = (gravity) * ((duration/2)^2) / 2

This is based on the equation of motion for a body under uniform acceleration. The reason why the duration is divided in half is because the skater is moving upward for half of the jump's time, then vertically is stopped (regardless of the horizontal motion), then accelerates downwards for the latter half of the jump. The vertical distance traveled during the second half (which is the same as the distance during the first half) gives the height of the jump. Gravity is taken to be 9.81 m/s^2. So for example, if a skater is in the air for 0.6 seconds, then the height of the jump would be:

height = (9.81 m/s^2) * ((0.6 s/2)^2) / 2
= 9.81 * (0.3)^2 / 2
= 0.44 m or 44 cm

So although this is about measuring jump height, this is somewhat misleading. What is actually measured is the jump duration, and the jump height is then inferred from that.

The only remaining question, then, is how to measure how long the skater was in the air during the jump.

One way to measure the jump duration is by using a video of the skater's jump. Videos consist of image frames displayed one after another, usually with a set duration between each frame. A video's Frames Per Second (FPS) is the reciprocal of the duration. For example, a video that plays at 25 FPS has a duration of 0.04 seconds between each frame. The error of the measurement is related to the duration between each frame. Thus, a higher FPS means a lower error in measuring jump height. Assuming an error of +- 1 frame, the measurement error of a jump lasting about half a second, corresponding to a height of about 31 cm, for different FPS is below:

FPS Error
60 2 cm
50 2.4 cm
30 4 cm
25 5 cm

As you can see, the error is significant relative to the height at the lower FPS. 25 and 30 FPS are common. 50 FPS is rare, and is usually really just 25 FPS interlaced that has been de-interlaced. I will occasionally see 60 FPS but it's pretty rare, and usually means a very big video file.

To count the number of frames, take the difference between the first frame when the skater first leaves the ice (i.e. skates no longer touching the ice) and the first frame when the skater first lands (i.e. first skate touches the ice). Keep in mind that the skater actually took off sometime in between the last frame when the skate was touching the ice and the first frame when no skate is touching the ice, and also landed sometime in between the last frame when no skate is touching the ice and the first frame where the skate is touching the ice.

As a practical matter, determining this can sometimes be difficult, and I think this is where a lot of the arguments, err, internet discussion, can occur. For example, depending on the video resolution and brightness/contrast settings, it can be difficult to tell if the toe pick was still touching the ice or not in a given frame. Because of this, I tend to let one "inform" the other. For example, let's say a skater's toe pick was barely on the ice at frame 459 and clearly in the air at frame 460, and when I look at the landing, the skater was clearly in the air at frame 473 and clearly on the ice at frame 475, but I'm not sure if it was on the ice or not at frame 474. In this case, I'm more likely to use frame 475, because the skater (based on the takeoff) was in the air for longer than what the frame count would suggest. Thus, I try to match the conditions of the takeoff and jump: I try to match a "barely took off" with a "barely landed", and a "clearly took off" with a "clearly landed", when necessary.

Some other considerations for the video are its resolution and its brightness/contrast. Higher resolution means more detail can be seen, which makes it easier to determine when the skate has left the ice. Brightness and contrast affect whether or not you can judge this; a video that's too bright, or has too high of a contrast, will make the ice completely white, making it difficult to gauge if the skate is in contact with the ice or not. Obviously, the video should show the skater's skates, and the more zoomed in on the skater, the easier it is to judge if the skate is in contact with the ice.

Occasionally, the replays that are shown while waiting for the skater's scores can be used. But I find that in practice this is tricky; they can only be used if they are from the same camera, and are not simply the same footage with just repeated frames inserted. The math for using replays is similar (although it needs to take into account how much slower the replay is being run), except significantly more checks need to be done to make sure that the replay can be appropriately used. But occasionally they can provide very accurate determinations of a skater's jump height.
 

Vanshilar

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 24, 2014
This post will be for measurement results for different skaters at events.

I think in providing the results it's important to consider the circumstances surrounding the jump:
* How late in the program the jump was performed. Early ones tend to be higher, since the skater has more energy left. Therefore, I list how long after the music started when the jump began. I may be a second or two off with this but I don't think it needs that level of precision.
* Whether the jump was done in combination or not. I'm not a skating expert but I *believe* that a jump following another, such as a triple toe after a triple lutz, is somewhat lower but rotates faster than if the jump (such as triple toe) were done on its own. At any rate, I include this information.
* Whether the jump was judged under-rotated or the skater fell on the jump. This indicates that there may have been something lacking in the execution of this particular jump attempt, and therefore it may not indicate the skater's usual jump height. I don't think wrong edges matter, but I'll include them simply because I basically copy from the judges' scorecard.

For each analysis I will try to provide a link to the original video, as well as the FPS and the error. I only ran through these results once (i.e. I didn't go back and double-check them) so anyone is free to look at the videos for themselves and let me know if there are any errors.

The format is: jump notes (combo order), time in program: duration (height)

Tuktamysheva, Elizaveta
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzh0Hha3KRQ (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
3Lz (1/3), 18 s: 0.64 s (50 cm)
2T (2/3), 19 s: 0.44 s (24 cm)
2Lo (3/3), 20 s: 0.42 s (22 cm)
3Lz, 37 s: 0.62 s (47 cm)
3F, 50 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
3T (1/2), 121 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)
3T (2/2), 122 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
3Lo, 132 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
3S (1/2), 148 s: 0.50 s (31 cm)
2A (2/2), 151 s: 0.50 s (31 cm)
2A, 200 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)

Radionova, Elena
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ex3fEoGU1o (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 29 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)
3T, 31 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)
3F, 43 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
3Lz, 73 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)
3Lo (1/3), 150 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
1Lo (2/3), 151 s: 0.12 s (2 cm)
3S (3/3), 152 s: 0.44 s (24 cm)
2A, 164 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)
2A, 176 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)
3Lo (1/2), 189 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
2T (2/2), 191 s: 0.36 s (16 cm)

Wagner, Ashley
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC4MkorU-4w (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
2A, 28 s: 0.48 s (28 cm)
3F (1/2), 52 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
3T (2/2), 53 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)
2A (1/2), 64 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)
2T (2/2), 65 s: 0.34 s (14 cm)
3Lo (1/3), 127 s: can't tell (camera was panned out)
1Lo (2/3), 128 s: can't tell (camera was panned out)
3S< (3/3), 129 s: can't tell (camera was panned out)
3F, 146 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)
3Lo, 159 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
3Lz, 213 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)

Pogorilaya, Anna
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZFJvmOhygY (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 26 s: 0.60 s (44 cm)
3T (2/2), 28 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
3Lo (1/3), 46 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
1Lo < (2/3), 47 s: didn't measure
3S (3/3) fall, 48 s: 0.44 s (24 cm)
3F !, 130 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 142 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)
2T (2/2), 144 s: 0.38 s (18 cm)
2A, 155 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
2A, 168 s: 0.48 s (28 cm)
3Lo, 181 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)

Lipnitskaya, Julia
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hx5Du8vTJg (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 30 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)
3T (2/2), 31 s: 0.48 s (28 cm)
2A < fall, 48 s: 0.44 s (24 cm)
3Lo, 128 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
2A (1/3), 141 s: 0.44 s (24 cm)
3T (2/3), 142 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
2T (3/3), 144 s: 0.36 s (16 cm)
1F e, 158 s: 0.42 s (22 cm)
2F ! fall, 176 s: 0.44 s (24 cm)
2S, 192 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)

Hanyu, Yuzuru
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LG31sjv5tS8 (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
4S, 21 s: 0.66 s (53 cm)
4T, 41 s: 0.70 s (60 cm)
3F, 55 s: 0.62 s (47 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 142 s: 0.64 s (50 cm)
2T (2/2), 144 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)
3A (1/2), 161 s: 0.62 s (47 cm)
3T (2/2), 162 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
3A (1/3), 182 s: 0.62 s (47 cm)
1Lo (2/3), 183 s: 0.16 s (3 cm)
3S (3/3), 184 s: 0.50 s (31 cm)
3Lo, 195 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
3Lz < fall, 206 s: 0.60 s (44 cm)

Fernandez, Javier
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0tTPFPlV5Y (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
4T, 23 s: 0.70 s (60 cm)
3S (1/2), 44 s: 0.60 s (44 cm)
2T (2/2), 45 s: 0.58 s (41 cm)
3A, 61 s: 0.60 s (44 cm)
4S, 142 s: 0.66 s (53 cm)
3F (1/3), 158 s: 0.56 s (38 cm)
1Lo (2/3), 159 s: didn't measure
3S (3/3), 160 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)
3Lo, 172 s: 0.58 s (41 cm)
1Lz (1/2), 191 s: 0.32 s (13 cm)
2T (2/2), 192 s: 0.40 s (20 cm)
3T, 202 s: 0.52 s (33 cm)

Voronov, Sergei
2014 Grand Prix Final (Barcelona) Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCTMvpyxJ60 (50 FPS via clipconverter.cc, error is +-0.02 s or +-2.4 cm)
4T, 19 s: 0.68 s (57 cm)
3A (1/2), 41 s: 0.68 s (57 cm)
2T (2/2), 42 s: 0.46 s (26 cm)
3T (1/2), 60 s: 0.68 s (57 cm)
3T (2/2), 62 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
3Lz, 82 s: 0.58 s (41 cm)
3A, 179 s: 0.68 s (57 cm)
3S, 191 s: 0.54 s (36 cm)
3Lo (1/3), 201 s: 0.60 s (44 cm)
2T (2/3), 203 s: 0.42 s (22 cm)
2Lo (3/3), 204 s: 0.42 s (22 cm)
2A, 209 s: 0.60 s (44 cm)

These are some results from the Olympics Individual Ladies Short Program. The video was 25 FPS but was interlaced, so I used Avidemux to separate the interlaced frames and effectively convert the video to 50 FPS (albeit at half the resolution). Additionally, some replays, when usable, were played at 1/3, so those jumps were analyzed at the equivalent of 150 FPS (0.00667 s per frame).

The format is the jump, special marks (such as under-rotations or falls), which jump in a combination or sequence if applicable, how late in the program the jump occurred, the jump duration and error, the height and error, and marking if it was based on a replay or not. The heights were based on the jump duration. The height duration error was calculated by taking the difference between if the duration were one frame shorter and one frame longer, and dividing in half.

Sotnikova, Adelina
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3T (1/2), 32 s: 0.64 +- 0.02 s (50 +- 3 cm)
3T (2/2), 34 s: 0.52 +- 0.02 s (33 +- 3 cm)
3F, 58 s: 0.6 +- 0.02 s (44 +- 3 cm)
2A, 94 s: 0.54 +- 0.02 s (36 +- 3 cm)

Kim, Yuna
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3Lz (1/2), 24 s: 0.63 +- 0.007 s (48 +- 1 cm) (replay)
3T (2/2), 26 s: 0.53 +- 0.007 s (35 +- 1 cm) (replay)
3F, 53 s: 0.58 +- 0.02 s (41 +- 3 cm)
2A, 85 s: 0.54 +- 0.02 s (36 +- 3 cm)

Asada, Mao
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3A < fall, 26 s: 0.66 +- 0.02 s (53 +- 3 cm)
3F <, 51 s: 0.52 +- 0.02 s (33 +- 3 cm)
2Lo, 105 s: 0.48 +- 0.02 s (28 +- 2 cm)

Kostner, Carolina
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3F (1/2), 29 s: 0.64 +- 0.007 s (50 +- 1 cm) (replay)
3T (2/2), 31 s: 0.49 +- 0.007 s (30 +- 1 cm) (replay)
3Lo, 49 s: 0.58 +- 0.02 s (41 +- 3 cm)
2A, 106 s: 0.5 +- 0.02 s (31 +- 2 cm)

Gold, Gracie
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3Lz (1/2), 32 s: 0.6 +- 0.02 s (44 +- 3 cm)
3T (2/2), 34 s: 0.46 +- 0.02 s (26 +- 2 cm)
3Lo, 95 s: 0.52 +- 0.02 s (33 +- 3 cm)
2A, 113 s: 0.5 +- 0.02 s (31 +- 2 cm)

Lipnitskaya, Julia
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3Lz (1/2), 29 s: 0.52 +- 0.02 s (33 +- 3 cm)
3T (2/2), 31 s: 0.5 +- 0.02 s (31 +- 2 cm)
2A, 44 s: 0.47 +- 0.007 s (27 +- 1 cm) (replay)
3F << fall, 119 s: 0.46 +- 0.02 s (26 +- 2 cm)

Wagner, Ashley
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3F (1/2), 27 s: 0.56 +- 0.02 s (38 +- 3 cm)
3T << (2/2), 28 s: 0.42 +- 0.02 s (22 +- 2 cm)
3Lo, 90 s: 0.52 +- 0.02 s (33 +- 3 cm)
2A, 108 s: 0.46 +- 0.02 s (26 +- 2 cm)

Suzuki, Akiko
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3T <<, 26 s: 0.53 +- 0.007 s (34 +- 1 cm) (replay)
3Lz (1/2), 48 s: 0.5 +- 0.02 s (31 +- 2 cm)
2T (2/2), 49 s: not measured (can't see skate)
2A, 111 s: 0.5 +- 0.02 s (31 +- 2 cm)

Edmunds, Polina
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Short Program
Torrent file (XXII Зимние ... программа.mpg) (25 FPS interlaced, analyzed as de-interlaced at 50 FPS)
3Lz (1/2), 22 s: 0.6 +- 0.02 s (44 +- 3 cm)
3T < (2/2), 23 s: 0.44 +- 0.02 s (24 +- 2 cm)
3F, 43 s: 0.59 +- 0.007 s (42 +- 1 cm) (replay)
2A, 139 s: 0.48 +- 0.02 s (28 +- 2 cm)

These are some results from the Olympics Individual Ladies Free Skate. The video itself ran at 25 FPS, so the results are not very precise. Some of the measurements were based on replays, resulting in higher accuracy. There were generally two types of replays. The first ran at 3x slower than regular speed (checked by syncing up with the images when the program played at regular speed), so it basically showed video at the equivalent of 75 FPS. The second had some skipped frames and uneven timings, so its results were not used. Whether or not replay was used in the measurements was indicated in parentheses.

The format is the jump, special marks (such as under-rotations or falls), which jump in a combination or sequence if applicable, how late in the program the jump occurred, the jump duration and error, the height and error, and marking if it was based on a replay or not. The heights were based on the jump duration. The height duration error was calculated by taking the difference between if the duration were one frame shorter and one frame longer, and dividing in half.

I did this for the 12 highest scoring skaters in the free skate, let me know if I should do it for the other 12 skaters as well.

Sotnikova, Adelina
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 31 s: 0.6 +- 0.04 s (44 +- 6 cm)
3T (2/2), 33 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
3F, 60 s: 0.6 +- 0.013 s (44 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3Lo, 73 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2A (1/2), 134 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 136 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3F (1/3), 152 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/3), 153 s: 0.4 +- 0.04 s (20 +- 4 cm)
2Lo (3/3), 154 s: 0.4 +- 0.04 s (20 +- 4 cm)
3S, 167 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2A, 175 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)

Kim, Yuna
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 21 s: 0.6 +- 0.04 s (44 +- 6 cm)
3T (2/2), 22 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3F, 41 s: 0.56 +- 0.014 s (38 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3S (1/2), 62 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/2), 63 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
3Lz x, 149 s: 0.6 +- 0.04 s (44 +- 6 cm)
2A (1/3), 162 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/3), 164 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
2Lo (3/3), 165 s: 0.32 +- 0.04 s (13 +- 3 cm)
3S, 180 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
2A, 225 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)

Asada, Mao
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3A, 26 s: 0.65 +- 0.013 s (52 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3F (1/2), 47 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3Lo < (2/2), 48 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3Lz e, 67 s: 0.56 +- 0.013 s (38 +- 2 cm) (replay)
2A (1/2), 140 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3T < (2/2), 142 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3S, 152 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3F (1/3), 168 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2Lo (2/3), 169 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)
2Lo (3/3), 170 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)
3Lo, 180 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)

Kostner, Carolina
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3Lz, 27 s: 0.64 +- 0.04 s (50 +- 6 cm)
2A (1/2), 47 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 48 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3F, 64 s: 0.63 +- 0.013 s (48 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3Lo, 125 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3T (1/2), 142 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/2), 144 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)
3S, 155 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3S (1/3), 169 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/3), 171 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)
2T (3/3), 172 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)

Gold, Gracie
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 20 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 22 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
2A (1/2), 39 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 41 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3Lo, 51 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3F e fall, 135 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3Lz, 152 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3S (1/3), 166 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/3), 168 s: 0.28 +- 0.04 s (10 +- 3 cm)
2T (3/3), 169 s: 0.28 +- 0.04 s (10 +- 3 cm)
2A, 217 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)

Lipnitskaya, Julia
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 31 s: 0.53 +- 0.013 s (35 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3T (2/2), 33 s: 0.49 +- 0.013 s (30 +- 2 cm) (replay)
2A (1/3), 48 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
3T (2/3), 50 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (3/3), 51 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)
3F, 126 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
2A, 139 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3Lo <, 155 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3S fall, 176 s: 0.51 +- 0.013 s (31 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3Lz e (1/2), 190 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/2), 190 s: didn't measure (skates out of camera field of view)

Wagner, Ashley
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3F (1/2), 26 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3T < (2/2), 27 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
2A, 49 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
3S, 65 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3Lo (1/2), 123 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2A (2/2), 125 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
3Lz e, 138 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3Lo, 151 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3F (1/3), 206 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/3), 207 s: 0.32 +- 0.04 s (13 +- 3 cm)
2T (3/3), 209 s: 0.32 +- 0.04 s (13 +- 3 cm)

Suzuki, Akiko
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3Lz (1/3), 27 s: 0.55 +- 0.013 s (37 +- 2 cm) (replay)
2T (2/3), 28 s: 0.33 +- 0.013 s (14 +- 1 cm) (replay)
2Lo (3/3), 29 s: 0.32 +- 0.013 s (13 +- 1 cm) (replay)
2A (1/2), 45 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/2), 46 s: 0.4 +- 0.04 s (20 +- 4 cm)
3Lz, 64 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3F e fall, 150 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3Lo, 167 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3S (1/2), 179 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/2), 181 s: 0.28 +- 0.04 s (10 +- 3 cm)
3S, 211 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)

Edmunds, Polina
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 20 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 22 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
3F (1/3), 46 s: 0.59 +- 0.013 s (42 +- 2 cm) (replay)
1Lo (2/3), 48 s: 0.16 +- 0.013 s (3 +- 1 cm) (replay)
3S (3/3), 49 s: 0.49 +- 0.013 s (30 +- 2 cm) (replay)
2A, 85 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3F < fall, 151 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3Lz, 163 s: 0.6 +- 0.04 s (44 +- 6 cm)
3Lo (1/2), 204 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/2), 205 s: 0.32 +- 0.04 s (13 +- 3 cm)
2A, 220 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)

Marchei, Valentina
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
2A (1/2), 33 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 34 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3Lz, 54 s: 0.64 +- 0.04 s (50 +- 6 cm)
3F e, 76 s: 0.6 +- 0.04 s (44 +- 6 cm)
2A, 86 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3S, 174 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3Lz (1/2), 193 s: 0.64 +- 0.04 s (50 +- 6 cm)
2T (2/2), 195 s: 0.32 +- 0.04 s (13 +- 3 cm)
2S (1/3), 228 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
1T (2/3), 229 s: 0.28 +- 0.04 s (10 +- 3 cm)
2T (3/3), 230 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)

Meite, Mae Berenice
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
2A, 12 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3S (1/2), 25 s: 0.52 +- 0.013 s (33 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3T (2/2), 27 s: 0.56 +- 0.013 s (38 +- 2 cm) (replay)
3Lz, 45 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3F, 65 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3Lo fall, 86 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3Lo (1/3), 169 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/3), 171 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
2T (3/3), 172 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
2A (1/2), 188 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 189 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)

Murakami, Kanako
2014 Olympics (Sochi) Free Skate
Torrent file (Sochi 2014 ... ARD HD) (25 FPS, error is +-0.04 s or about +-5 cm)
3T (1/2), 22 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 23 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3Lz e, 42 s: 0.57 +- 0.013 s (40 +- 2 cm) (replay)
2Lo, 59 s: 0.48 +- 0.04 s (28 +- 5 cm)
3F (1/2), 135 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2T (2/2), 137 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)
3F, 154 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2A, 163 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3S (1/2), 180 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2Lo (2/2), 182 s: 0.36 +- 0.04 s (16 +- 4 cm)

Analysis of Midori Ito's jumps:

Ito, Midori
1989 World? Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FiPOgClYWw (30 FPS)
3Lz, 23 s: 0.57 +- 0.033 s (39 +- 5 cm)
3A, 54 s: 0.7 +- 0.033 s (60 +- 6 cm)
3F, 68 s: 0.6 +- 0.033 s (44 +- 5 cm)
2T, 79 s: 0.43 +- 0.033 s (23 +- 4 cm)
3Lo, 118 s: 0.53 +- 0.033 s (35 +- 4 cm)
3T (1/2), 186 s: 0.53 +- 0.033 s (35 +- 4 cm)
3T (2/2), 188 s: 0.53 +- 0.033 s (35 +- 4 cm)
3S, 223 s: 0.5 +- 0.033 s (31 +- 4 cm)
2A, 232 s: 0.6 +- 0.033 s (44 +- 5 cm)

Ito, Midori
1990 Worlds Free Skate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvgWI8QDrzQ (25 FPS)
3Lz, 17 s: 0.64 +- 0.04 s (50 +- 6 cm)
3A, 54 s: 0.72 +- 0.04 s (64 +- 7 cm)
3F, 99 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
2S, 146 s: 0.44 +- 0.04 s (24 +- 4 cm)
3L, 171 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)
3T (1/2), 206 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
3T (2/2), 208 s: 0.52 +- 0.04 s (33 +- 5 cm)
2A, 240 s: 0.56 +- 0.04 s (38 +- 5 cm)

If there are any discrepancies (if you count a different number of frames or if I didn't list a fall etc.), let me know.
 
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HanDomi

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 27, 2014
:jaw:


Yuzu and Javi have identical heights on their quad sal and toe :biggrin:
 
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shiroKJ

Back to the forest you go.
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 9, 2014
Wow! Thank you so much for this. :bow: Its interesting to see the differences...Maybe in the future, once we have more data we could see how much the time and height differs between single jumps and ones done in combination as well :popcorn:
 

Meoima

Match Penalty
Joined
Feb 13, 2014
:jaw:
Yuzu and Javi have identical heights on their quad sal and toe :biggrin:
same coach you know :dance:

PS: Vanshilar, can you help us with the short program? I think jumps in short programs might be different to jumps in the long. Thank you. :)
 
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Meoima

Match Penalty
Joined
Feb 13, 2014
Liza's lutz is huge!!!! 50cm :jaw:
yes, the same height as Yuzuru's luzt :shocked:
And I've thought Yuzuru's luzt is iffy.

Maybe Liza can do a quad one day. :dance: 3A is possible for her I know.
 
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AprilS

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 10, 2014
:bow: :clap: btw, how does horizontal distance factor into all of this? I'm not too familiar on the physics of trajectory. :p (sorry if I missed it in your original post about how the math was applied)
 
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CarneAsada

Medalist
Joined
Sep 17, 2011
:bow: :clap: btw, how does horizontal distance factor into all of this? I'm not too familiar on the physics of trajectory. :p (sorry if I missed it in your original post about how the math was applied)
Horizontal distance is independent of vertical. It's determined by the horizontal speed as the skater takes off. Measuring horizontal distance from video is much, much more difficult (maybe not impossible but any measurement has huge uncertainties) than jump height which we can calculate from air time (easily calculated with relatively small uncertainty) and gravitational acceleration (which varies a bit from pole to equator but can be approximated as constant). The varying camera angles, camera panning during the jumps, zooming in/out, everything adds to the difficulty of calculating horizontal distance from video (makes it pretty much impossible). You'd have to be there live and take a tape measure to the ice marks.
 

Vanshilar

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 24, 2014
I've updated the measurements with some from Olympics FS. Take those measurements with a grain of salt because they're somewhat preliminary right now, I need to double-check them (they're an older set from before I starting using my current method) and they're from a 25 FPS video so the measurement errors are fairly large. But they should be in the right ballpark.

My goodness! Which skaters are you planning to do this for?

Really, just whichever skaters people seem to be most interested in. Since my time is limited, I have to prioritize them.

PS: Vanshilar, can you help us with the short program? I think jumps in short programs might be different to jumps in the long. Thank you. :)

Yeah, I'll try to get through most of the GPF SP ones, since the Youtube user that I'm getting these videos from (GutsuFan) has the SP videos in 50 FPS as well. (I've skipped Rika Hongo but if people think I should include her for completeness or interest um let me know.)

Horizontal distance is independent of vertical. It's determined by the horizontal speed as the skater takes off. Measuring horizontal distance from video is much, much more difficult (maybe not impossible but any measurement has huge uncertainties) than jump height which we can calculate from air time (easily calculated with relatively small uncertainty) and gravitational acceleration (which varies a bit from pole to equator but can be approximated as constant). The varying camera angles, camera panning during the jumps, zooming in/out, everything adds to the difficulty of calculating horizontal distance from video (makes it pretty much impossible). You'd have to be there live and take a tape measure to the ice marks.

Actually...when I get around to writing about measuring jump rotation (such as how under-rotated a jump was) I'll talk about measuring horizontal distance from video. It's just from a fancam of the entire rink though (not from a zoomed-in network camera). Basically, in order to measure the jump rotation, I need to establish the skater's x-y coordinates in the rink at both takeoff and landing, and also the video camera's x-y coordinates, in order to determine the camera's angle offset. In doing so, it's easy to calculate the horizontal distance traveled by the jump. (I will also calculate the skater's speed going into the jump, simply by looking at the several frames preceding the jump, as well as the horizontal speed of the jump itself.) But yeah, it's not from the network cameras (which would be difficult), it's based on fancam video that shows the entire rink so I can establish rink coordinates.
 

CarneAsada

Medalist
Joined
Sep 17, 2011
Actually...when I get around to writing about measuring jump rotation (such as how under-rotated a jump was) I'll talk about measuring horizontal distance from video. It's just from a fancam of the entire rink though (not from a zoomed-in network camera). Basically, in order to measure the jump rotation, I need to establish the skater's x-y coordinates in the rink at both takeoff and landing, and also the video camera's x-y coordinates, in order to determine the camera's angle offset. In doing so, it's easy to calculate the horizontal distance traveled by the jump. (I will also calculate the skater's speed going into the jump, simply by looking at the several frames preceding the jump, as well as the horizontal speed of the jump itself.) But yeah, it's not from the network cameras (which would be difficult), it's based on fancam video that shows the entire rink so I can establish rink coordinates.
Oh, right. :bang: I forgot about using fancam video. That definitely is possible, though I do wonder about how much the camera angle might complicate things, as well as the size variation between rinks (aren't Asian rinks often a bit bigger?). For speed into the jump, would you be looking more for the glide speed going in or the speed retained up to takeoff? On some jumps a lot of speed is lost during the jump entry.
 

concorde

Medalist
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
It think it would be interesting to see where several "big" jumpers fit in there - Surya Bonaly and Tonya Harding are two possibilities.
 

hurrah

Medalist
Joined
Aug 8, 2009
Well, after all the years and years of unending talk about Yuna's and Caro's huge jump versus Mao's small jumps, it turns out that Mao's triple-axel jump is the queen of all jumps, and she has the highest average jump height out of everyone!

Yuna's 3ltz+3f+3sal+2axel jump height average is 35.75
Caro's 3ltz+3f+3sal+3loop+2axel jump height average is 36.4
Mao's 3ltz+3f+3sal+3loop+2axel jump height average is 37
Mao's 3axel+3ltz+3f+3sal+3loop+2axel jump height average is 40.3
 

Meoima

Match Penalty
Joined
Feb 13, 2014
Well, after all the years and years of unending talk about Yuna's and Caro's huge jump versus Mao's small jumps, it turns out that Mao's triple-axel jump is the queen of all jumps, and she has the highest average jump height out of everyone!

Yuna's 3ltz+3f+3sal+2axel jump height average is 35.75
Caro's 3ltz+3f+3sal+3loop+2axel jump height average is 36.4
Mao's 3ltz+3f+3sal+3loop+2axel jump height average is 37
Mao's 3axel+3ltz+3f+3sal+3loop+2axel jump height average is 40.3

You forgot these numbers are only the height. Ice coverage and distance of the jumps count as well...
 
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