I actually agree that the age limits should be uniform, however, I do think that age limits should be there.
What Are the Age Restrictions and Do They Make Sense?
- Thread starter Joesitz (RIP)
- Start date
I actually agree that the age limits should be uniform, however, I do think that age limits should be there.
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2003
Same question. Why is Caroline grown up enough to be exploited, overhyped, and cashed in on at U.S. Nationals, but not grown up enough to be exploited, hyped, and cashed in on at Worlds?
(OT... but specifically about Carolin Z., it was widely reported that the reason she signed with Shep Goldberg (Michelle's agent) was so that he could provide a buffer between her and the media, would-be exploiters, and hangers-on.)
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2003
I don't see the Rule as protecting little Caroline. In skating circles, she is already known in N.America, and opinions about her are already in. Some pro; some con; based on opinions of viewing her during a major ISU GPFinal. She's going to practice heavily for Nats and on the international scene at Jr. Nats. So there is no preventing her from injuries, and she will meet up on hype at these events.
On the question of Mao winning the GPF last season where she arguably won over the leading contender but was prevented from proving that at the subsequent Worlds (if the leading contender was to skate in it). Well, the Japanese press did take advantage of her based on the GPF. The rule did not apply all the way.
So if excessive hype is the problem then the age restriction should also apply to the GPs.
Injuries do happen, but I've seen little girls falling and hurting themselves without skates on outside the rink practicing axels.
Joe
On the question of Mao winning the GPF last season where she arguably won over the leading contender but was prevented from proving that at the subsequent Worlds (if the leading contender was to skate in it). Well, the Japanese press did take advantage of her based on the GPF. The rule did not apply all the way.
So if excessive hype is the problem then the age restriction should also apply to the GPs.
Injuries do happen, but I've seen little girls falling and hurting themselves without skates on outside the rink practicing axels.
Joe
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2003
Yes, make it consistent. It degrades the GPF as an insignificant competition.
Some gems here, Eddie, but maybe for Late Spring and summer time discussions.
Joe
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2004
No particular reason except that different bodies are making the decisions and probably use slightly different criteria (assuming they've thought about this, which is maybe not the best assumption to make).
Her participation at US Nats is made by USFSA, her participation at Worlds is made by ISU.
That doesn't bother me at all (and is how I think things should work with national feds being able to make their own decisions about national competitions) but ISU deciding she can participate in one kind of senior competition and not another is just as stupid and convoluted as .... almost every other decision made by the ISU.
Thanks for the chuckle. :agree:
If the age rule is meant to reduce the chances of injuries, it's inconsistent with the way the CoP aggressively pushes toward triple jumps. Although I don't know all of the reasons why jumps are valued the way they are, it's apparent that triple jumps are over-valued. (The values of triples should be reduced and quads should have at least 2 times bigger GoE penalties/bonuses. I think those two things would help answer the biggest complaints about the CoP system.)
Making 14 year olds ineligible for the GPF would add further consistency. Most of the top 40 ladies competed in the GPs while most of the top 10 ladies competed in the GPF. The GPF is more prestigious, earns more money, and earns more ranking points than the GPs. The GPF is at least as important as the European and Four Continents Championships. For Caroline, though, I wish Four Continents included a juniors competition.
Personally speaking, I also feel that 14- year olds with short skirts performing spirals to be inappropriate for general audiences, but I imagine that could be solved by a costume rule.
Making 14 year olds ineligible for the GPF would add further consistency. Most of the top 40 ladies competed in the GPs while most of the top 10 ladies competed in the GPF. The GPF is more prestigious, earns more money, and earns more ranking points than the GPs. The GPF is at least as important as the European and Four Continents Championships. For Caroline, though, I wish Four Continents included a juniors competition.
Personally speaking, I also feel that 14- year olds with short skirts performing spirals to be inappropriate for general audiences, but I imagine that could be solved by a costume rule.
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I think the USFSA should talk to the other major skating federations and appeal to ISU to make the age limit at all senior int'l competitions to be 14, and also lower junior age limit to 13 (it seems absurd to have only 1-year difference between the JGP and GP age limits current in force). I have several thoughts.
1) One major argument for the age limit is to prevent injury:
Miki landed her quad, Mao her 3A, and Yu-na her 3-3 all in JGP's -- and one might argue that attempting them early on and frequently are part of what make these jumps consistent when they're seniors, certainly the statistics would agree with this. Being excluded from senior competitions definitely isn't preventing young skaters from trying hard jumps.
2) Another argument is that winning major competitions early make skaters retire young and ISU to lose excitement/revenue:
We saw that with Baiul, Lipinski, and S Hughes. But those were also highly anticipated and closely watched competitions that generated a lot of publicity and high ratings. The general public, just as serious fans, are all fascinated by the battle between young up-starts and seasoned veterans. It's part of human nature. In contrast, the 2006 Olympics was relatively staid. Including the young phenoms Mao and Yu-na would've made it much more exciting, and perhaps we wouldn't be experiencing the lull in skating audiencehood now. Don't forget that Yu-na beat Mao in JW that year, and probably not being eligible for the Olympics/WC played part in Yu-na's decision to stay a junior. Besides, even if one of them won the OGM and decided to retire (I don't think Mao would've, but Yu-na might have since she was prone to injury and low motivation at the time), the other at least would've stayed on for the next Olympics.
3) Having youngsters winning big competitions early on allow companies/media to exploit them early on:
The Japanese media is the biggest offender in this respect: but they have been dogging Mao since her JGP days, and certainly through her first GP season culminating in beating Irina Slutskaya at the Final, before she was eligible for ISU competitions. Also, don't forget that that getting media exposure/sponsorship deals work for the skater as well! They can always decline interviews before major competitions (like Kwan used to, and as Caroline Z does now), they don't have to agree to be on tours or appear in sponsorship ads or agree to magazine interviews. But it's a great source of income and means of generating publicity/fan support for these hard-working athletes whose families have to spend a LOT of money on their training. Especially for relatively poor countries, or countries in which skating is not much noticed, or countries with so many great skaters that sponsorship isn't enough to go around (Yukari Nakano comes to mind), young skaters often have a hard time generating financial assistance without participating in major competitions.
4) 12 is too young for JGP/JW?
Why?! Skaters in countries with very developed skating culture (US, Japan, Canada) have plenty of domestic competitions at every level, plus tests, so that they're doing all this competing and training hard jumps from early on. JGP/JW can only help them by giving them experience with international competition (and judging) early on. It helps countries with less of a skating culture even more, as their talented skaters have very little opportunity to participate in a quality competition otherwise. If you have never competed in any quality competition until 13, like Elene Gedanvanishili, I can imagine that it must be hard to adapt to the pressure of competition and the stress of traveling, etc.
Finally, all the major skating countries (US, Russia, Japan, China) have young skaters who are age-eligible for GP but not ISU championships, or else young skaters who are good enough to medal in JGP's but aren't eligible to participate. I think USFSA should talk to these other federations ASAP, and appeal to ISU to change the age limits.
They should do this ASAP, preferably getting it initiated before US National's, so that domestically it doesn't look like USFSA is favoring a particular skater(s). Even though the rules probably can't be changed in time for the upcoming WC (affecting the US pairs M/B, Russian pairs B/L, US ladies Caroline Z, Mirai N, Rachael F), nor in time for the next GP/JGP series (affecting the Japanese ladies skater Yuki Nishino, the Chinese junior skater Bingwa Geng, and possibly the Russian junior skater Elizaveta Tuktamysheva)... the skating federations shouldn't be so short-sighted and only consider what's good for their own country at the current moment in voting on this issue.
1) One major argument for the age limit is to prevent injury:
Miki landed her quad, Mao her 3A, and Yu-na her 3-3 all in JGP's -- and one might argue that attempting them early on and frequently are part of what make these jumps consistent when they're seniors, certainly the statistics would agree with this. Being excluded from senior competitions definitely isn't preventing young skaters from trying hard jumps.
2) Another argument is that winning major competitions early make skaters retire young and ISU to lose excitement/revenue:
We saw that with Baiul, Lipinski, and S Hughes. But those were also highly anticipated and closely watched competitions that generated a lot of publicity and high ratings. The general public, just as serious fans, are all fascinated by the battle between young up-starts and seasoned veterans. It's part of human nature. In contrast, the 2006 Olympics was relatively staid. Including the young phenoms Mao and Yu-na would've made it much more exciting, and perhaps we wouldn't be experiencing the lull in skating audiencehood now. Don't forget that Yu-na beat Mao in JW that year, and probably not being eligible for the Olympics/WC played part in Yu-na's decision to stay a junior. Besides, even if one of them won the OGM and decided to retire (I don't think Mao would've, but Yu-na might have since she was prone to injury and low motivation at the time), the other at least would've stayed on for the next Olympics.
3) Having youngsters winning big competitions early on allow companies/media to exploit them early on:
The Japanese media is the biggest offender in this respect: but they have been dogging Mao since her JGP days, and certainly through her first GP season culminating in beating Irina Slutskaya at the Final, before she was eligible for ISU competitions. Also, don't forget that that getting media exposure/sponsorship deals work for the skater as well! They can always decline interviews before major competitions (like Kwan used to, and as Caroline Z does now), they don't have to agree to be on tours or appear in sponsorship ads or agree to magazine interviews. But it's a great source of income and means of generating publicity/fan support for these hard-working athletes whose families have to spend a LOT of money on their training. Especially for relatively poor countries, or countries in which skating is not much noticed, or countries with so many great skaters that sponsorship isn't enough to go around (Yukari Nakano comes to mind), young skaters often have a hard time generating financial assistance without participating in major competitions.
4) 12 is too young for JGP/JW?
Why?! Skaters in countries with very developed skating culture (US, Japan, Canada) have plenty of domestic competitions at every level, plus tests, so that they're doing all this competing and training hard jumps from early on. JGP/JW can only help them by giving them experience with international competition (and judging) early on. It helps countries with less of a skating culture even more, as their talented skaters have very little opportunity to participate in a quality competition otherwise. If you have never competed in any quality competition until 13, like Elene Gedanvanishili, I can imagine that it must be hard to adapt to the pressure of competition and the stress of traveling, etc.
Finally, all the major skating countries (US, Russia, Japan, China) have young skaters who are age-eligible for GP but not ISU championships, or else young skaters who are good enough to medal in JGP's but aren't eligible to participate. I think USFSA should talk to these other federations ASAP, and appeal to ISU to change the age limits.
They should do this ASAP, preferably getting it initiated before US National's, so that domestically it doesn't look like USFSA is favoring a particular skater(s). Even though the rules probably can't be changed in time for the upcoming WC (affecting the US pairs M/B, Russian pairs B/L, US ladies Caroline Z, Mirai N, Rachael F), nor in time for the next GP/JGP series (affecting the Japanese ladies skater Yuki Nishino, the Chinese junior skater Bingwa Geng, and possibly the Russian junior skater Elizaveta Tuktamysheva)... the skating federations shouldn't be so short-sighted and only consider what's good for their own country at the current moment in voting on this issue.
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Actually it doesn't. The harsh penalties for underrotated jumps means that it's much more beneficial to the scores to do doubles if you don't quite have the triples yet. At the lower levels, I'm seeing far fewer triple attempts at intermediate and novice levels than was the case a few years ago, and fewer double axels in juvenile and intermediate.
And don't forget that the ladies' event at the very first COP competition (2003 Nebelhorn) was won by a skater who attempted only the easier two triples ahead of skaters with four or five in their repertoires.
http://www.isufs.org/events/nt03/NT03_Ladies_SP_Scores.pdf
http://www.isufs.org/events/nt03/NT03_Ladies_FP_Scores.pdf
If anything, I'd say that the emphasis on extreme flexibility positions is more likely lead to injuries. But even there, the trend was already in place before the new system came along -- it just encouraged everyone who could already do those positions to include them more often and those who couldn't already to start trying to add them. But flexibility is more easily developed if started in childhood and worked up to gradually than rushed into by adults, so in that case the greater risk would be to the older skaters. And in most cases there are plenty of options for achieving level 3 if not level 4 spins and spirals without extreme flexibility.
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2006
It sounds so funny. I think one cannot prevent any others' great imagination. I don't think long pants and long sleeves can prevent people who see the foreleg, then think about thigh... so on and so on. Why don't we get rid of spirals all together?That's strange! Why not? Do you have a problem watching 14-year-olds with short skirts performing arabesque or lifts in ballet? Or 14-year-old in leotards (skating dresses are basically just leotards plus a skirt) doing bar or beam routines?
Why should one have a problem watching girls (or women) doing those things at any age?
Propriety, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
ETA: Btw skaters *always* wear tights. They're normally skin-colored, but if they were black, then visually it would be clear that they're clothed quite thoroughly. For a long time, I used to just wear a see-through skate skirt over dark tights and leotard on my way to the rink and back, and no one ever paid attention. Then once I switched over to skin-colored tights, suddenly it made people uncomfortable. Actually if you looked closely, you'd realize that my skating tights are quite thick and opaque. *shrug* Now I wear extra pants over the skirt just to save myself the trouble of explaining.
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I would like to see a 14- and 15-year old in junior. This is totally a personal preference. But to me, they are still "kids" both socially and biologically, although I acknowledge that some girls/boys mature earlier than others. Especially because the upper boundary of skaters' ages is increasing, it's a bit difficult for me to compare 27-year-old Irena and 15-year-old Mao. Additionally, I don't think it good for kids to get too much attention at their very young ages. But once you move up to senior, you get a lot more attention than you do as a junior. Although talented skaters like Mao, Mirai, Caroline, and Miki get attention even as a junior, the level of attention is not comparable when you move up to senior.
Granted, age restrictions as a means of preventing injuries probably doesn't work in practice. The principal behind it is at least a baby step towards protecting these very young kids. The problem is that they don't/can't do more towards keeping the kids from being pushed too far when their bodies aren't mature enough to handle the constant pounding.
I see ditching age restrictions as a step back to the days when the well being of the kids wasn't even an issue to the powers-that-be. I really don't understand the objections to age restrictions. Is having a policy that says the welfare and safety of young kids in the sport is important really such a terrible thing? Is the fact that kids are being driven too hard anyway a good reason to stop trying to protect them? We need to do more for the kids, not less. The last thing I would want is for figure skating to go the way of gymnastics. No sport is worth turning kids into near cripples.
I don't care for the lower age limits in the Grand Prix events. It should be a uniform policy. Maybe they think it would be a good opportunity for the kids. They can compete against the Senior skaters without a lot of pressure. If they skate well it's a confidence builder, but no one expects them to win. It could be viewed as a way for the younger skaters to "get their feet wet."
I see ditching age restrictions as a step back to the days when the well being of the kids wasn't even an issue to the powers-that-be. I really don't understand the objections to age restrictions. Is having a policy that says the welfare and safety of young kids in the sport is important really such a terrible thing? Is the fact that kids are being driven too hard anyway a good reason to stop trying to protect them? We need to do more for the kids, not less. The last thing I would want is for figure skating to go the way of gymnastics. No sport is worth turning kids into near cripples.
I don't care for the lower age limits in the Grand Prix events. It should be a uniform policy. Maybe they think it would be a good opportunity for the kids. They can compete against the Senior skaters without a lot of pressure. If they skate well it's a confidence builder, but no one expects them to win. It could be viewed as a way for the younger skaters to "get their feet wet."
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MHO - there should clearly be a consistent age limits for worlds and senior GP, the years difference only serves to make the ISU look even dumber (or is that possible?)
My own taste is I like to see young women skate, not 13 year olds, jumping beans or not. For every Michelle Kwan who skated for so long, there is a Tara who has an artificial hip, and nameless others who never reached the height of the sport but must suffer the consequences of training jumps that their still developing bodies never were meant to withstand.
My own taste is I like to see young women skate, not 13 year olds, jumping beans or not. For every Michelle Kwan who skated for so long, there is a Tara who has an artificial hip, and nameless others who never reached the height of the sport but must suffer the consequences of training jumps that their still developing bodies never were meant to withstand.
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2003
If there are to be age limitations by the ISU, it would be best to have these limits in all ISU events. What is so difficult with that? What would work if there is a reason for the GPs to avoid the age limits, then don't be bashful, just tell everyone what it is. Is that difficult to do? If so, why?
The more one goes into the administration of this so-called sport, the more one finds the 'don't let the fans know because they wouldn't understand.'
Joe
The more one goes into the administration of this so-called sport, the more one finds the 'don't let the fans know because they wouldn't understand.'
Joe
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2006
yes, agreed that jumping put a lot of strain on a young body, the rule donsen't make sense becasue these skaters still try 3 axels, 3/3 combos, quads if they go to worlds or not. Even in juniors Mao was landing 2 triple axles, 3/3 combos... yes the pressure wasn't as high for her to land them, but if the ISU really wanted to help the young skaters they would not be allowed to comepet at the GPF, or Nationals, both very stressful competitons.
another point is that by preventing young skaters who have the ablity from competing at and possibly winning world championships and or the olympics they are pressured to stay in the sport longer, train the jumps longer until so they can get in "next time" and as thier body ages they are more prone to injury...where is the benifit?
What age limits do accomplish are preventing younger skaters from doing ALL the dances that age-eligible skaters are able to do---JGP or GP [sometimes both, for Pairs], "B" Internationals, Euros or 4CC, Jr World and Worlds.
I think the GP should be limited to age-eligible skaters just like the ISU Championships are. Doing an extra year in the JGP isn't a bad thing, IMO.
I think the GP should be limited to age-eligible skaters just like the ISU Championships are. Doing an extra year in the JGP isn't a bad thing, IMO.
I don't pretend to entirely understand the convoluted age restrictions for Jr. v. Sr. national events and internationals...but I have a few observations.
Figure skating is still seen by outsiders (those not in the know regarding the sport) as a gentile sport where ladies are ladies and men are gentlemen. It is my opinion that this ideal of the sport is still carefully manicured by the USFSA and to a lesser degree, the ISU. Insiders (those who follow the sport) know that sometimes training is "unlady-like" - in that it's a whole 'lotta hard work to to make skating look the way it does. Watching Kwan, Cohen and even years ago, Trenary, Yamaguchi ect. train, we would see a lot of hard work, pain and so-on. This is often not seen at events - hence the illusion that the sport is not really a sport. It is my belief that part of the allure of skating is the fact that when done correctly, it does seem so effortless and almost easy - but we know it's not.
I think that many in the USFSA and a certain group of fans would like to bring the "lady" back in to the ladies event - specifically, the Sr. Ladies. This is not meant to be a jab at anyone. I personally, prefer to watch a more mature skater - physically at least, skate. How we define "mature" is the key here. For example (NO FLAMING PLEASE) - C. Zhang appears to stake very maturely on the ice, but she is physically not mature since she is a child. A. Czisny (sp?) skates very maturely and is also physically mature - she is in her 20's and a lady. On the flip side, I would say that E. Hughes tends to skate very immaturely but she is in her 20's as well and is physically mature. Some of this maturity may have to do with simply the skaters age and physical development and some to do with there level of skating - hence the comments, "she skates very juniorish".
As society has progressed (in terms of family structure, dynamics, living situations, expenses ect.) so have the dynamics of skating. 20+ years of ago, it was rare for a skater to be 15 and a national champion - one that lives with one parent or even a sponsor in a different city/country than the rest of the family in order to train. These kind of sacrifices were not often made. Now, it is commonplace. Additionally, kids start skating at a much younger age and with the elimination of figures and in my opinion, too many coaches who are willing to sacrifice sound basic technique for the passage of skating tests, we find ourselves with very young skaters at the junior and senior level. I hardly believe that this is a result of some miraculous genetic alteration that has suddenly created more gifted skaters at younger ages in the last 12-15 years than the previous 100 years.
The USFSA and to some extend, the ISU is in an unenviable position - they have many very young, bright skaters who may very well be some of best in the world, but due to their age, they are ineligible to skate at certain levels. So what are they to do? Send older and presumably more mature skaters who are not as gifted to certain events? Does say, the USFSA reward a child skater who at a given event preform the best but who is not age eligible to skate at Sr. Worlds (Zhang)? Is it healthy - emotionally and physically, to allow such young girls to skate at such a high level? Is the kind of training required to maintain that level dangerous to them? Do age restrictions even work - or do they just create a bottle-neck at the Junior/Senior level where skaters are forced to either remain in Novice level because they are too young to skate in the JGP (but may be better than some of their older counterparts in juniors/seniors). What about skaters who skate in seniors at their national events, but due to age restrictions, skate in the JGP/Jr. Worlds (but who may also be more gifted than their older counterparts). Or do we open the floodgates and innact no age restrictions? Do current age restrictions even help bring back the "lady" to the ladies championship?
I don't pretend to have the answer to these questions. I do however, believe that there are a great many of us fans who would prefer to see a "lady" win the Sr. ladies title - but not at the expense of compromising the competition. The best skater should win. Perhaps instead of placing such convoluted age restrictions at the Jr. and Sr. level, those age restrictions should be placed at the lower levels, to keep skaters from zooming up the ranks at too young an age. By doing this, it forces skaters to mature emotionally, physically and artistically. I understand some may feel this will hold back a truly gifted skater but I submit that most of the truly gifted young skaters that have emerged in the last 12-15 years have done so by failing to master the fundamentals and basics of technical skating - which in the end should harm them, but often doesn't with our present day scoring system (with the exception of the current calling of wrong edge take-off, which I'm so pleased to see
).
I find it very interesting that ice-dancing seems to have less of a problem with age-eligible skaters than singles. (I'm aware that it is much easier for the "youngsters" to master the jumps/spins of singles than older skaters). I realize that this has to do with a small pool of skaters to choose from and a history of ambivelance (sp) towards the discipline. But this is changing - COP is showing that movement within the ranks of Dance is possible and with the success of several American teams, there is now hope that Americans (and even Canadians) can be competitive at the top level of dance. While agree the past history of dance has greatly impacted the present-day age structure and popularity of Dance in N.A, I don't however, feel it is a coincidence that it takes dance teams longer to reach the top levels and we find older people skating. Granted much of this has to do with the type of skating and the comparably less pounding the body takes, but my point is that when dancers reach the top 10, they are older, more mature and developed...perhaps the time, development, technique, ect that is required to develop a strong dance team might also be beneficial to singles as well. I don't believe that only the young, pre-pubescent child skater is the only one who can master all the hard tricks - Many physically and emotionally mature skaters have done it in the past. Perhaps that is why when a "lady" wins the lady's title, it is seen as all the more magical - so some of course.
Cheers,
Dwiggin3
Figure skating is still seen by outsiders (those not in the know regarding the sport) as a gentile sport where ladies are ladies and men are gentlemen. It is my opinion that this ideal of the sport is still carefully manicured by the USFSA and to a lesser degree, the ISU. Insiders (those who follow the sport) know that sometimes training is "unlady-like" - in that it's a whole 'lotta hard work to to make skating look the way it does. Watching Kwan, Cohen and even years ago, Trenary, Yamaguchi ect. train, we would see a lot of hard work, pain and so-on. This is often not seen at events - hence the illusion that the sport is not really a sport. It is my belief that part of the allure of skating is the fact that when done correctly, it does seem so effortless and almost easy - but we know it's not.
I think that many in the USFSA and a certain group of fans would like to bring the "lady" back in to the ladies event - specifically, the Sr. Ladies. This is not meant to be a jab at anyone. I personally, prefer to watch a more mature skater - physically at least, skate. How we define "mature" is the key here. For example (NO FLAMING PLEASE
) - C. Zhang appears to stake very maturely on the ice, but she is physically not mature since she is a child. A. Czisny (sp?) skates very maturely and is also physically mature - she is in her 20's and a lady. On the flip side, I would say that E. Hughes tends to skate very immaturely but she is in her 20's as well and is physically mature. Some of this maturity may have to do with simply the skaters age and physical development and some to do with there level of skating - hence the comments, "she skates very juniorish". As society has progressed (in terms of family structure, dynamics, living situations, expenses ect.) so have the dynamics of skating. 20+ years of ago, it was rare for a skater to be 15 and a national champion - one that lives with one parent or even a sponsor in a different city/country than the rest of the family in order to train. These kind of sacrifices were not often made. Now, it is commonplace. Additionally, kids start skating at a much younger age and with the elimination of figures and in my opinion, too many coaches who are willing to sacrifice sound basic technique for the passage of skating tests, we find ourselves with very young skaters at the junior and senior level. I hardly believe that this is a result of some miraculous genetic alteration that has suddenly created more gifted skaters at younger ages in the last 12-15 years than the previous 100 years.
The USFSA and to some extend, the ISU is in an unenviable position - they have many very young, bright skaters who may very well be some of best in the world, but due to their age, they are ineligible to skate at certain levels. So what are they to do? Send older and presumably more mature skaters who are not as gifted to certain events? Does say, the USFSA reward a child skater who at a given event preform the best but who is not age eligible to skate at Sr. Worlds (Zhang)? Is it healthy - emotionally and physically, to allow such young girls to skate at such a high level? Is the kind of training required to maintain that level dangerous to them? Do age restrictions even work - or do they just create a bottle-neck at the Junior/Senior level where skaters are forced to either remain in Novice level because they are too young to skate in the JGP (but may be better than some of their older counterparts in juniors/seniors). What about skaters who skate in seniors at their national events, but due to age restrictions, skate in the JGP/Jr. Worlds (but who may also be more gifted than their older counterparts). Or do we open the floodgates and innact no age restrictions? Do current age restrictions even help bring back the "lady" to the ladies championship?
I don't pretend to have the answer to these questions. I do however, believe that there are a great many of us fans who would prefer to see a "lady" win the Sr. ladies title - but not at the expense of compromising the competition. The best skater should win. Perhaps instead of placing such convoluted age restrictions at the Jr. and Sr. level, those age restrictions should be placed at the lower levels, to keep skaters from zooming up the ranks at too young an age. By doing this, it forces skaters to mature emotionally, physically and artistically. I understand some may feel this will hold back a truly gifted skater but I submit that most of the truly gifted young skaters that have emerged in the last 12-15 years have done so by failing to master the fundamentals and basics of technical skating - which in the end should harm them, but often doesn't with our present day scoring system (with the exception of the current calling of wrong edge take-off, which I'm so pleased to see
).I find it very interesting that ice-dancing seems to have less of a problem with age-eligible skaters than singles. (I'm aware that it is much easier for the "youngsters" to master the jumps/spins of singles than older skaters). I realize that this has to do with a small pool of skaters to choose from and a history of ambivelance (sp) towards the discipline. But this is changing - COP is showing that movement within the ranks of Dance is possible and with the success of several American teams, there is now hope that Americans (and even Canadians) can be competitive at the top level of dance. While agree the past history of dance has greatly impacted the present-day age structure and popularity of Dance in N.A, I don't however, feel it is a coincidence that it takes dance teams longer to reach the top levels and we find older people skating. Granted much of this has to do with the type of skating and the comparably less pounding the body takes, but my point is that when dancers reach the top 10, they are older, more mature and developed...perhaps the time, development, technique, ect that is required to develop a strong dance team might also be beneficial to singles as well. I don't believe that only the young, pre-pubescent child skater is the only one who can master all the hard tricks - Many physically and emotionally mature skaters have done it in the past. Perhaps that is why when a "lady" wins the lady's title, it is seen as all the more magical - so some of course.
Cheers,
Dwiggin3
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