What it takes to be a successful skater
- Thread starter sekhmets
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- Jun 21, 2003
Charlotte 71 said:
To change the focus of the question a little, once you have made it to the top tier, what makes one skater a champion and another just pretty good? I think that in any sport there are a seelct few who are just naturally "clutch hitters." The average person, when faced with a do or die challenge, is likely to collapse in a bundle of nerves. If you can perform just as well under pressure as you can in the practice rink, you win the silver medal. The clutch hitters are those rare athletes who somehow are able to make all that energy and tension work in their favor instead of against them.
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- Feb 24, 2012
I volunteer with a group. One coach and some parents were talking
1. A naturally gifted student- athletically, movement, musicality, to remember thing, coordinated, good timing etc
2. A student with good genes for skating - there are some bodies, sizes, shapes just better for skating
3. Student with good work ethic and habits
4. Resources - money for rinks, coaching, choroegraphy, special training, costuming even for imaging, conditioning, emotional help, travel and support ie faily to come to competiotns.
5. Beyond financial support support of family and friends.
6. Good coach - patiences, support and works well with the student - something clicks.
7. A competitor who knows who they are, waht they really want and what counts
1. A naturally gifted student- athletically, movement, musicality, to remember thing, coordinated, good timing etc
2. A student with good genes for skating - there are some bodies, sizes, shapes just better for skating
3. Student with good work ethic and habits
4. Resources - money for rinks, coaching, choroegraphy, special training, costuming even for imaging, conditioning, emotional help, travel and support ie faily to come to competiotns.
5. Beyond financial support support of family and friends.
6. Good coach - patiences, support and works well with the student - something clicks.
7. A competitor who knows who they are, waht they really want and what counts
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- Apr 20, 2018
I’d say that’s true at the top tier. The harder worker athletes are going to beat out the more naturally talented but less hard working. But this is for the people who are at the upper echelon, so everyone has some degree of talent and work ethic.
But there are some kids who could work nonstop but do not have the body type or athletic ability to be successful no matter what they do. I’m sure there are also kids who have enormous talent but decide they’d prefer not to take it seriously or train hard but they still beat many of the hard working kids until things get more intense.
I think besides talent combined with mental strength and drive a skater needs to have a really good work ethics. Skaters with wealthy parents and everything been given on silver plate may not have the same kind of drive and strong will to succeed as skaters who have to struggle more to get the finances arranged.
A true talent will go to the top even from a non-skating country (just thinking of Javier Fernandez from Spain).
I just wish the judges would give their scores based on what happens on the ice and so much based on which country one comes from and which coach....
A true talent will go to the top even from a non-skating country (just thinking of Javier Fernandez from Spain).
I just wish the judges would give their scores based on what happens on the ice and so much based on which country one comes from and which coach....
If they have the means to develop that talent.
Which often involves moving abroad to train in a location with more ice time, more knowledgeable coaching and other professional resources, and continuous exposure to other elite competitors.
A skater needs a supportive family to allow the above to happen.
To be an elite skater, you need a choreographer who knows how to promote a skater's strengths and hide a skater's flaws. In the ideal situation, the skater becomes the muse of the choreographer.
Can you imagine Zagitova skating to a Kostner program or Kostner skating to a Zagitova program? Kinda crazy concept since both have programs built for them that highlight their unique strengths.
As someone who lives in a country where rinks are incredibly sparse and nothing freeze in winter, I would say the presence of a rink where you live or in the nearby is the first condition. Less rinks, less exposure to the sport = restricted pool of skaters and potential elite skaters. Also, in mycountry skating is a very expensive sport and probably out of budget for the majority of families while other sports are way more affordable.
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- Nov 24, 2006
Being realistic, it takes $$$$$$. Of course natural talent, but without money it is unlikely you can get to a Senior GP.
But money alone will not get a skater there. If it were, then all those 6 year olds in $1000 skates would grow into GF champions.
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- Dec 10, 2015
Yuna Kim, Daisuke Takahashi, Ashley Wagner, Mirai Nagasu just a few who have little to no money to get through training but all end up with great career (I know it's subjective but there are ten of thousand skaters who get nowhere with money and of course good support systems.
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- Aug 23, 2018
After skating myself and later on teaching I realized how disciplined a skater must be and why I turned out that way. Disciplined, self-motivated and persistent. There are so many skaters that have talent and resources but then don't have these qualities and the mental strength to be in sport where you will be worse before you get better.
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By successful I’m taking that to mean good enough to qualify to the Free Skate at Worlds.
So the answer has been said before but it’s access to a rink and supportive parents who are willing to pay out for lessons. It’s no mistake that skaters tend to come from the areas with all season rinks.
You can be as hard working and as talented as you like if you don’t have access to ice you’re not going anywhere.
So the answer has been said before but it’s access to a rink and supportive parents who are willing to pay out for lessons. It’s no mistake that skaters tend to come from the areas with all season rinks.
You can be as hard working and as talented as you like if you don’t have access to ice you’re not going anywhere.
I don’t know for sure but I think the primary necessary ingredient for anyone who is not in Japan or Russia is passion for the sport. It requires intense dedication. And that passion can sometimes make up for lack of funds or talent or opportunities etc (to a point).
I think the surest way to get there is to have passion, talent, good coaching, money, time, and lucky opportunities. But I also think there are paths people take who don’t have all those ingredients.
I think the surest way to get there is to have passion, talent, good coaching, money, time, and lucky opportunities. But I also think there are paths people take who don’t have all those ingredients.
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Those people all had money. Their parents supported them.
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- Jul 9, 2014
Exactly.....Tenacity.....Is #1 for me and here's why. I had supportive parents. They had Money and I had good coaching. Unfortunately, I was bullied to the point of leaving school. I was fortunate in having supportive parents who took me out of public school. I know that some skaters thrive in public school but, I was not one of them.
I know it's hard for a young skater to express themselves but, I think the best thing they can have is a supportive parent, guardian, or coach.
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- Nov 24, 2006
Mrrice, I'm sorry to hear you were bullied at school. Was it because you were into figure skating? Did you wind up doing an online school?
My opinions are pretty much the same as stated already: the skater must have good genes, work ethic, start early, have access to ice rinks and good coaches, have as much financial support as possible, and definitely supportive parents. My parents were barely supportive of my skating and I started too late, so I only competed in local competitions a little, did some synchro and shows at the rink, and didn't progress much. They had the money but no time, ability or desire to drive me to and from the rink, although it was only 20-25 minutes from home. The competitive kids have parents, usually the moms, who are willing and able to take them to the rink at 5 or 6am and in the afternoons every weekday for freestyle sessions. There's a tremendous amount of sacrifices on behalf of the parents and they have to be totally supportive to get their kids even to the regional level. Thinking of all the stories of sacrifice I've read and heard on the part of skating parents-- Kristi Yamaguchi's parents allowed Rudy Galindo to live with them a while, and her mother would drive them to the rink before the crack of dawn, with the kids eating cereal in the car. Tara Lipinski's mom (as well as Vincent Zhou's mom and countless other skating moms) gave up her life to move far away with Tara and live apart from Tara's dad to support her skating dream. Shelby Lyons was sleeping in a converted closet. Danny Kwan once talked about selling off their home (or refinancing?) to support his daughter's skating costs. And in one of Christine Brennan's books, she wrote about a father who was living out of his car to support his daughter's skating-- that skater never made it big. Wasn't Plushenko living away from his family from an early age so that he could train with better coaches?
All these family sacrifices and financial risks are things that my parents never would have done, and plenty of families can't do, like if both parents need to work for a living, or they can't afford an extra apartment so the child can train elsewhere. Once the child gets more advanced in skating, s/he needs to be skating almost every day on multiple sessions, and have more private lessons. It's a huge financial strain and time sink, so the whole family has to be on board with supporting the skater.
My opinions are pretty much the same as stated already: the skater must have good genes, work ethic, start early, have access to ice rinks and good coaches, have as much financial support as possible, and definitely supportive parents. My parents were barely supportive of my skating and I started too late, so I only competed in local competitions a little, did some synchro and shows at the rink, and didn't progress much. They had the money but no time, ability or desire to drive me to and from the rink, although it was only 20-25 minutes from home. The competitive kids have parents, usually the moms, who are willing and able to take them to the rink at 5 or 6am and in the afternoons every weekday for freestyle sessions. There's a tremendous amount of sacrifices on behalf of the parents and they have to be totally supportive to get their kids even to the regional level. Thinking of all the stories of sacrifice I've read and heard on the part of skating parents-- Kristi Yamaguchi's parents allowed Rudy Galindo to live with them a while, and her mother would drive them to the rink before the crack of dawn, with the kids eating cereal in the car. Tara Lipinski's mom (as well as Vincent Zhou's mom and countless other skating moms) gave up her life to move far away with Tara and live apart from Tara's dad to support her skating dream. Shelby Lyons was sleeping in a converted closet. Danny Kwan once talked about selling off their home (or refinancing?) to support his daughter's skating costs. And in one of Christine Brennan's books, she wrote about a father who was living out of his car to support his daughter's skating-- that skater never made it big. Wasn't Plushenko living away from his family from an early age so that he could train with better coaches?
All these family sacrifices and financial risks are things that my parents never would have done, and plenty of families can't do, like if both parents need to work for a living, or they can't afford an extra apartment so the child can train elsewhere. Once the child gets more advanced in skating, s/he needs to be skating almost every day on multiple sessions, and have more private lessons. It's a huge financial strain and time sink, so the whole family has to be on board with supporting the skater.
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- Dec 9, 2017
A pair of skates.
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- May 19, 2018
After having watched an interview with Yuzuru Hanyu in which he said that he likes to stand out on the ice and enjoys the "all-eyes-on-him" aspect, another thing that is not required but definitely helps at any level... is being a big, fat show-off. 
Not in the ostentatious, prima donna way, but a young skater who sees people watching and thinks, "Ooooh, yay, an audience! You think that was good, watch this!" rather than, "Oh no, what if I fall? What if they laugh? What if they're watching because they think I'm awful?" has one less thing to worry about come competition time.
Not in the ostentatious, prima donna way, but a young skater who sees people watching and thinks, "Ooooh, yay, an audience! You think that was good, watch this!" rather than, "Oh no, what if I fall? What if they laugh? What if they're watching because they think I'm awful?" has one less thing to worry about come competition time.Similar threads
