Danger in grabbing blades

[Bluediamonds09]

After seeing some truly scary moments where a skater is severely injured by a skate blade, I had to ask: is it becoming ridiculous for skaters to (basically) be required to grab their blades? In spins, in lifts, in choreographic dance moves, there are increasing ways in which a skater can be sliced up. The amount of times I see a man's thigh being taped up with a bandage after lifting his partner on his leg. The amount of times a skater is sitting in kiss-and-cry being tended to, blood visible on their hands. Even programs being halted after a skater slices a hand during a spin.
The sport is already dangerous, and after seeing an increasing number of concussions (where typically the referee wont even stop the program) I worry that the ISU rules aren't taking into account how dangerous it is to be grabbing blades while twisting into contortionist positions. Often skaters wear thick gloves, but even then, gloves are not foolproof. Many fans are against gloves, saying they're ugly and distracting.
There isn't a way of grabbing the toe of the boot instead of the blade? Or grabbing the ankle?

 

[gkelly]

There isn't a way of grabbing the toe of the boot instead of the blade? Or grabbing the ankle?

The shape of the boots would not allow for getting as secure a grip holding those parts of the skate.

Unless the boot design added some kind of handle that would be safer to grasp than a sharp blade. But undoubtedly any such addition would get in the way of executing other moves (especially jumps) and would negatively affect the aesthetics of the boot.

Better for the rules to offer enough options for achieving features in various elements that skaters are not required to grab their blades in order to earn higher levels, and to encourage protective gloves for those who choose to do so.

 

[surimi]

After seeing some truly scary moments where a skater is severely injured by a skate blade, I had to ask: is it becoming ridiculous for skaters to (basically) be required to grab their blades? In spins, in lifts, in choreographic dance moves, there are increasing ways in which a skater can be sliced up. The amount of times I see a man's thigh being taped up with a bandage after lifting his partner on his leg. The amount of times a skater is sitting in kiss-and-cry being tended to, blood visible on their hands. Even programs being halted after a skater slices a hand during a spin.
The sport is already dangerous, and after seeing an increasing number of concussions (where typically the referee wont even stop the program) I worry that the ISU rules aren't taking into account how dangerous it is to be grabbing blades while twisting into contortionist positions. Often skaters wear thick gloves, but even then, gloves are not foolproof. Many fans are against gloves, saying they're ugly and distracting.
There isn't a way of grabbing the toe of the boot instead of the blade? Or grabbing the ankle?

The positions where one can grab one's ankle instead seem awfully difficult, so not sure if it's any improvement, health-wise. I only recall the biellmann spin that some women do, where they hold their hands clasped behind their upward leg. But since that leg is always in an incredibly upright position, I am thinking their backs must suffer instead. I'm not an expert though.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

After seeing some truly scary moments where a skater is severely injured by a skate blade, I had to ask: is it becoming ridiculous for skaters to (basically) be required to grab their blades? In spins, in lifts, in choreographic dance moves, there are increasing ways in which a skater can be sliced up. The amount of times I see a man's thigh being taped up with a bandage after lifting his partner on his leg. The amount of times a skater is sitting in kiss-and-cry being tended to, blood visible on their hands. Even programs being halted after a skater slices a hand during a spin.
The sport is already dangerous, and after seeing an increasing number of concussions (where typically the referee wont even stop the program) I worry that the ISU rules aren't taking into account how dangerous it is to be grabbing blades while twisting into contortionist positions. Often skaters wear thick gloves, but even then, gloves are not foolproof. Many fans are against gloves, saying they're ugly and distracting.
There isn't a way of grabbing the toe of the boot instead of the blade? Or grabbing the ankle?

No we can't grab and hold on to our boots like that, it's basically impossible. Also, the only time a man's thigh is getting taped up from a lift is if the females blade slides over to an edge of the blade or their toepick got his leg. Because with how a figure skating blade is designed and the way a lady is supposed to "stand" with the hollow of the blade flat on the thigh, it would not cause danger to the partner or it wouldn't be done in the first place.

Also, as skaters in general, we've been grabbing our blades for years and have been fine for the most part. If one gets careless with technique or something freak happens then yes, one will get cut, but it goes with the sport. So saying we should not do it so a skater doesn't "possibly get cut" is like saying football players shouldn't play the game b/c they are at high risk and do get a high number of ACL/MCL tears. Or that NHL goalies shouldn't be doing butterfly saves b/c they run high risk of lower body injuries.

 

[Dr. Jenn]

Is this really something that is that common/serious? In my experience, it is very rare, from all the competitions that I have watched over the past few decades, to see any sort of serious injury from holding one's blade in a spin/spiral or from having one's partner stand on one's leg in a lift. The most serious injuries usually are concussions/other head injuries, save for the very rare instances like Jessica Dube, who was hit in the face with a blade.

 

[WednesdayMarch]

If a skater wants to mitigate their chances of cutting their hands on their blades in catch-hold manoeuvres, then they can always choose traditional blades over "Revolution" or "Lites" as those are far easier to grab and hold safely and securely.

 

[treblemakerem]

While cutting your fingers on a blade is common, I think serious injuries would be pretty rare. As far as skating injuries go I am much more concerned about concussion risk and injuries from overtraining.

 

[hanca]

Blades are dangerous. That’s the bottom line. We could ban all the blade grabbing by hand to ensure that skaters can’t cut their hands accidentally. Then we could make skaters wear some clothes that are impossible to cut, just in case a skater gets cut while doing various elements such as lifting their partner. One could also accidentally cut someone while doing something as ‘safe’ as a step sequence (I remember Tarasova was cut during Europeans or Worlds a few years back, and had to skate with quite a few stitches!) So eventually we may end up banning everything, including the step sequences and there will be no safe elements left. Actually, even simple stroking and crossovers are not safe when you are on ice, because ice is slippery and a bad fall may mean concussion! Or we could ban blades as such and end up ‘skating’ in socks on linoleum floor! Fun!

If you look at other sports - tennis can be dangerous. The ball can hit your head! Should we ban the ball? And gymnastics is very dangerous. Falls from various equipment…well, one can even fall during tumbling on the mat, without using any apparatus.

I guess we may have to accept that in many sports there are parts that are dangerous. It is up to everyone to decide whether they are willing to accept the risk or they may choose sport that they consider safe. Or not do any sport at all.

 

[mrrice]

Grabbing Blades is always a bit dangerous. I remember Maria Butyrskaya cutting her finger just wiping the snow from her blades at Worlds in 2000

MARIA BUTYRSKAYA,WORLDS 2000.

THE SHORT PROGRAM.

www.youtube.com

 

[kolyadafan2002]

It's risky in the sense that there is a high probability in cutting hands etc.

But I don't see a risk of long term injury in the same way you have on other elements. You don't risk consciousness etc, so you can easily stop if you feel the injury is bad.

And if you maintain focus, grabbing the blade won't cut you.

So for me, its risk, but definitely an acceptable risk. Way safer than some of the other elements for sure.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

When a figure skate is grabbing their blade in a catchfoot/donut/Biellmann, etc. their hand is aiming for the boot/heel and the inside crook at the back of the blade near where the blade meets the boot. They aren't aiming to latch onto the edge part of the blade(as in the flat of the blade) which obviously is the only sharp part of the blade.

Skaters also practice a ton and have muscle memory that allows them to grab their leg/foot/etc. with extreme precision. They know exactly how high to kick their leg and how far back. The sharp part of the blade is also kept a safe enough distance from the head/face.

Try grabbing your foot right now and see how much your hand actually contacts the sole/bottom of your foot where the sharp part of the blade would be. Another consideration, grabbing the boot/blades actually provides stability and balance in many cases, and is less strain on the skater. A lot easier to balance holding your foot than letting it float.

Of course, skaters make mistakes and blades are sharp so cuts do happen periodically (I remember my training mate sliced his hand in a sit spin, trying to grab his boot but missing and grabbing the blade instead)... but catching the blade in spirals/spins is hardly the most dangerous part about figure skating.

 

[el henry]

Just as a fan, I have a difficult time seeing this as the primary risk to figure skaters.

I am of course a devoted Jason Brown fan. King of the catchfoot spin In all my years of watching Jason do catchfoots, and of course he does not wear gloves, I have never seen him cut his hand, As @CanadianSkaterGuy pointed out, he grabs the inside crook of the blade. All the time.

Does this mean that Jason has never ever cut his hand in practice? I wouldn't know. But most of his (known) injuries have been to his back or his ankle. Never to his hand.

If Jason Brown isn't injuring himself, with all the spins he does, I do not think this is the largest injury worry for skaters.

 

[theblade]

I can't speak to dance/pairs lifts, but when I did Biellmanns and other blade-grabbing moves in my youth, I don't recall ever cutting myself on the blade (my hand made contact with the blade's blunt cut-out areas, and my grip was loose, not tight). I can definitely see how one can easily cut their finger on a sharp blade while trying to wipe off snow.

 

[Minz]

I once cut myself on my blade while trying to put on skate guards. I didn’t even realize it until I looked at my hand and saw a lot of red. Luckily, I was totally fine and it wasn’t that big of a deal. Sharp objects have kind of an innate risk and that’s kind of how it is. And yes, different types of sharp objects will require different protections, but for most part, the risk of getting cut from a skate blade is relatively low in skating.

 

[macy]

skates have sharp blades and you have to be careful. it happens

The only skater i can think of who performs a typically blade grabbing position by grabbing the boot instead is Mariah Bell.

 

[Diana Delafield]

Grabbing the blade wasn't being done much in my era, more or less the 1970s, but in pairs it was usually the woman in a lift going for a change of position. I still cringe when I see someone in the air in, usually, a platter position and feeling around behind her for her blade ("I know it's there somewhere! I was just skating on it a few seconds ago!"). In a lift there's only so much moving she can do without upsetting the balance. I always made sure I touched the boot first and then slid my hand down the heel and tucked the index finger around the heel post, keeping my other fingers curled in so I wouldn't cut my palm or the inside of the fingers. We weren't in ultra close-up television then, so it wasn't obvious I was holding the blade by one finger. Cutting the back of the fingers wasn't as painful and there wasn't as much risk of a tendon cut. That said, I've cut myself far more often while wiping off my blades with a cloth and yattering to my partner on the bench at the same time, not paying attention to what I was doing.

What made me nervous was death spirals, seeing my partner's long picks apparently inches away from the corner of my eye and knowing that if he slipped off that edge in his pivot....Sean Rice did that once in a competition while he was skating with one of the Ball sisters. In the K&C she was holding a cloth to the side of her head next to her eye and he kept saying anxiously, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm really sorry!" and she just shrugged it off. Or, why other skaters view the ladies in pairs like hockey players view goalies. They think we must all be crazy to do that.