ISU Decisions of the Council from Nov 2025

[gsk8]

ISU Decisions of the Council from Nov 2025

- Event Hosting Model: Transparent criteria-based Bidding and Strategic Allocation
- Combined World Championships
- ISU Centers of Excellence: Continuity and Strategic Development
- Synchronized Skating: New “Synchro 9” Category and Rules Changes
- Event Relocations: Supporting Member Federation Requests
- Elections: Council, Technical Committees (TCs), Audit, Risk & Investment Committee (AR&I), Disciplinary Commission (DC), Skating Integrity Unit (IU)

The next Council meeting will take place on January 13, 2026 (online).

 

[Mathman]

I am intrigued by Synchro 9. The 16-20 version had difficulty breaking into Olympic consideration because of too many athletes. I wonder what the "simplified judging structure" will be.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

ISU Decisions of the Council from Nov 2025

- Event Hosting Model: Transparent criteria-based Bidding and Strategic Allocation
- Combined World Championships
- ISU Centers of Excellence: Continuity and Strategic Development
- Synchronized Skating: New “Synchro 9” Category and Rules Changes
- Event Relocations: Supporting Member Federation Requests
- Elections: Council, Technical Committees (TCs), Audit, Risk & Investment Committee (AR&I), Disciplinary Commission (DC), Skating Integrity Unit (IU)

The next Council meeting will take place on January 13, 2026 (online).

“Hey fellow ISU folks! We need to reduce the number of synchro skaters from 16.”

“To how many?”

“Hmmm, let’s pick a number that is easily divisible and allowing several options for pair/trio/quartets/sixes, pinwheels, etc.”

“How about 12? That’s divisible in so many ways and offers such a range!”

“Nah, how about 9?”

“Done!”

 

[Mathman]

“How about 12? That’s divisible in so many ways and offers such a range!”

That's why 13 is an unlucky number. Let's say you are the thirteenth kid on the playground and they divide up into two teams of six. You are left out. 3 teams of 4? You are left out. 4 teams of 3? 6 couples?

The 13th kid is always out of luck.

 

[Mathman]

I was intrigued by the provision to "elect" an ISU "Audit, Risk and Investment Committee." The ISU holds about 300,000,000 Swiss Francs worth of assets. This comes in handy in non-Olympic years when the operating budget runs at a deficit. I always assumed that they just hire a wealth management firm to oversee their portfolio and that's that.

(Former ISU President Ottavio Cinquanta's training and day job was in the business administration / financial sector, and he was regarded in the early years of his tenure with the ISU as a financial whiz.)

This Audit, Risk and Investment Committee was invented only last year at the
"Extraordinary Congress" and was designated an "independent entity" reporting to the ISU Congress. So is the idea that the ISU elects from their membership some figure skaters/coacjes/federation officials, etc., who think they know enough about the stock market to provide this oversight on behalf of the ISU?

 

[midori green]

“Hey fellow ISU folks! We need to reduce the number of synchro skaters from 16.”

“To how many?”

“Hmmm, let’s pick a number that is easily divisible and allowing several options for pair/trio/quartets/sixes, pinwheels, etc.”

“How about 12? That’s divisible in so many ways and offers such a range!”

“Nah, how about 9?”

“Done!”

As someone from the era of 20-skater junior teams and 24-skater senior teams, a tiny little 3x3 block seems kind-of pathetic. And are pinwheels 3-spoke with three skaters each...or a straight wheel with the center skater as a pivot point? They're losing the splendor or synchro the more they decrease the numbers.

 

[skatingguy]

As someone from the era of 20-skater junior teams and 24-skater senior teams, a tiny little 3x3 block seems kind-of pathetic. And are pinwheels 3-spoke with three skaters each...or a straight wheel with the center skater as a pivot point? They're losing the splendor or synchro the more they decrease the numbers.

Seems like the ISU taking steps to create an event that could be added to the Olympics eventually, and will work for the Youth Olympics in the meantime.

 

[4everchan]

Synchro 9 just sounds terrible. Shapes on the ice will be so much smaller and less impressive and having an odd number means that when they split into "partnered elements" like death spiral, one is left out...it makes no sense

 

[4everchan]

Also, I imagine that a team of 16 has more money than a team of 9. Who pays for coaching, choreo and ice time... I am guessing the 9 skaters instead of splitting it in 16.. so everything will be twice as expensive.

 

[pearly]

More details here: https://www.isu.org/news/synchro-9-...yh1iT__g4jfBvrdE_p_aem_yTIvHsSfKNBH1MjVSVhhWQ

I suppose we will see it soon enough, but this raises both questions and eyebrows at this time.

Here is what they list as the strong points of the new format:

1. Smaller teams: ​

• Teams of 9 skaters will make it easier for Member Federations to create new teams enhancing inclusivity and accessibility.
• It will also create more opportunities to capture performances on camera and for audiences to enjoy skaters’ shapes, speed, and formations.

1. Thrilling competition: ​

• A knockout structure in a battle format will increase suspense and deliver a compelling viewer experience.

1. Themed rounds:​

• Teams will perform within common theme rounds, enabling strong narrative expression under equal conditions.

Showcasing Synchro 9 to the World​

Synchro 9 will be officially presented through demonstration performances at two major upcoming ISU events:

• ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2026 in Prague - one Synchro 9 team featured at the Gala Exhibition
• ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships 2026 in Salzburg - three Synchro 9 demonstration teams

 

[Jeanie19]

Also, I imagine that a team of 16 has more money than a team of 9. Who pays for coaching, choreo and ice time... I am guessing the 9 skaters instead of splitting it in 16.. so everything will be twice as expensive.

That's terrible.

 

[4everchan]

omg.. themes... you are killing me, ISU.... it doesn't work in ice dance... so you are bringing to synchro ? come on....

 

[Mathman]

I think that Synchro 9 was the price that the ISU had to pay to get the discipline on the Olympic track. ISU will still hold competitions including senior and junior world championships with 20-24 skaters.

Synchronized swimming teams typically have 8 members. Rhythmic gymnastics 5.

 

[4everchan]

I think that Synchro 9 was the price that the ISU had to pay to get the discipline on the Olympic track. ISU will still hold competitions including senior and junior world championships with 20-24 skaters.

Synchronized swimming teams typically have 8 members. Rhythmic gymnastics 5.

of course. however, it's sad that they had to create a completely watered down version of synchro to make it happen. How many hockey players in a team ? They could cut a complete attack line and two defence men too

I mean we saw it with Rugby 7. However, rugby 7 is cool. I have a hard time imagining how synchro 9 will be cool.

At some point though, countries like Canada will stop funding synchro (if they even fund it) because they will only fund synchro 9, the olympic sport. So that means that the old format, though it may still be popular and has its world championships will be very hard to practice.

Canadian women won silver in Rugby World Cup this year. However, they didn't have enough funding and had to crowd source 1 million dollars to get there. This is what will happen to larger synchro teams. They will lack funding to continue and will rely on their own pockets or crowdsourcing to continue.

 

[4everchan]

And if we keep comparing with rugby, it means that now, same athletes will have to compete in both disciplines...

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

As someone from the era of 20-skater junior teams and 24-skater senior teams, a tiny little 3x3 block seems kind-of pathetic. And are pinwheels 3-spoke with three skaters each...or a straight wheel with the center skater as a pivot point? They're losing the splendor or synchro the more they decrease the numbers.

Yeah a 3-spoke wheel is kinda meh. And of course someone is left out of any partnered elements.

I think the biggest thing though is it loses a synchronized quality if fewer skaters have to be in sync. In a sense it is way easier to keep in unison with fewer skaters and fewer “sets” of skaters. It’s easier to do pinwheels and elements where the skaters cross each other.

 

[CaroLiza_fan]

Yeah a 3-spoke wheel is kinda meh.

But, having 3 spoke wheels could attract big money sponsorship from Mercedes...

Joking aside, in all seriousness, this is crazy. It's going to look like nothing with that few people.

The thing that concerns me is that the Olympics have been on a drive for years to cut the number of people that they have to provide accomodation for. So, if they introduce Synchonised Skating, even if it is in an abbreviated form, what are they going to cut to keep the costs down? Are there going to be further cuts to the number of slots in Singles Skating, Pairs Skating, and Ice Dance? Are they going to make cuts to other sports?

I can understand the ISU's thinking. "If we introduce a cut down version, there is more chance of getting Synchro into the Olympics, and getting it into the public consciousness". But, as ever with the ISU, they haven't thought it through fully.

CaroLiza_fan

 

[4everchan]

But, having 3 spoke wheels could attract big money sponsorship from Mercedes...

Joking aside, in all seriousness, this is crazy. It's going to look like nothing with that few people.

The thing that concerns me is that the Olympics have been on a drive for years to cut the number of people that they have to provide accomodation for. So, if they introduce Synchonised Skating, even if it is in an abbreviated form, what are they going to cut to keep the costs down? Are there going to be further cuts to the number of slots in Singles Skating, Pairs Skating, and Ice Dance? Are they going to make cuts to other sports?

I can understand the ISU's thinking. "If we introduce a cut down version, there is more chance of getting Synchro into the Olympics, and getting it into the public consciousness". But, as ever with the ISU, they haven't thought it through fully.

CaroLiza_fan

I can see them cutting the 3rd spots . I actually wouldn't care about that at all. But that doesn't make up for let's say 8 teams 9 athletes.

Even cutting down the 2nd spots wouldn't compensate for synchro. They cannot cut much more from short track and long track either. They have, in those two disciplines, kept adding events (relays/pursuit, mixed relays) with the current pool of athletes (more or less)

So it would have to come from other sports.

 

[CoyoteChris]

That's why 13 is an unlucky number. Let's say you are the thirteenth kid on the playground and they divide up into two teams of six. You are left out. 3 teams of 4? You are left out. 4 teams of 3? 6 couples?

The 13th kid is always out of luck.

Is like you KNOW me......

 

[CoyoteChris]

I was intrigued by the provision to "elect" an ISU "Audit, Risk and Investment Committee." The ISU holds about 300,000,000 Swiss Francs worth of assets. This comes in handy in non-Olympic years when the operating budget runs at a deficit. I always assumed that they just hire a wealth management firm to oversee their portfolio and that's that.

(Former ISU President Ottavio Cinquanta's training and day job was in the business administration / financial sector, and he was regarded in the early years of his tenure with the ISU as a financial whiz.)

This Audit, Risk and Investment Committee was invented only last year at the
"Extraordinary Congress" and was designated an "independent entity" reporting to the ISU Congress. So is the idea that the ISU elects from their membership some figure skaters/coacjes/federation officials, etc., who think they know enough about the stock market to provide this oversight on behalf of the ISU?

What could possibly go wrong, right?

(Ref: Speedy Cinquanta, one would do well to read up on him in Wiki and and Oly Judge Jon Jackson's book "On thin Ice."
Somehow, he kept in office all those years. Did he really propose doing away with 2 of the 3 ice dance comps? He left his day job to become rich some how at the ISU, amasing 5 French villas. He admitted to not knowing much about figure skating...) But I think this is telling, besides "his" plan to make a scoring system that hid Cheating (from wiki: " whose major feature is secrecy, which would prevent anyone from knowing how an individual judge had marked the competition. The implementation of secret judging at the 2003 World Figure Skating Championships in Washington, D.C., was controversial enough to result in a fan protest at that event,"
And consider this. Again from Wiki. "Cinquanta had previously been loudly booed by fans at the 1996 World Figure Skating Championships in Edmonton, Alberta, after he invoked a technicality to prevent local skating favorite Kurt Browning from skating in the opening ceremony of that event and again at the 1998 Championships in Minneapolis, Minnesota."

I will spare you Jon Jackson's views about "wealth manangement" at the ISU...now what was that famous historic event they made a movie out of where the most famous line was, "Follow the money......" ?