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What is team figure skating?
Kurt Browning breaks down all the ins and outs of the exclusive Olympic event
| Source: |
CBC Sports |
| Date: |
February 5, 2022 |
| Author: |
Kurt Browning |
Figure skating has long been a fan favourite during the Winter
Olympic Games, but does anyone actually understand how the team event
works? CBC analyst Kurt Browning gives the inside scoop on how it all
breaks down. Faster Higher Stronger presented by Bell.
Wake up part-time skating fans! It has been four years since the last
Olympic Games so pick up those remotes and become the skating expert
you were four years past.
The Olympics are here again, when countries from around the world
cheer and support their athletes and, yes, athletes from other nations
as well. But in the sport of figure skating, every four years brings
us together in a way reserved for the Olympic Games only. It's called
the team event - where you skate as a team, alone. Let me try to
explain...
Welcome to the team event!
OK, enough fun, it's time to "figure" this out.
Skating has four disciplines: women's, men's, ice dance and pairs. Ten
teams from 10 different countries start the competition as they
normally would, with the technical program. Everyone, that is, except
the dancers, who enjoy lots of attention so they get their own event
name called the rhythm dance. Makes sense, they do have more
rhythm!
One representative from each country is chosen to compete in each of
the four disciplines, and after the sequins settle, the scores are
handed out to the competitors who graciously share the spoils with
their home countries. Ten points for first place, nine points for
second place... you can fill in the rest of the blanks. After each of
the four disciplines compete, a calculator is brought in and, violà,
we have the top five teams.
The top five teams are then rewarded with the opportunity to skate the
long programs, called free dance for the dancers. Okay, you can call
it the free for all of the disciplines but it is funnier this
way. Stay with me now...
So, we start all over again. The scoreboard is scrubbed clean, only
this time they skate longer. First place is awarded 10 points again,
even though now there are only five countries competing – making it
easier on the calculator. After the twizzles, throws, twists, spins
and quads, more points are handed out, converted to team points of
course, and you have three Olympic medals for three happy
countries.
Seems easy enough, but there is a lot going on behind the scenes. This
event is rife with water cooler gossip. How did each team choose who
to skate when? You may think they should have chosen skater X to skate
the short, but I think it should have been skater Y, while they think
it should have been this dance team and you think they shouldn't have
been chosen at all. Whew!
Most teams have more than enough skaters to fill the spots, so who
gets to skate for an Olympic medal and who sits in the cheering area
at the end of the rink wishing they could have a chance? Each country
chooses six representatives to fill eight skating spots - four
short/rhythm programs and four long/free programs. Just checking the
math, hand me the calculator, and it seems two will have to skate
twice. The different possibilities will keep skating fans chatting and
arguing, way past the podium.
Hope this helps you understand how the team event works. And since all
of this "team stuff" only happens every Olympic quadrennial, I know
there is no need to worry for you folks who only watch skating during
the Olympics. You all saw this event in 2014 and 2018 and know exactly
what is going on, right? So pick your sequined horses and place your
bets. Now where is my calculator?
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