Competing nationally

[Sarah]

Hi everyone!

I am currently 18 and I have landed up to my double Axel and am starting triples now, I currently live in a region that isn't ISU recognised but will be moving to a really recognised region in 2 years for studies, will it be possible for me to be able to compete nationally for that region at 21 and jump right into senior or is that just not possible?

thank you so much!

[alejeather]

Hi there!

If you mean that you are moving to a country that is really recognized by the ISU, I assume you mean that you'll be moving to a country that has a governing body which is a member of the ISU, like USFS in the United States or Skate Canada in Canada.

Every country will be different, but I expect some will require you to make up all tests that are required to get to the highest level of competition and others might be less rigorous. Either way, you would likely have to join the ISU member organization and compete in qualifiers in order to compete nationally. In some countries, that would be quite difficult because you'll face a lot of stiff competition, and in others less so. What you are required to do will depend a lot on where you are going and I think your best bet would be to learn about and contact the skating governing body that is a member of the ISU for the country where you are moving.

Good luck in your future studies and wherever your skating career takes you!

[Query]

I'm definitely not a good enough skater to know all the requirements to compete, especially at high levels. But.

Because of the pandemic, many countries won't let anyone in. Also, most of the skating rinks, skating events, and opportunities to skate aren't open, and most of the skating coaches aren't teaching - at least not in person.

Some estimates say this will be true for 18 months or so, some say a few months. Either way, moving right now will be a challenge.

Perhaps the national governing bodies of skating alejeather mentioned could help you figure out whether it is possible to come in now at all, and skate. If you hope to compete at the highest levels, you might also want to contact elite level coaches in those countries to get their opinion on such things, because they often work with foreign students.

And find out whether you need to obtain citizenship before competing at the levels you hope to skate, in each country, and how hard that would be to do. rules might be looser in some places for pairs and ice dance, if one of the partners is already a citizen, but I am not sure.

Also, you might want to get an estimate from the coaches of the total costs involved to live in the area, skate there, and train with them.

Many - perhaps most - high level coaches require you to audition to become their student. I don't know to what extent that can be done using videos.

[Sarah]

Heya! Thank you so much for this information, I don't mind doing any testing because I have looked at testing for the region I am moving to and I can comfortably complete these tests, I just don't know if they will require me to be competing these levels before, I have got competition experience but if I have to compete between each test or after all the tests it may take a bit of time ( and I want to jump into a substantial level of skating kind of fast because there just aren't any opportunities where I am and I do learn really fast. I have looked at each test and they seem fairly short and nice and I can do the elements in them I just don't know if I would be able to be considered for competition.

I think the national competitions of this region aren't ISU events but the international ones that the people that place go to are all ISU so I would assume you would have to be ISU cleared after placing at nationals )

Again, thank you so much for your input!! )

[Query]

I am curious. Do you mean that there is no ISU member national club in your entire country or that the clubs or organizations in the local area where you skate are not part of the ISU?

If it isn't too much to ask, in what country are you now a citizen, and what club do you now belong to?

[FigureSpins]

People would be able to advise you better if you told us the skating organization.  Rules vary from country to country.

For US Figure Skating:

. Skaters may take tests without competing at each level.  Many people ONLY test and rarely, if ever, compete, so get 'em done!
. Skaters must pass the prerequisite Moves in the Field test before you can attempt the Free Skate test at that level. 
. Most skaters pass the first 3-4 Moves tests before they start Free Skate tests. 
. Skaters can take more than one test at a test session, however, if they're sequential, they have to pass the lower-level test before being allowed to take the second test. 
  ^ This  is called "testing on contingency."  Most US skating clubs will only allow 1 or 2 contingency tests at a single session. 
. If a skater doesn't pass a test, they have to wait 27 days before their next attempt.
. The Pre-Preliminary Free Skate test can be taken just by performing the required elements, however all higher-level free skate tests require
. After passing a free skate test, skaters can compete at that level, or one higher.