I do know a little something about figure skating and I am old enough to remember when performing the compulsory figures, from which the name “Figure Skating” is derived was still an important part of the competition. The compulsories were about precision as the skater had to create perfect figures on a clean patch of ice, such as a perfect figure eight, and then had to retrace the same figure over again. There was no music and no flashy costumes for this part of the competition. One could see the intense level of concentration on the skater’s faces as they slowly and deliberately performed these skills. I am sure for most people it was probably as exciting as watching paint dry. I actually enjoyed watching this part of the competition because it did showcase the participant’s pure skill and skating ability. Many an Olympic medal was lost because even though one could skate a beautiful program, if they did not have command over what was considered to be the fundamentals of the sport their overall score was sorely impacted. However, in the late ’80’s or early 90’s the compulsories were dropped from international figure skating competition.

Perhaps if they want to emphasize more of the athleticism of the sport rather than the theatrics or artistry, then maybe they should have a part of the competition be a “Jump Off.” It could be a little like a spelling bee with each participant having to perform a specific skill and if they missed it they would be eliminated. (O.k. maybe a double elimination would be more fair.) And maybe they should also bring back the compulsory figures.