Everything You May Want to Know About Olympic Figure Skating

The 2010 Winter Olympic Games took place in Vancouver, Canada.  The figure skating events began on February 14, 2010 and ended on February 27, 2010.  New Olympic figure skating champions were crowned and controversy took place. 

Check out some photo memories from the 2010 Olympic Games.

Women's figure skating is the most popular figure skating event at the Winter Olympics. There are "queens and princesses of the ice" who have left their mark on the figure skating world. There are also many famous people who have been a part of ice skating history.

• Famous Women Olympic Figure Skaters
• Famous Men Olympic Figure Skaters
• Famous Olympic Pair Skaters
• Famous Olympic Ice Dancers
• Famous People in Figure Skating History
• An Illustrated History of Olympic Figure Skating
• The History of Figure Skating

Do you want to get an idea of what's involved in becoming a figure skater? Before you begin to skate, there are things you should know.

• Ice Skating Is Fun!

   

• Step-by-Step Beginning Ice Skating Lesson

   

• Register for Ice Skating Lessons

   

• Learn to Figure Skate

   

• Dress Like a Figure Skater

   

• Buy Skates

   

• How to Lace Figure Skates

   

• Take Some Private Figure Skating Lessons

   

• Set a Practice, Lesson, and Training Schedule

   

• Join a Figure Skating Club

   

• Take Figure Skating Tests

   

• Compete in Figure Skating Competitions

A new kind of scoring replaced the old 6.0 figure skating judging system and was created in response to the 2002 Olympic figure skating scandal. The idea was to attempt to make figure skating competitions more objective and fair.

Competitors are given two scores: a technical score and a program component score. The technical score is added together to the program component score and the result is the segment score. The sum of all the segment scores (the short program and the free skate) becomes the total competition score. The skater with the highest score wins.

• How to Understand Figure Skating Scores
• Why Does a Triple Jump Get Scored Only As a Double?
• Why Do Figure Skaters Fall Down and Still Place High?

Certain jumps are done by Olympic figure skaters...read more

• Understanding How Figure Skating Jumps Are Scored

Many of the spins Olympic figure skaters do are variations of basic ice skating spins.

Every step or turn a figure skater does has a name. Can you identify the figure skating turns that are done on one foot? Next time you watch an elite ice skater do a step sequence, try to recognize at least one three turn, one bracket, one counter, and one rocker.

• One Foot Figure Skating Turns
• Figure Skating Footwork or Steps
• Why is the Ice Skating Turn "Mohawk" Named After an American Indian Tribe?
• Footwork Sequences for All Figure Skaters
• What Are Twizzles?
• What Are Loops?

Lifts are the highlight of Olympic pair skating.   Good lifts have a smooth take off, elegant positions, and gentle landings.

• Sunday, February 14, 2010 - Pairs Short Program
• Monday, February 15, 2010 - Pairs Freeskate and Awards
• Tuesday, February 16, 2010 - Men's Short Program
• Thursday, February 18, 2010 - Men's Freeskate and Awards
• Friday, February 19, 2010 - Ice Dance Compulsory Dance
• Sunday, February 21, 2010 - Ice Dance Original Dance
• Monday, February 22, 2010 - Ice Dance Free Dance and Awards
• Tuesday, February 23, 2010 - Ladies Short Program
• Thursday, February 25, 2010 - Ladies Freeskate and Awards