ISU World No. 57 Oct 2015

INTERNATIONAL SKATING UNION OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER

INSIDE • ISU NEWS • ISU EVENT CALENDAR • SEASON PREVIEW

NO 57 OCTOBER 2015

Personally I believe that a genius or a great sporting talent has no special merits since the parents are the most important people for generating a genius or a great sporting talent. Of course others help the genius (a talent scout) or great athlete by providing guidance, experience, expertise and many other skills in order to perform at their best (a trainer/coach could do a lot). But in any case the genius or the talent in sport, without good parents, might not even exist and/or without a trainer/coach (in case of a talent in sport) would never perform at a very high level.

Although this cannot be proved because it is philosophy, it is merely a personal thought.

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Let’s assume that money is the most important driving factor in world, I personally believe that an athlete that is part of a team has two advantages: 1. If the team performed at a high level his chances of winning and being awarded with a good amount of money is high and on top of that 2. An individual athlete is not inclined to sell the victory since he cannot decide for the team.

For a single athlete it goes in the opposite direction. Why am I writing this? Because in the so-called “poor sports”, an athlete can find satisfaction in participating and competing in that sport, regardless of money. When this theory is correct, one can easily understand why many athletes choose to take part in a sport that is considered to be in a second sector, i.e. sports where there is hardly any money, or any money at all.

The comparison can be made obvious: a soccer player or a basketball player versus a weightlifting athlete. Suppose in fact that we are in presence of top players and very skilled weightlifters, with all due respect for those practicing sport, one can easily imagine that when a soccer player or a basketball player is on the top, money is a big factor in these sports and therefore the players will be paid accordingly. I cannot say that the weightlifter is poor, but probably he cannot be compared with the two colleagues, even if he is a champion. Of course the example I made can involve many other sports and athletes, the one I presented is just an example. And from the example given one can be sure that the weightlifter is doing his sport for true passion or at least for the pride to become a champion. The same cannot regretfully be declared for a top soccer player or for a top basketball player. They are most certainly very passionate about their sport, however money does play a role on ones motivations. This is something that one shall accept.

In presence of the above explanations a sport administrator shall be very accurate.

Indeed it is important to collect enough money to conduct a soccer, basketball game, or weightlifting tournament, however the challenges for a sport administrator dedicated to weightlifting is to secure to his federation, excellent athletes with the necessary skills and talent, but most importantly with a lot of passion for his sport.

Reading this message one could have a dilemma: have geniuses and great athletes truly done their best to obtain success?

I believe that the only thing they can do is to insist on the merits and forget the demerits.

Ottavio Cinquanta President, International Skating Union VICTOR AN (RUS)

With a total of 6 Olympic titles, 18 World titles and a number of silver and bronze medals, An is one of the most decorated Short Track Speed Skaters of all time.

www.isu.org

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ISU COUNCIL The ISU Council met on June 12-13, 2015 in Geneva (SUI). The Minimum Total Elements Scores in Figure Skating were decided for the upcoming season, along with the date for the Judges Draw which will take place on October 15, 2015 in Lausanne (SUI). Following the decision of the 2014 ISU Congress to add a provision in the ISU General Regulations to implement an electronic entry system for Figure Skating, the project is in development and gradual implementation during the season 2015/16 will take place. A number of definite and provisional Championships for the seasons 2015/16 to 2017/18 were allotted and it was agreed in principle that an additional partner event, which will be held in North America, will be added to the annual International Adult Competition held in Oberstdorf (GER). Additionally four Development Trophy competitions are foreseen for the new season. The ISU Council also homologated a number of World records in Speed Skating and Short Track Speed Skating and ratified a number of Figure Skating Officials assessments. Finally Dr. Eunkuk Kim (KOR) was appointed by the ISU Council as a new Medical Advisor and has joined the ISU Medical Commission.

The ISU Council will meet on October 16 -18, 2015 in Lausanne (SUI), April 9 -11 in Budapest (HUN) and on June 5, 11 & 12, 2016 in Dubrovnik (CRO). For more information on the decisions of the Council see ISU Communication 1946.

SPORTS DIRECTORS & SPORT MANAGER FIGURE SKATING During the off season the focus was on education and preparation for the new season. A second Development Pair Skating Seminar was held in Sochi (RUS) with 13 Pair Skaters representing 8 ISU Members. The seminar was a good opportunity for the participants to showcase the skills they learnt at the spring Pair Skating seminar in Torun (POL). The ISU Ice Dance Development Seminars were held in Oberstdorf (GER) for the 7th time, while the Synchronized Skating Development Seminar was held in Vierumaki (FIN). 56 skaters representing 14 ISU Members attended the Seminar in Vierumaki. Frankfurt (GER) hosted the

ISU NEWS 11th Global Seminar with nearly 200 participants which offered recertification, new judges, new referees, promotion opportunities for referees and a Youth Seminar centered around athlete branding.

In the Speed Skating Branch, Ms. Daria Kamelkova was appointed as the new Speed Skating Event Coordinator effective as of September 1, 2015. In Short Track Speed Skating a number of activities are planned and the ISU will work with a number of top athletes to help promote the discipline.

The final preparations are taking place for the second Winter Youth Olympic Games that will take place in Lillehammer (NOR) on February 12 - 21, 2016.

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ISU TECHNICAL COMMITTEES Single and Pair Skating At the end of May the annual spring Single and Pair Technical Committee (SPTC) meeting was held in Italy. Among the subjects discussed were Referees and Technical Controllers reports for the competitions held in spring 2015, list of assessments and warnings for the season 2014/15, reports for the Judges Seminars, list of Officials and proposals of the SPTC for appointments of Officials in the season 2015/16. In July SPTC members acted as moderators and 1 SPTC member was a participant of the Global Frankfurt Seminar. The Committee prepared the Technical Panel Handbooks for the season 2015/16 which were published on the ISU Website. Several proposals are in preparation and will be submitted to the ISU Congress 2016. The current results were discussed at the committee meeting that was held after the Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf (GER) in September. During this Event 4 SPTC members acted as Examiners at the ISU Judges Examination.

Ice Dance The Ice Dance Technical Committee (IDTC) members conducted seminars in Frankfurt (GER) as part of the Global Seminar.

The IDTC prepared a document to help support Referees during the Judges Meetings at all ISU Events. The document is in the form of presentations which highlight important points so Initial Judges Meetings can be consistent throughout the Season.

Camilla and Anne-Line Gjersem (NOR) with YOG Ambassador Yuna Kim (KOR)

Three Handbooks have been posted on the ISU website along with the latest Q&A. The Handbooks are for Technical Panels, Referees and Judges and for Pattern Dances. The IDTC has produced an educational DVD to help Technical Panels, coaches and couples to have a common understanding on requirements for Key Points and Key Point Features of Pattern Dance Elements 2015/16. The DVD, which is available on the ISU website for purchase, demonstrates correct and incorrect technical execution according to Key Point Features for each Key Point. The ISU Examination for promotion of Dance Judges to the ISU level was held in Oberstdorf at the end of September. Members of the IDTC are officiating as Referees and/or Technical Controllers in upcoming ISU Events.

Synchronized Skating The ISU Synchronized Skating Technical Committee (SySTC) ran a National Technical Specialist and Controller seminar in Frankfurt (GER) to help with the development of Officials.

It was done in conjunction with the annual ISU Technical training seminar. The annual Judges and Referee’s seminar will be taking place in October in Lyon (FRA). The SySTC has been busy at their autumn meeting preparing proposals for the 2016 ISU Congress. The main focus is the simplification of the rules. Finally, it was announced that a Synchronized Skating Free Skating competition will be included in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final Event in Barcelona (ESP) for the first time.

This is a great opportunity to showcase the sport to a wider audience.

ISU NEWS Speed Skating

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The Speed Skating Technical Committee (SSTC) met in June at the new ISU Secretariat where they concluded the planning of the competition program and the regulations for the ISU World Cup and the ISU Junior World Cup 2015/16 (ISU Communications 1958 and 1959). The SSTC also decided to issue new and more extensive safety regulations for Mass start races as published in ISU Communication 1957. ISU Member nominations for the lists of ISU Referees and Starters were reviewed and the lists were published in ISU Communication 1949. The World Cup series will include 6 Competitions each will take place over 3 days with a full distance program.

As of this season Team Sprint races are an official World Cup event, and will be raced in four of the World Cup Competitions. The SSTC will meet in October to finish preparing the upcoming season and the 2016 ISU Congress agenda will be the main items on the agenda.

Short Track

The Short Track Speed Skating Technical Committee (STSSTC) met on June 4 - 7 in Munich (GER) to finalize two major ongoing projects, the Officials Database and the Race Report System. The STSSTC submitted a report to the ISU Council who agreed that the Race Report System enhances the quality and speed of the decision making of the Referees and allows a better monitoring of the officiating. The ISU Council therefore approved the funding for the continuation of the project. The list of Short Track Officials for the new season was published and the project for Rules restructuring is in progress.

Two ISU Courses for Starters will take place during the fall in Graz (AUT) and Torino (ITA).

The STSSTC have started to discuss potential rule proposals for the next ISU Congress.

They will discuss this point in more detail during their next meeting which will take place during the second ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating Event in Toronto (CAN).

ISU SECRETARIAT

There have been a number of changes at the ISU Secretariat. Firstly the office moved on June 1 to its new Headquarters at Avenue Juste-Olivier 17 1006 Lausanne. Secondly Ms. Katia Trenz, Administrative Assistant and Ms. Géraldine Knobel, Administrative Assistant Figure Skating left the ISU. www.isu.org

We thank Ms. Trenz for her 13 years and Ms Knobel 5 years of work at the ISU and wish them much success with their future.

The ISU has taken advantage of these departures for a general review of all job descriptions with the result that some tasks have been allocated differently. Based on this we are pleased to welcome Ms. Céline Daguerre and Mr. Frédéric Laurent as Administrative Assistant Figure Skating and Ms. Roxanne Rochat as the new Assistant Anti-Doping Administrator. We congratulate them on their appointments.

WINTER YOUTH OLYMPIC GAMES The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the list of 15 Athlete Role Models (ARMs) who will support the young athletes going to the 2nd Winter Youth Olympic Games from 12 to 21 February 2016 in Lillehammer (NOR). Stéphane Lambiel (SUI), Lee-Kyung Chun (KOR) and Christine Nesbitt (CAN) are the selected ARMs for Figure Skating, Short Track Speed Skating and Speed Skating respectively. Yuna Kim (KOR) has been selected as a YOG Ambassador for the second time.

DR. EGBERT SCHMID

It is with profound sadness that the ISU learned of the death of Dr. Schmid on August 22, 2015 at the age of 73. At the time of his passing Dr. Schmid was Honorary President of the Österreichischer Eisschnelllauf Verband and member of the ISU Disciplinary Commission. In 1996 Dr. Schmid was appointed as a Member of the ISU Appeals Commission, a role he held for 29 years. The ISU pays tribute to Mr. Schmid’s devoted service to the ISU and to Speed Skating and will remember him with affection.

MR. MAGNE TEIGEN

It is with deep sorrow that the ISU learned of the passing of Mr Teigen on September 12, 2015 at the age of 71. Mr Teigen was an expert Speed Skating statistician. He collaborated with the ISU since the 1960s, played a pivotal role in establishing a Speed Skating results database and assisted the ISU SSTC for over 22 years.

Mr Teigen was awarded the Norwegian Skating Federation Gold Award of Merit in June 2015. The ISU pays tribute to Mr. Teigen’s devotion to Speed Skating and will remember him with affection.

SHORT TRACK World Cup Short Track Speed Skating The Short Track season starts with the ISU World Cup Short Track series. This year the circuit is comprised of six events across North America, Asia and Europe. The format of the World Cup series went back to its original format last season with one day of qualification instead of two. At each competition the Men and Ladies Relay races will take place and Men and Ladies individual races will be held over 500 m, 1000 m and

THE SEASON AHEAD 1500 m and single distances determine the winners. Canada will host the first two events on October 30 - November 1 in Montreal and moves to Toronto the following week on November 6 - 8. In December the Series moves to Asia stopping first in Nagoya (JPN) on December 4 - 6 and then goes to Shanghai (CHN) on December 11 - 13. The Series will then travel to Europe, firstly to Dresden (GER) on February 5 -7 and finally to Dordrecht (NED) on February 12 - 14.

ISU Championships Sochi (RUS) will host the ISU European Short Track Speed Skating Championships on

January 22 - 24. The action then moves to Sofia (BUL) on January 29 - 31, providing a last chance to the Junior athletes to compete before the WYOG. The season will come to an end in Seoul (KOR) with the ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships on March 11-13.

ISU Shanghai Trophy The ISU in cooperation with the Chinese Skating Association will launch the first ever ISU Shanghai Trophy, a new event that combines Short Track Speed Skating and Synchronized Skating. The Event will take place on March 4 - 6, 2016 in Shanghai (CHN).

Agne Sereikaite (LTU), Lara van Ruijven (NED), Ekaterina Konstantinova (RUS), Elena Viviani (ITA), Hanne Desmet (BEL)

For the Short Track Speed Skating competition, the first 24 Ladies and Men in the Overall Classification of the 2015/16 ISU World Ranking Lists stated after the fourth World Cup will be invited to participate.

There will also be six International mixed relay teams. The top five placed ISU Members of the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships 2015 and one Team of the hosting ISU Member will be invited to participate in the Synchronized Skating competition. Each team will perform their Short Program and Free Skating program.

On the third day of the event, the teams will perform an exhibition program.

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SINGLE AND PAIR SKATING / ICE DANCE

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August 19 - 23

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

Bratislava SLOVAKIA

December 9 - 13

ISU Grand Prix of Figu (Junior and Senior)

August 26 - 30

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

Riga LATVIA

January 25 - 31

ISU European Figur Championships

September 2 - 6

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

Colorado Springs CO USA

February 16 - 21

ISU Four Continents Championships

September 9 - 13

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

Linz AUSTRIA

March 14 - 20

ISU World Junior F Championships

September 16 - 20

Challenger Series U.S. International Figure Skating Classic

Salt Lake City UT USA

March 28 - April 3

ISU World Figure S Championships

September 23 - 27

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

Torun POLAND

September 24 - 26

Challenger Series Nebelhorn Trophy

Obertsdorf GERMANY

September 30 October 4

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

Logrono SPAIN

October 1 - 3

Challenger Series 23rd Ondrej Nepela Trophy

Bratislava SLOVAKIA

October 7 - 11

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

October 8 - 11

SPEED SKATING November 13 - 15

ISU World Cup Speed Ska

Zagreb CROATIA

November 14 - 15

ISU Junior World Cup Spe

Challenger Series Finlandia Trophy

Espoo FINLAND

November 20 - 22

ISU World Cup Speed Ska

October 15 - 18

Challenger Series Mordovian Ornament

Saransk RUSSIA

November 28 - 29

ISU Junior World Cup Spe

October 20 - 25

Challenger Series 4th Denkova-Staviski Cup

Sofia BULGARIA

December 4 - 6

ISU World Cup Speed Ska

October 23 - 25

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Skate America

Milwaukee WI USA

December 11 - 13

ISU World Cup Speed Ska

October 27 November 1

Challenger Series IceChallenge

Graz AUSTRIA

January 9 - 10

ISU European Speed Sk Championships

October 30 November 1

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Skate Canada International

Lethbridge AB CANADA

January 16 - 17

ISU Junior World Cup Spe

November 6 - 8

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Audi Cup of China

Beijing CHINA

January 29 - 31

ISU World Cup Speed Ska

November 13 - 15

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Trophée Eric Bompard

Bordeaux FRANCE

February 11 - 14

November 18 - 22

Challenger Series Tallinn Trophy

Tallinn ESTONIA

ISU World Single Dista Speed Skating Champi

February 27 - 28

November 20 - 22

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Rostelecom Cup

Moscow RUSSIA

ISU World Sprint Speed Championships

March 5 - 6

Challenger Series Warsaw Cup

Warsaw POLAND

ISU World Allround Sp Championships

March 5 - 6

ISU Junior World Cup Spe

November 27 - 29

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating NHK Trophy

Nagano JAPAN

March 11 - 13

December 2 - 5

Challenger Series Golden Spin of Zagreb

Zagreb CROATIA

ISU World Junior Spee Championships

March 11 - 13

ISU World Cup Speed Ska

November 26 - 29

www.isu.org

ISU EVENT CALENDAR 2015 / 2016 SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING

ure Skating Final

Barcelona SPAIN

October 30 - November 1

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Montreal CANADA

re Skating

Bratislava SLOVAKIA

November 6 - 8

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Toronto CANADA

s Figure Skating

Taipei City CHINESE TAIPEI

December 4 - 6

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Debrecen HUNGARY

Nagoya JAPAN

December 11 - 13

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Boston MA USA

Shanghai CHINA

January 22 - 24

ISU European Short Track Speed Skating Championships

Sochi RUSSIA

January 29 - 31

ISU World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships

Sofia BULGARIA

February 5 - 7

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Dresden GERMANY

Figure Skating

Skating

ating

Calgary CANADA

February 12 - 14

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Dordrecht NETHERLANDS

eed Skating

Groningen NETHERLANDS

March 11 - 13

ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships

ating

Salt Lake City USA

Seoul REPUBLIC OF KOREA

eed Skating

Berlin GERMANY

ating

Inzell GERMANY

ating

Heerenveen NETHERLANDS

kating

Minsk BELARUS

eed Skating

Baselga di Piné ITALY

ating

Stavanger NORWAY

ances ionships

Kolomna RUSSIA

March 11 - 12

d Skating

Seoul REPUBLIC OF KOREA

ISU Synchronized Skating Junior World Challenge Cup

Zagreb CROATIA

April 8 - 9

ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships

Budapest HUNGARY

peed Skating

Berlin GERMANY

eed Skating Final

Changchun CHINA

ed Skating

Changchun CHINA

ating Final

Heerenveen NETHERLANDS

ISU SHANGHAI TROPHY March 4 - 6

ISU Shanghai Trophy Synchronized Skating, Short Track Speed Skating

Shanghai CHINA

SYNCHRONIZED SKATING

YOUTH OLYMPIC GAMES February 12 - 21

Winter Youth Olympic Games Figure Skating, Speed Skating, Short Track Speed Skating

Lillehammer NORWAY

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Left to Right: Nana Takagi, Miho Takagi and Ayaka Kikuchi (JPN)

SPEED SKATING World Cup Speed Skating This season the ISU World Cup Speed Skating Series will contain six Events. The first four events will have a full distance program aimed at both sprinters and allround skaters and are the qualifying events for the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships 2016. The fifth leg is a qualifying event for the ISU World Sprint Speed Skating Championships 2016 and for the ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships 2016. ISU Members qualify quota places for the ISU World Sprint Speed Skating Championships 2016 based on the combined results (one 500 and one 1000 meter) of their Skaters in this World Cup Competition. www.isu.org

ISU Members qualify quota places for the ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships 2016 based on the combined results (1500 and 3000 meters for Ladies, 1500 and 5000 meters for Men) of their Skaters in this World Cup Competition. Team Sprint races will also be introduced as a new official World Cup event, and will feature in four of the World Cup Competitions.

The first ISU World Cup Speed Skating event of 2015/16 will be held in Calgary (CAN) on November 13 -15, followed one week later

by Salt Lake City (USA) on November 20 - 22.

The World Cup moves to Inzell (GER) on December 4 - 6 and a week later to Heerenveen (NED) on December 11-13. This season the World Cup Series will not travel to Asia, who will host several Championships instead.

Therefore on January 29 - 31, 2016 skaters will compete in Stavanger (NOR) and the series will go back to Heerenveen for the Final on March 11-13. The Team Sprint and Team Pursuit will be held over four events and the Mass Start will be raced at five events.

Junior World Cup Speed Skating This season there will only be 4 ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating events due to the 2016 Lillehammer Winter Youth Olympic Games (WYOG) held on February 12 - 21.

The first two Competitions will be part of the qualification process for the WYOG and will take place in Groningen (NED) on November 14 -15 and Berlin (GER) on November 28 - 29. The third leg of the Series will be the last chance for the qualified skaters to

THE SEASON AHEAD practice before the WYOG and will be held in Baselga di Piné (ITA) on January 16 -17. The ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating Final will be in Changchun (CHN) on March 5 - 6 one week before the ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championships which take place in the same rink.

Denis Yuskov (RUS)

ISU Championships The ISU Championships season begins on January 9 -10 with the ISU European Speed Skating Championships in Minsk (BLR).

On February 11 - 14 the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships will take place in Kolomna (RUS).

The ISU World Sprint will be competed in Seoul (KOR) on February 27- 28 and the ISU World Allround Championships in Berlin (GER) on March 5 - 6. The season will end with the ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championships on March 11 - 13 in Changchun (CHN).

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FIGURE SKATING

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The 2015/16 season opened with the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating in August and will be followed by the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series starting in October leading up to the ISU Grand Prix Final and ISU Junior Grand Prix Final in Barcelona (ESP).

In early 2016, the focus will shift to the ISU Championships.

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating started with the first two of seven events in Bratislava (SVK) and Riga (LAT) in August followed by Colorado Springs (USA), Linz (AUT), Torun (POL), Logrono (ESP) and Zagreb (CRO).

Four events include Pair Skating. The top six skaters and couples in each category will advance to the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final.

So far, Polina Tsurskaya (RUS), Maria Sotskova (RUS), Dmitri Aliev (RUS), Roman Sadovsky (CAN), Renata Oganesian/Mark Bardei (UKR) as well as ice dancers Rachel Parsons/Michael Parsons (USA) and Betina Popova/Yuri Vlasenko (RUS) have won their first event and have good chances to qualify for Barcelona.

All ISU Members can enter athletes for the Junior Grand Prix and more than 300 young skaters/couples from about 50 ISU Members are competing in this year’s Junior series.

Moldova and Kyrgyztan are represented for the first time at the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating.

ber 6 - 8) and Europe with Trophée Eric Bombard in Bordeaux (FRA) on November 13 -15 followed by Rostelecom Cup in Moscow (November 20 - 22). The sixth and last event will be the NHK Trophy in Nagano (JPN) on November 27 - 29.

The top twelve skaters/couples of the 2015 ISU World Figure Skating Championships are assigned to two events. The remaining spots in each event are awarded in accordance with the ISU World Standings and Season’s Best lists. In order to assure the high standard of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, only skaters or couples that meet a minimum score are eligible to compete in the events.

The minimum total score for this season is as follows: Men 164.34 points, Ladies 126.21 points, Pairs 132.93 points, Ice Dance 110.58 points.

The Grand Prix series will feature Olympic, World and European Champions and medalists as well as up and coming skaters seeking to confirm their position and newcomers from the junior ranks.

Olympic Champion Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN) will start his season at Skate Canada and his home event NHK Trophy, while reigning World Champion Javier Fernandez (ESP) competes at Audi Cup of China and Rostelecom Cup. Olympic and World bronze medalist Denis

Grand Prix of Figure Skating

The 2015/16 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series will consist of six events in six countries with the top six skaters and couples qualifying for the Grand Prix Final (10 -13 December). The ISU Junior Grand Prix Final and the ISU Grand Prix Final will be held together as in the past years. For the first time, the ISU Grand Prix Final will also feature a Synchronized Skating Free Skating competition with the top five teams of the world.

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating traditionally starts with Skate America in Milwaukee (October 23 - 25), followed by Skate Canada International in Lethbridge, AB, (October 30 November 1). The series then moves to Asia with the Audi Cup of China in Beijing (Novemwww.isu.org

Joshi Helgesson (SWE)

Ten (KAZ) is slated for Skate America and Trophée Bompard. After sitting out one season, Olympic silver medalist Patrick Chan (CAN) starts his comeback at Skate Canada and Trophée Bompard. Current and former World, Four Continents and European Champions and medalists on the circuit include Takahito Mura (JPN), Florent Amodio (FRA), Han Yan (CHN), Michal Brezina (CZE), Sergei Voronov (RUS), Maxim Kovtun (RUS), Adam Rippon (USA) and Joshua Farris (USA). World Junior Champion Shoma Uno and World Junior silver medalist Boyang Jin (CHN) debut on the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating.

World and European Champion Elizaveta Tuktamysheva (RUS) headlines the Ladies’ field and will compete in Canada and France.

Three-time World Champion Mao Asada (JPN) returns to the circuit with stops at Audi Cup of China and NHK Trophy. World silver medalist Satoko Miyahara (JPN) is entered for Skate America and NHK Trophy. World bronze medalist Elena Radionova (RUS) has been selected for Audi Cup of China and Rostelecom Cup. Four Continents Champion Polina Edmunds (USA) competes in Canada and Moscow. Other top skaters on the circuit include 2014 European Champion Julia Lipnitskaia (RUS), 2014 Four Continents Champion Kanako Murakami (JPN), ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final bronze medalist

THE SEASON AHEAD Trophée Bompard and at NHK Trophy.

World silver medalists Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) take the ice at Skate America and Audi Cup of China while World bronze medalists Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje (CAN) can be seen at Skate Canada and Rostelecom Cup. 2014 World and European Champions Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte (ITA) dance at Audi Cup of China and Rostelecom Cup. 2013 European Champions Ekaterina Bobrova/ Dmitri Soloviev (RUS) are back in action in Lethbridge and Nagano following his injury break. Other top teams on the circuit are Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani (USA), Elena Ilinykh/ Ruslan Zhiganshin (RUS) and Penny Coomes/ Nicholas Buckland (GBR). 2015 World Junior Champions Anna Yanovskaya/Sergey Mozgov (RUS) debut at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating.

ISU Championships

Europe’s best skaters will compete for the European crown at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships 2016 in Bratislava (SVK) January 25 - 31 while athletes from North and South America, Asia, Africa and Australia/Oceania will compete at the ISU Four Continents Championships in Taipei City (TPE) February 16 - 21. The World’s top Juniors will meet at the World Junior Championships March 14 - 20 in Debrecen (HUN). The season will conclude with the World Championships in Boston (USA) March 28 - April 3.

SYNCHRONIZED SKATING Misha GE (UZB)

Ashley Wagner (USA) and Gracie Gold (USA).

World Junior Champion Evgenia Medvedeva debuts on the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating.

Olympic Champions Tatiana Volosozhar/ Maxim Trankov (RUS) return to competition after missing the post-Olympic year due to him suffering a shoulder injury. The three-time European Champions are slated for Trophee Bompard and NHK Trophy. Reigning World Champions Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford (CAN) meet the Russians at NHK Trophy and before that compete in their home event in Lethbridge. Olympic silver medalists Ksenia

Stolbova/Fedor Klimov (RUS) are competing in Milwaukee and in Moscow. Reigning World silver medalists Wenjing Sui/Cong Han (CHN) start their season at Skate America and Audi Cup of China while European Champions Yuko Kavaguti/Alexander Smirnov (RUS) kick their season off in China and France. Other top contenders include ISU Grand Prix finalists Cheng Peng/Hao Zhang (CHN), Alexa Scimeca/Chris Knierim (USA), Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov (RUS) and Xiaoyu Yu/Yang Jin (CHN).

Reigning World and European Champions Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron (FRA) open their season at their home event

Synchronized Skating Teams will compete in a number of major international events this season, beginning in December 2015. For the first time, the five top Synchronized Teams of the World will compete in a Free Skating event at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Other highlights of the season will be the ISU Synchronized Skating Junior World Challenge Cup in Zagreb (CRO) March 11 - 12 and the World Synchronized Skating Championships in Budapest (HUN) April 8 - 9. On March 4 - 6 the top five placed ISU Members of the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships 2015 and one (1) Team of the hosting ISU Member will be invited to participate at the first ISU Shanghai Trophy (see page 11 for more information).

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PAST MASTER

PETER KRICK (GER): BORN 1944 Peter Krick competed as a Single Figure Skater and was crowned German Champion three years in a row. He also competed at European and World Figure Skating Championships and at the 1968 Olympic Winter Games in Grenoble (FRA) where he finished 12th.

Shortly after he retired from competitive skating, Mr Krick started working as a coach and in 1972 he started working at the German Figure Skating Union (Deutsche Eislauf-Union) as Sport Manager and later as Sports Director. Mr Krick was instrumental in the establishment of the wellknown Oberstdorf training center in Germany. In 1999 Mr. Krick was appointed by the ISU Council as ISU Event Coordinator in Figure Skating.

In 2006 he was appointed as ISU Chair Sports Directorate and in 2014 to Sports Manager Figure Skating.

His relentless dedication and undeniable passion for Figure Skating has inspired many and Mr Krick’s involvement in the sport has contributed to the development of many skaters and the discipline of Figure Skating.