ISU World No. 60 October 2016

INTERNATIONAL SKATING UNION OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER

INSIDE •

ISU NEWS

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ISU CONGRESS REVIEW

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ISU EVENT CALENDAR

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SEASON PREVIEW

NO 60 OCTOBER 2016

MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER

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The ISU Congress is behind us. The week-long event showed us that skating is met with enthusiasm around the world, stimulated by experts who put their heart and soul into the success of the sport. The passion for skating is what unites and drives us all. I am honored to succeed Mr. Ottavio Cinquanta, who was acclaimed as ISU Honorary President in Dubrovnik. I am grateful for the received support and keen to work hard. The “first hundred days” is a common phrase to indicate accomplishments of a President. I like to give you an insight into some of our priorities, besides the regular activities, in the first hundred days after the Congress.

The ISU is in good shape, but this is not the time to rest on our laurels. As a sociologist, I consider sport as part of society. To succeed in the future, the ISU disciplines must move in tandem with developments in our societies. We face important challenges. As pointed out in my manifesto, I hope to inspire the skating community, helping to innovate and evolve the ISU and its Members, while never forgetting the solid foundation that has already been laid. Three pillars are vital: - Development. Expand and develop skating worldwide across all disciplines and levels; - Marketing, promotion & digitalization. Increase ISU’s global fan base, loyalty and engagement and optimize ISU’s marketing and media partnerships structure; - Good governance. Ensure strong corporate governance through transparency, inclusiveness and respect.

The ISU must offer a professional and result oriented support to its Members. Therefore the Council has focused on development and conducted a survey. Fifty-two participating Members provided valuable feedback regarding their situation and needs for development support. One of the main challenges they face concerns the education and support for coaches (the results are available on ISU.org). Secondly, we created an updated policy including the goals, priorities, values, and strategies. An important element is that we must work together and share our lessons learned. For example, we will create an online development platform to facilitate the possibility for online courses, finding information on all projects, etc. The ISU Communication with the updated approach will be published shortly. Thirdly, we are establishing the new ISU Development Commission. I was pleased to see so many high-quality candidates and it has not been easy to decide on whom to appoint.

Furthermore, the Council is paying attention to other Congress follow-up matters. Some examples include: the structure of ISU Figure Skating Championships, Officials Education & Seminars and ISU Athletes Commission. Regarding this last subject, I look forward to welcoming the Skaters’ representatives next year. The Athletes are at the heart of skating, and the Commission can collect feedback and fresh ideas from the field of play. The elections will take place at the ISU World Championships in 2017.

The new Skating season is underway and I wish you a wonderful season full of amazing and memorable experiences. I am excited for the future and want to emphasize we all have an important role to play as a Member, Athlete, Coach, Official, Fan, Office Holder, Secretariat Employee, Media or Sponsor. Together we can carve a strong future for skating and for the ISU. Let’s move forward together over the next 600 days, up to and including the ISU Congress 2018.

Jan Dijkema ISU President JAN DIJKEMA (NED)

Elected in June 2016 as ISU President, Mr. Dijkema joined the ISU as Council member in 1994 and was elected Vice President Speed Skating in 2010.

www.isu.org

ISU World is the official newsletter of the International Skating Union Published and produced by ISU, Avenue Juste-Olivier 17, 1006 Lausanne, Switzerland Telephone : +41 21 612 66 66. Facsimile : +41 21 612 66 77.

Designed by : moserdesign.ch Front cover photograph : © KNSB - Martin de Jong Photography : © ISU, © IOC / Ian Jones, © KNSB - Martin de Jong

ISU COUNCIL

The ISU Congress voted to increase the number of Council members from four to five in each Branch, a new President and Vice Presidents were elected and out of the 10 Council members, four were reelected and six newly elected. The full details of the composition of the Council are available on page 4.

The pre-Congress Council met on June 5 and the newly elected Council met on June 11 & 12, 2016 in Dubrovnik (CRO). They agreed to grant the Ice Skating Association of Ireland (already a full Figure Skating ISU Member) with a provisional Speed Skating Branch ISU Membership.

The list of Communications with continued validity were confirmed and listed. Additionally the Council acknowledged the revised Rule 109 relating to citizenship and residency requirements for Skaters and published ISU Communication No. 2030 replacing ISU Communication No. 1420.

Based on the 2016 Congress decision to create a Development Commission, the function of the Development Coordinator is discontinued. The composition of the Development Commission as well as an update of Communication No. 1531 are under preparation and will be published later in the Fall. The Council determined the Minimum Technical Elements Scores for all ISU Figure Skating Championships for the Season 2016/17 in ISU Communication No. 2017.

The annual Judges Draw for the 2017 Figure Skating Championships will be held on October 13, 2016 in Geneva (SUI).

All 2017 Championships have definitely been allotted. For the new provisional allotments of 2019 Championships and due to rule changes adopted by the 2016 Congress, the Council decided to keep some new Provisional Allotments for the 2019 Speed Skating Championships pending. Full details relating to ISU Championships and ISU Event allotments can be found in ISU Communication No. 2017 and in the ISU Event Calendar on the ISU website.

Finally a number of new Speed Skating and Short Track Speed Skating World Records were ratified.

The new Council agreed to meet on September 9 -11, 2016 in Geneva (SUI), October 14 -16, 2016 in Geneva, (SUI), March 25 - 27, 2017 in Helsinki (FIN) and finally on June 2- 4, 2017 in Amsterdam (NED).

For more information on the decisions of the Council see ISU Communication 2017.

SPORTS DIRECTORS

Following the 2014 Congress decision to discontinue the position of Sport Manager Figure

ISU NEWS This Season, the ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating Series will include races for Neoseniors (under 23s). The Bi-annual ISU Speed Skating Referees courses will take place in Park City (USA) in September and finally over 40 participants from 14 countries will be trained by moderators Daniel Immerfall (USA) and Daniel Cabelduc (SWE).

Short Track

ISU Honorary President and IOC Honorary member Mr. Ottavio Cinquanta receives Olympic Order

Skating effective after the 2016 Congress, Mr. Peter Krick was elected Honorary Member after 17 years with the ISU. The three ISU Sports Directors remain. In Figure Skating, Athlete and Official’s Seminars took place throughout the summer, including the annual Global Seminar in Frankfurt (GER). The ISU hosted the largest Technical Panel Seminar since its inception with over 240 participants covering all Figure Skating Branch disciplines.

The Seminar was structured around all aspects of initial, promotion and re-certification of the Technical Panel. August saw a successful Development Training Seminar held for Ice Dance Coaches and their Couples in Seoul (KOR).

In the Speed Skating Branch, preparations are under way for the new Season and discussions to continue, improve and expand the Short Track Speed Skating initiatives launched last Season are ongoing. A number of visits to Gangneung (KOR) in preparation for this new Season’s test events and the 2018 Olympic Winter Games have taken place as we enter the pre-Olympic Season.

ISU TECHNICAL COMMITTEES Speed Skating

Newly elected Chair, Alexander Kibalko (RUS) and member Christian Breuer (GER), join the Speed Skating Technical Committee (SSTC).

Having been a demonstration sport for a full Season, the Congress agreed to officially integrate Team Sprint as an ISU Speed Skating discipline. Congress also agreed to restructure the ISU European Speed Skating Championships; organized annually over three days with alternating programs (Allround and Sprint combination format one year, Single Distances and Team event format another).

During the summer months the SSTC finalized and updated a number of ISU Communications including, ISU Officials (2021), ISU Championships (2037), ISU World Cup Speed Skating (2031), ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating (2039) and Mass Start races (2038).

During the ISU Congress, Nathalie Lambert (CAN) became the first lady not only to become Chair of the Short Track Speed Skating Technical Committee (STSSTC) in the history of the ISU, she is also the first Lady to chair any discipline in the Speed Skating Branch. Xun XU (CHN) and Satoru Terao (JPN) were also elected to the STSSTC. Member since 2010 the STSSTC thanks Ji-Hoon Chae (KOR) for six years of service.

Two significant changes were voted in as Rule changes during the 2016 ISU Congress.

Firstly, under specific guidelines, Skaters will now be allowed to fix a blade or another part of their equipment while on the ice just before the start of a race. Secondly ISU Members and Organizing Committees will be able to test new race formats and submit them to the ISU for review. The next Officials’ Seminar will take place in Calgary (CAN) during the Intercontinental Invitational International Competition which will take place on October 7- 9. The STSSTC will take advantage of the event to present and provide formal training on the new Race Report System and the Officials Database that has been developed over the last few months and will be implemented during the new Season.

Synchronized Skating

The Synchronized Skating Technical Committee (SySTC) welcomes Lois Long (USA) and Petra Tyrbo (SWE) and thanks Karen Wolanchuk (USA) for her 10 years of service and Philippe Maitrot (FRA) for his 6 years of service.

The SySTC has been busy post Congress updating the Rules and Regulations and preparing for the new Season. All the Technical Proposals presented to Congress were approved and mainly focus on simplification of the rules combined with liberalization of the Element and Program Requirements. The SySTC continues to work closely with coaches and officials to development the sport towards Olympic inclusion. Discussions regarding the creation of a development Seminar in the Asia Pacific region to encourage Members to develop the sport are taking place. During its meeting in Toronto (CAN) in August, one of the major topics was regarding Coach education at all levels. The Referee and Judge’s Seminar will take place in Helsinki (FIN) in

October, and the ISU Officials Seminar at the end of 2016. The SySTC is pleased of the increase of International events taking place next Season, extending the competitive calendar from October to April.

Single and Pair Skating

Following the Congress elections Fabio Bianchetti (ITA) chairs the Single and Pair Skating Technical Committee (SPTC) and Yukiko Okabe (JPN) joins the Committee.

The SPTC met pre and post Congress in Dubrovnik. The most important vote by Congress was the elimination of anonymous judging in all ISU Events. Although there is no impact on the ISU Judging System, it is expected to have a positive impact on the media. All the technical changes proposed by the SPTC passed at Congress. In June, two recognized Judges’ Seminars took place, Vienna (AUT) and a sponsored Seminar for Pair Skating in Sochi (RUS) in connection with a Pair Skating camp. The annual Global Seminar for Technical Controllers, Technical Specialists and International Judges was held in Frankfurt (GER) in July. A joint Seminar with the SPTC, SySTC and Ice Dance Technical Committees for the Program Components moderators also took place. Following the success of regrouping all ISU Figure Skating disciplines, the Seminar is under consideration to become a yearly event.

Ice Dance

After 10 years of service the Ice Dance Technical Committee (IDTC) thanks Robert Horen (USA) and Walter Zuccaro (ITA) for his two years of dedication. The IDTC welcomes Shawn Rettstatt (USA) and Hilary Selby (GBR).

Most Congress Proposals submitted by the Ice Dance Technical Committee (IDTC) were successfully adopted, some aim to allow more creativity for Couples and to make programs more attractive for audiences. Couples can now perform two Choreographic Elements in the Free Dance. The Congress also agreed to permit Couples to perform a wider variety of lifts. In a joint Proposal with the SPTC, Grade of Execution range will increase as of Season 2018/19. Referees and Judges’ Seminars were held in Seoul (KOR) on June 24 - 26, with 20 Judges and Referees in attendance.

Training and examinations in Frankfurt for new and promotion of Technical Controllers and Specialists, in addition to Recertification of current Technical Panel members were conducted. A Development Training Seminar for Junior and Novice Couples and their coaches from Asia, Oceania and the Pacific Region was held in Seoul (KOR) on August 14 - 20.

The ISU Examination for promotion of Ice Dance Judges to the ISU Level will be held in Oberstdorf in September.

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ISU CONGRESS REVIEW

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From left to right S. Anesi, R. Maillard, S. Stoytchev, J.Y. Kim, M. Geistlinger, Y. Yang, U. Linder, T. Espeli, B. Pfister, J. Dijkema, F. Schmid, A. Lakernik, J. Hiramatsu, P. St. Peter, M. Lundmark, B. Lavoie, M.T. Samaranch.

The 56th ISU Ordinary Congress took place in Dubrovnik (CRO) on June 6 -10, where over 350 Delegates from 85 Members were present to vote on over 370 Proposals and to elect candidates to ISU Office.

Congress voted in favor of an Athletes’ Commission and a new Development Commission.

Following the decision of the European Commission to open an investigation against the ISU eligibility rules, the ISU Council made a number of proposals in order to adjust the rules and provide consistency to Rule 109, all of which were accepted. The new rule helps clarify the issue of athlete clearances and harmonizes the waiting period for release to 12 months.

Congress agreed to restructure the ISU European Speed Skating Championships; see page 3 for more information.

Team Sprint is now a fully integrated ISU Speed Skating discipline. Other Proposals to introduce a World hour record and to restructure the ISU World Speed Skating Championships were rejected. www.isu.org

In Short Track Speed Skating the testing of new racing formats will be permitted and although a proposal to introduce ISU Nations Trophy Short Track event was defeated, a resolution to look into the format was agreed.

A number of Technical Rules were approved in order to clarify the classification rules and final Rankings.

Following the decision of Congress the anonymity of Judges in the Figure Skating Branch (including Single and Pair Skating, Ice Dance and Synchronized Skating) was abolished.

The age limit of ISU Figure Skating Officials was unified to the maximum age of 70 and a number of proposals to shorten the Figure Skating competitions have been voted in, including the reduction of the number of jumps in Single and Pair Skating. Season 2018/19 will see the introduction of 11 Grades of Execution which will increase the range to evaluate the quality of programs. Finally a new draw procedure will take place.

The Synchronized Skating Technical Committee presented to the Congress a number of proposals to harmonize its Rules with Single &

Pair Skating and Ice Dance Rules which were subsequently accepted.

Elections

The 56th Ordinary Congress concluded on June 10 with the elections of the ISU Office Holders. Mr. Jan Dijkema (NED) was elected President of the ISU and takes over from Mr. Ottavio Cinquanta who was President for 22 years. Mr. Tron Espeli (NOR) was elected First Vice President Speed Skating and Mr. Alexander Lakernik (RUS) as Second Vice President Figure Skating. The Speed Skating Council members include, the first woman to be elected to the Speed Skating Branch Ms. Yang Yang (CHN), Mr. Jae Youl Kim (KOR), Mr. Stoytcho Stoytchev (BUL), Mr. Roland Maillard (SUI) and Mr. Sergio Anesi (ITA). The Figure Skating Council is composed of Ms. Junko Hiramatsu (JPN), Ms. Patricia St. Peter (USA), Ms. Marie Lundmark (FIN), Mr. Benoit Lavoie (CAN), and Ms. Maria Teresa Samaranch (ESP). The full list of ISU Office Holders is available in ISU Communication No. 2018.

The 57th Ordinary Congress will be held in Seville (ESP) in June 2018.

THE SEASON AHEAD SHORT TRACK ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

The Short Track Season starts in November with the ISU World Cup Short Track Series.

The circuit is comprised of the usual six events across North America, Asia and Europe. The Men and Ladies Relay races, and individual races over 500 m, 1000 m and 1500 m will be competed at each event.

Canada will host the first event on November 4 - 6 in Calgary (CAN). Salt Lake City (USA) will be the next stop on November 11-13.

Shaoang Liu (HUN)

In December the Series travels to Asia stopping in Shanghai (CHN) on 9 - 11 and Gangneung (KOR) on 16 - 18. The fourth leg in Korea will be the official test event for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games. On February 3 - 5 the Series will go to Dresden (GER) and will finish in Minsk (BLR) on February 10 - 12.

ISU Championships

Turin (ITA) will host the ISU European Short Track Speed Skating Championships on January 13 - 15. The action then moves to Innsbruck (AUT) on January 27 - 29 where the ISU World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships will take place. The Season

will come to an end in Rotterdam (NED) with the ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships on March 10 - 12.

ISU Shanghai Trophy The ISU in cooperation with the Chinese Skating Association launched the first ever ISU Shanghai Trophy last Season. The Event combines both Short Track Speed Skating and Synchronized Skating and is scheduled to take place on March 17 - 19 in Shanghai (CHN).

Further information regarding the 2017 ISU Shanghai Trophy will be available on the ISU website.

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SPEED SKATING

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SINGLE AND PAIR SKATING / ICE DANCE

November 11 - 13

ISU World Cup Speed Skating

Harbin CHINA

August 24 - 27

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

November 18 - 20

ISU World Cup Speed Skating

Nagano JAPAN

August 31 - September 3

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

September 8 - 11 November 26 - 27

ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating

Minsk BELARUS

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

September 8 - 11

Challenger Series Lombardia Trophy

September 14 - 17

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

December 2 - 4

ISU World Cup Speed Skating

Astana KAZAKHSTAN

December 9 - 11

ISU World Cup Speed Skating

Heerenveen KAZAKHSTANS

September 14 - 18

Challenger Series U.S. International Figure Skating Classic

January 6 - 8

ISU European Speed Skating Championships

Warsaw POLAND

September 21 - 24

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

January 21 - 22

ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating

Collalbo ITALY

September 22 - 24

Challenger Series Nebelhorn Trophy

January 27 - 29

ISU World Cup Speed Skating

Berlin GERMANY

September 28 October 1

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

September 28 October 1

Challenger Series Autumn Classic International

September 29 October 1

Challenger Series 24th Ondrej Nepela Memorial

ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships

Gangneung REPUBLIC OF KOREA

February 11 - 12

ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating Final

Erfurt GERMANY

October 5 - 8

ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating

February 17 - 19

ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championships

Helsinki FINLAND

October 6 - 10

Challenger Series Finlandia Trophy

February 25 - 26

ISU World Sprint Speed Skating Championships

Calgary CANADA

October 21- 23

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Progressive Skate America

March 4 - 5

ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships

Hamar NORWAY

October 28 - 30

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Skate Canada International

November 4 - 6

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Rostelecom Cup

November 11 - 13

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Trophée de France

November 17 - 20

Challenger Series Warsaw Cup

November 18 - 20

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Audi Cup of China

November 20 - 27

Challenger Series Tallinn Trophy

November 25 - 27

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating NHK Trophy

December 7 - 10

Challenger Series Golden Spin of Zagreb

February 9 - 12

March 10 - 12

ISU World Cup Speed Skating Final

Chelyabinsk RUSSIA

SYNCHRONIZED SKATING March 10 - 11

ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships

Mississauga CANADA

April 7 - 8

ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships

Colorado Springs USA

www.isu.org

ISU EVENT CALENDAR 2016 / 2017 St Gervais FRANCE

December 8 - 11

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final (Senior & Junior)

Marseille FRANCE

Ostrava CZECH REPUBLIC

January 23 - 29

ISU European Figure Skating Championships

Ostrava CZECH REPUBLIC

Yokohama JAPAN

February 14 -19

ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships

Gangneung REPUBLIC OF KOREA

March 13 - 19

ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships

Taipei City CHINESE TAIPEI

Bergamo ITALY Saransk RUSSIA Salt Lake City USA Ljubljana SLOVENIA Obertsdorf GERMANY Tallinn ESTONIA Montreal CANADA Bratislava SLOVAK REPUBLIC

March 27 - April 2 ISU World Figure Skating Championships

Helsinki FINLAND

April 20 - 23

TBA JAPAN

ISU World Team Trophy

SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING

November 4 - 6

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Calgary CANADA

November 11 - 13

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Salt Lake City USA

December 9 - 11

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Dresden GERMANY

Shanghai CHINA

December 16 - 18

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Espoo FINLAND

Gangneung REPUBLIC OF KOREA

January 13 - 15

Chicago USA

ISU European Short Track Speed Skating Championships

Torino ITALY

January 27 - 29

ISU World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships

Innsbruck AUSTRIA

Mississauga CANADA

February 3 - 5

ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating

Dresden GERMANY

Moscow RUSSIA

February 10 - 12

ISU World Junior Short Track Speed Skating

Minsk BELARUS

Paris FRANCE

March 10 - 12

ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships

Rotterdam NETHERLANDS

Warsaw POLAND Beijing CHINA

ISU SHANGHAI TROPHY

Tallinn ESTONIA Sapporo JAPAN Zagreb CROATIA

March 17 - 19

ISU Shanghai Trophy Synchronized Skating, Short Track Speed Skating

Shanghai CHINA

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FIGURE SKATING

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The 2016/17 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 early 2017, the focus will shift to the ISU Championships.

ISU Junior Grand Prix The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating started with the first two of seven events in St. Gervais (FRA) and Ostrava (CZE) in August and is followed by Yokohama (JPN), Saransk (RUS), Ljubljana (SLO), Tallinn (EST) and Dresden (GER). The events in Czech Republic, Russia, Estonia and Germany include a Pair Skating competition. The top six Skaters and couples in each category will advance to the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final. At press time, Alina Zagitova (RUS), Anastasia Gubanova (RUS), Dmitri Aliev (RUS), Roman Savosin (RUS), World Junior Pair Skating Champions Anna Duskova/Martin Bidar (CZE) as well as 2016 World Junior Ice Dance Champions Lorraine McNamara/Quinn Carpenter (USA) and Angelique Abachkina/ Louis Thauron (FRA) have won their first event and have a good chance to qualify for the Grand Prix Final in Marseille, France (December 8 -11).

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.

ISU Grand Prix The 2016/17 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.

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating traditionally starts with Progressive Skate America in Hoffman Estates near Chicago (October 21 - 23), followed by Skate Canada International in Mississauga (October 28 - 30).

The Series then moves to Europe with the Rostelecom Cup in Moscow (November 4 - 6) and Trophée de France in Paris (November 11-13) and finally to Asia with Audi Cup of China in Beijing (November 18 - 20) and finally on November 25 - 27, NHK Trophy in Sapporo (JPN). www.isu.org

Sota Yamamoto (JPN)

The top twelve Skaters/Couples of the 2016 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 188.95 points, Ladies 134.31 points, Pairs 139.19 points, Ice Dance 116.67 points. Alternatively, the Skaters need to have reached a Minimum Technical Score in the Short Program/Dance (SP/SD) and Free Skating /Dance (FS/FD) as follows: Men: SP 36.91 points, FS 70.83 points.

Ladies: SP 24.31 points, FS 46.66 points.

Pairs: SP 26.33 points, FS 47.68 points.

Ice Dance: SD 23.08 points, FD 35.63 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 Rostelecom Cup and Trophée de France.

World bronze medalist Boyang Jin (CHN) is scheduled for Progressive Skate America and Audi Cup of China. Olympic silver medalist Patrick Chan (CAN) will take the ice in Canada and China. Current and former World, Four

THE SEASON AHEAD Continents and European Champions and medalists on the circuit include Denis Ten (KAZ), Shoma Uno (JPN), Han Yan (CHN), Michal Brezina (CZE), Sergei Voronov (RUS), Maxim Kovtun (RUS) and Adam Rippon (USA).

World Junior Champion Daniel Samohin (ISR) debuts on the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating.

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

Three-time World Champion Mao Asada (JPN) is slated for Progressive Skate America and Trophée de France. World silver medalist Ashley Wagner (USA) is entered for Skate America and Cup of China. World bronze medalist Anna Pogorilaya (RUS) has been selected to compete in Russia and Japan.

Four Continents Champion Satoko Miyahara (JPN) competes in Canada and Japan. Other top Skaters on the circuit include 2015 World Champion Elizaveta Tuktamysheva (RUS), two-time European silver medalist Elena Radionova (RUS), 2014 European Champion Julia Lipnitskaia (RUS), 2014 Four Continents Champion Kanako Murakami (JPN), 2016 Four Continents silver medalist Mirai Nagasu (USA) and Gracie Gold (USA).

are slated for Progressive Skate America and Cup of China while World bronze medalists Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) take the ice at Skate Canada and Rostelecom Cup. After sitting out two Seasons, 2010 Olympic Champions and 2014 Olympic silver medalists Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir (CAN) return to the Grand Prix at Skate Canada and NHK Trophy.

Other top teams on the Grand Prix are two-time World medalists Kaitlyn Weaver/ Andrew Poje (CAN), 2014 World and European Champions Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte (ITA), 2013 European Champions Ekaterina Bobrova/ Dmitri Soloviev (RUS) and 2014 Four Continents Champions Madison Hubbell/Zachary Donohue (USA).

ISU Championships Europe’s best Skaters will compete for the European crown at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships 2017 in Ostrava (CZE) January 23 - 29 while athletes from North and South America, Asia, Africa and Australia/ Oceania will compete at the ISU Four Continents Championships in Gangneung (KOR)

Two-time and reigning World Champions Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford (CAN) start their Season in Canada and Japan. Two-time World silver medalists Wenjing Sui/Cong Han (CHN) will compete in the USA and China, while World bronze medalists Aliona Savchenko/Bruno Massot (GER) have been selected for the events in Moscow and Paris.

Olympic silver medalists Ksenia Stolbova/ Fedor Klimov (RUS) are competing in Russia and Japan. Other top contenders include 2015 European Champions Yuko Kavaguti/ Alexander Smirnov (RUS), 2016 Four Continents silver medalists Alexa Scimeca/Chris Knierim (USA), European bronze medalists Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov (RUS) and ISU Grand Prix finalists Julianne Seguin/ Charlie Bilodeau (CAN).

Reigning World and European Champions Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron (FRA) open their Grand Prix Season at their home event in Paris and in Japan. World silver medalists Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani (USA)

Mia Shibutani / Alex Shibutani (USA)

February 14 - 19 which is the also the official test event for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. The World’s top Juniors will meet at the World Junior Championships in Tapei City (TPE) on March 13 - 19. The Season cumulates with the World Championships in Helsinki (FIN) March 27 - April 2.

ISU World Team Trophy The top six Figure Skating teams will meet again for the ISU World Team Trophy in Japan April 20 - 23.

SYNCHRONIZED SKATING Synchronized teams will compete in a number of major international events this Season, beginning in November 2016. Highlights of the Season will be the ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships in Mississauga (CAN) March 10 - 11, the ISU Shanghai Trophy March 17-19 (CHN), and the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships in Colorado Springs (USA) April 7- 8.

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SPEED SKATING ISU World Cup Speed Skating

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The ISU World Cup Speed Skating Series 2016/17 will consist of six Events. The first four events will have a full distance program aimed at both sprinters and allround Skaters and will be the qualifying events for the ISU European Speed Skating Championships and the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships. The fifth leg will be the qualifying event for the ISU World Sprint

Ladies Team Sprint (CZE)

www.isu.org

Speed Skating Championships and the ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships. ISU Members qualify quota places for the ISU World Sprint Speed Skating Championships based on the combined results (one 500 and one 1000 meter) of their Skaters in this World Cup Competition.

Quota places for the ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships are based on the combined results of 1500 and 3000 m for Ladies, 1500 and 5000 m for Men. Team Sprint is now a full Speed Skating event and

will feature in three World Cup events.

The first ISU World Cup Speed Skating event will be held in Harbin (CHN) on November 11 - 13, followed a week later by Nagano (JPN) on November 18 - 20. The Series then moves to Europe stopping in Astana (KAZ) on December 2 - 4 and continues in Heerenveen (NED) on December 9 - 11. This year the World Cup will not travel to North America, but will continue on January 27 - 29 in Berlin (GER) with the Final taking place in Chelyabinsk (RUS) on March 10 - 12.

THE SEASON AHEAD

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Bart Swings (BEL)

ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating This Season the ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating Series will stay in Europe starting with Minsk (BLR) from November 26 - 27 followed by Collalbo (ITA) on January 21 - 22 and finally Erfurt (GER) will host the last ISU Junior World Cup on February 11 - 12. New this Season is the inclusion of the “neo-Seniors” (defined as Skaters that are under the age of 23 years by July 1, 2016). Organized in

two separate divisions, called “Juniors” and “Neo-seniors”, with separate list of results and rankings but both divisions are considered to be part of the same ISU Event.

ISU Championships Starting on January 6 - 8, Championships Season skates off with the ISU European Speed Skating Championships which will take place on the outdoor rink of Warsaw (POL).

The ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating

Championships on February 9 - 12 will be the official test event for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games and will take place in Gangneung (KOR). Helsinki (FIN) will host the ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championships on February 17 - 19 while Calgary (CAN) will welcome sprinters for the ISU World Sprint Speed Skating Championships on February 25 - 26.

The ISU World Allround Championships will be held in Hamar (NOR) on March 4 - 5.

PAST MASTER

OTTAVIO CINQUANTA (ITA): BORN 1938 Mr. Cinquanta joined the ISU in 1975 as an ISU Short Track Speed Skating Technical Committee member and was elected Chair of the Committee in 1984. In 1992 he became ISU Vice President and in 1994 was elected ISU President, a position he held until 2016. After 22 years at the helm of the ISU, Mr. Cinquanta is the second longest serving ISU President after Mr. Viktor Gustav Balck (SWE).

Cinquanta was acclaimed ISU Honorary President during the 2016 ISU Congress. During his 20 years as an IOC Member from 1996 to 2016, he also served on the IOC Executive Board from 2000 - 2008. During the 129th IOC Session in Rio the Janeiro, he was elected IOC Honorary Member and recognized for his outstanding services and distinguished contributions to the Olympic Movement and awarded with the Olympic Order, the highest award of the

Olympic Movement. During his career Mr. Cinquanta was distinguished with many awards including Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, Légion d’Honneur from France, Doctor Honoris Causa by the National Sports Academy “Vassil Levski” and many more.

Mr. Cinquanta was influential in the development of Short Track Speed Skating and key to its inclusion in the Olympic Program. Short Track Speed Skating was a demonstration sport at the 1988 Olympic Winter Games in Calgary (CAN) and was upgraded to a full Olympic discipline in 1992. In the area of Figure Skating, President Cinquanta was the driving force behind the reform of the ISU Judging System that was adopted by the 2004 ISU Congress and which basic principles were subsequently also used by other International Federations.