The
International Skating Union (
ISU) is the international
governing bodyA sport governing body is a sports organization that has a regulatory or sanctioning function. Sport governing bodies come in various forms, and have a variety of regulatory functions. Examples of this can include disciplinary action for rule infractions and deciding on rule changes in the sport...
for competitive
ice skatingIce skating is moving on ice by using ice skates. It can be done for a variety of reasons, including leisure, traveling, and various sports. Ice skating occurs both on specially prepared indoor and outdoor tracks, as well as on naturally occurring bodies of frozen water, such as lakes and...
disciplines, including
figure skatingFigure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...
,
synchronized skatingSynchronized skating or synchronised skating, a large and fast-growing discipline, consists of 8—20 athletes skating on ice at one time moving as one flowing unit at high speeds...
,
speed skatingSpeed skating, or speedskating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in traveling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating...
, and
short track speed skatingShort track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters skate on an oval ice track with a circumference of 111.12 m...
. It was founded in
Scheveningen,
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
in
18921892 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Yale BulldogsEvents...
, making it one of the oldest international sport federations. The ISU was formed to establish standardized international rules and regulations for the skating disciplines it governs, and to organize international competitions in these disciplines. It is now based in
LausanneLausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
,
SwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
History
The International Skating Union (ISU) was founded in 1892 to govern speed skating and figure skating.
In 1895, the ISU streamlined its mission to deal only with amateur competitors and not professionals. The organization hosted its first amateur skating championship in February 1896 in St. Petersburg, Russia.
The
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
formed a competing organization, the International Skating Union of America (ISUA), in 1907. Within the next two years, twelve European nations had joined the ISU, and the ISUA had only its original members. The ISUA folded in 1927.
European and North American figure skaters rarely competed against each other due to differences in their styles of skating. The ISU had "systematized and arranged" the sport of figure skating, with competitions including "a selection of ten or twelve numbers from the I. S. U. programme, ... five minutes' free skating to music, ... [and] special figures" on one foot. In 1911, Canada joined the ISU, leaving the United States as the only major competitor to not be a member.
Short track speed skating gained its own world championship event, hosted by the ISU, in 1976. At the time, the sport was known as indoor speed skating, but it was renamed short-track when indoor rinks for the longer speed skating events were introduced.
By 1988, 38 nations had joined the ISU. Within the next few years, the ISU abandoned one of its long-held practices, eliminating the use of mandatory figures in the singles' figure skating competitions and reducing their use in ice dancing.
After the
2002 Winter OlympicsThe 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
in
Salt Lake City, UtahSalt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
, the ISU implemented sweeping changes to many of its events. In one of the short track speed skating events,
Apolo Anton OhnoApolo Anton Ohno is an American short track speed skating competitor and an eight-time medalist in the Winter Olympics. He is the most decorated American Winter Olympic athlete of all time....
was awarded the gold medal after the disqualification of
Kim Dong-SungKim Dong-Sung is a former South Korean short track speed skater. He won a gold medal in 1000m race and silver medal in 5000m relay at the 1998 Winter Olympics...
. Although the South Korean delegation protested the disqualification, ISU rules did not allow for a review of the official's call. Several months later, the ISU approved the use of video replay, when available, to review referee decisions. The rules for judging figure skating were also changed as the result of the
2002 Olympic Winter Games figure skating scandalAt the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City, the figure skating competition was the source of much controversy and one of the immediate causes for the revamp of scoring in figure skating.-The competition:...
. According to
Ottavio CinquantaOttavio Cinquanta , is currently President of the International Skating Union and a member of the International Olympic Committee.He has held the ISU position since 1994 and the IOC position since 1996....
, president of the ISU, "'Something was wrong there,' ... 'Not just the individual but also the system. It existed for 70 years. Now we are trying to replace one system with another.'" A
new figure skating judging systemThe ISU Judging System , is the scoring system on the event and on the level of competition. At the senior international level, single and pairs short programs contain eight technical elements. The actual eight elements are detailed for single skaters in ISU rule 310...
took effect in 2004, eliminating the
6.0 systemThe 6.0 system was the judging system used in competitive figure skating until 2005, when it was replaced by the ISU Judging System in international events....
perfect scores and instead giving points for various technical elements.
ISU Championships
In addition to sanctioning other international competitions, the ISU designates the following competitions each year as "ISU Championships":
- Speed skating:
- World Allround Speed Skating Championships
The World Allround Speed Skating Championships are a series of speed skating events held annually to determine the best allround speed skater of the world...
- World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships (held only in non-Olympic years)
- World Sprint Speed Skating Championships
The World Sprint Speed Skating Championships are annual speed skating championships. The championships are held over a two day period, with the skaters racing one 500 m and one 1,000 m each day...
- World Junior Speed Skating Championships
||valign=top width=50%|In 1971, when the ISU had a congress they decided to hold a World Junior Speed Skating Championships. After 2 test-championships , where only boys where allowed to skate, the first official championship was introduced in Cortina d'Ampezzo. In this championship boys and girls...
- World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
The World Short Track Speed Skating Championships are a senior international short track speed skating competition held once a year to determine the World Champion in individual distances, relays and Overall Classification...
- World Short Track Speed Skating Team Championships
The World Short Track Speed Skating Team Championships are a professional team short track speed skating event and held once a year in a different country.Top 8 countries from Short Track World Cup Series qualify automatically...
- World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships
The World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships are a junior short track speed skating event and held once a year in a different country....
- European Speed Skating Championships
The European Speed Skating Championships are a series of speed skating events held annually to determine the best allround speed skater of Europe. The International Skating Union has organised the European Championships for Men since 1893 and the European Championships for Women since 1970. The...
- European Short Track Speed Skating Championships
The European Short Track Speed Skating Championships are a european short track speed skating event and held once a year in a different country.- Men's :- Women's :-External links:***...
- Figure skating:
- World Figure Skating Championships
The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...
- World Junior Figure Skating Championships
The World Junior Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which younger figure skaters compete for the title of World Junior Champion...
- World Synchronized Skating Championships
The World Synchronized Skating Championships are the world championships for the sport of synchronized skating. Held since 2000, the World Synchronized Skating Championships is an annual event organized by the International Skating Union and attracts the most elite synchronized skating teams from...
- European Figure Skating Championships
The European Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition in which figure skaters compete for the title of European Champion...
- Four Continents Figure Skating Championships
The Four Continents Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition. The International Skating Union established it in 1999 to provide skaters representing non-European countries with a similar competition to the much older European Figure Skating Championships and a chance...
Note that events such as the Olympic Winter Games and the
ISU Grand Prix of Figure SkatingThe ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating is a series of international invitational competitions organized by the International Skating Union. Elite figure skaters compete in the disciplines of ladies' singles, men's singles, pair skating, and ice dancing...
are not ISU Championships. However, they do count towards Personal Best scores.
First world championships
Dates and locations of first world championships in various disciplines held under the auspices of the ISU:
- 1893
-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Princeton TigersEvents* 22 February — Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers meet at Lakeview Baseball Park in Birmingham, Alabama for the first Iron Bowl....
: Speed skating (men only), AmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
- 1896
-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Lafayette Leopards and Princeton Tigers -Association football:England...
: Figure skating (men only), St. PetersburgSaint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
- 1906
1906 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Princeton Tigers and Yale Bulldogs Events...
: Figure skating (ladies), DavosDavos is a municipality in the district of Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of 11,248 . Davos is located on the Landwasser River, in the Swiss Alps, between the Plessur and Albula Range...
- 1908
1908 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Harvard Crimson, LSU Tigers and Penn Quakers -Association football:England...
: Figure skating (pairs), St. Petersburg
- 1936
-American football:* Minnesota Golden Gophers are the National college football champions* Green Bay Packers defeated Boston Redskins 21–6 for the NFL championship...
: Speed skating (women), StockholmStockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
- 1952
1952 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:* NFL Championship – Detroit Lions win 17–7 over the Cleveland BrownsGeorgia Tech wins national college football championship-England:...
: Figure skating (ice dance), ParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
- 1970
1970 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion – Karl Schranz, Austria** Women's overall season champion – Michèle Jacot, France-American football:...
: Sprint speed skating, West Allis, WisconsinWest Allis is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 61,254 at the 2000 census. Its name derives from Edward P. Allis, who started the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company in the 19th century. The site of the town was...
- 1978
1978 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Ingemar Stenmark, Sweden** Women's overall season champion: Hanni Wenzel, Liechtenstein-American football:...
: Short track speed skating, SolihullSolihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
, UK
- 2000
2000 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Hermann Maier, Austria** Women's overall season champion: Renate Götschl, Austria-American football:...
: Synchronized skating, Minneapolis
Cooperation with other sports
ISU has an agreement with
Federation of International BandyThe Federation of International Bandy is the international governing body for the sport of bandy. It was formed in 1955 in Stockholm, Sweden, and has had its base in Sweden since 1979. The present offices are situated in Katrineholm....
to use the same arenas. According to news published at bandynet.ru 7/6
bandyBandy is a team winter sport played on ice, in which skaters use sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal.The rules of the game have many similarities to those of association football: the game is played on a rectangle of ice the same size as a football field. Each team has 11 players,...
might be on the Olympic programme at Sochi 2014 as a branch of skating because ISU in 2007 got the right to within 3 years add another discipline.
Organization
As of the summer of 2008, the ISU consisted of 63 member nations, with a governing council of 11. To add any proposal to the agenda of meetings, it must have support from four-fifths of the members. Proposals on the agenda are approved with a two-thirds majority vote.
Presidents of the ISU
- 1892 – 1895
Pim MulierWillem Johan Herman Mulier was one of the leading figures in sporting history of the Netherlands.-Biography:...
- 1895 – 1925
Viktor BalckViktor Gustaf Balck, KCMG was a Swedish officer and sports personality who was one of the original members of the International Olympic Committee and who is often called "the father of Swedish sports".-Military career:...
- 1925 – 1937 Ulrich Salchow
Karl Emil Julius Ulrich Salchow was a Swedish figure skater, who dominated the sport in the first decade of the 20th century....
- 1937 – 1945 Gerrit W. A. van Laer
- 1945 – 1953
Herbert J. Clarke
- 1953 – 1967
James Koch
- 1967 – 1967
Ernst Labin
- 1967 – 1980
Jacques FavartJacques Favart was a French sports official and figure skater.He won the French Figure Skating Championships in men's singles in 1942. As a pair skater, he competed with his wife Denise Favart from 1946 to 1950...
- 1980 – 1994
Olaf PoulsenOlaf Poulsen was a Norwegian sports official, best known as president of the worldwide speed skating federation International Skating Union....
- 1994 – present
Ottavio CinquantaOttavio Cinquanta , is currently President of the International Skating Union and a member of the International Olympic Committee.He has held the ISU position since 1994 and the IOC position since 1996....
See also
- Long track speed skating
Speed skating is an Olympic sport where competitors are timed while crossing a set distance. It is also a sport for leisure. Sports such as short track speedskating, inline speedskating, and quad speed skating are also called speed skating...
- Short track speed skating
Short track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters skate on an oval ice track with a circumference of 111.12 m...
- International figure skating
Figure skating is a sport with participants all round the world. Originally based in European countries, the sport has experienced a major expansion in the countries of East Asia....
- List of international sport federations
External links