By Michaella Lesieur, Staff Writer
Figure skating is far more than just wearing fancy leotards, covered in glitz and glam while skating around a rink, it is a sport that takes, balance, determination, time and commitment to master the art of ice and dance.
As we know figure skating is an official Olympic Sport and is something of which men and women can both participate in whether individually or collaboratively.
Whether they are dancing solo or as a duo the performances are breathtaking and require countless hours of practice, practice, practice.
When looking at the definition of ice skating from Merriam-Webster, ice skating is classified as a sport. “The activity or sport of skating on ice.”
Michelle Kwan, is a legendary name in the world of ice skating, as she has won multiple medals doing what she loves and has had quite the journey both on and off the ice along the way.
According to Assistant Beauty Editor, Devon Kelley on Yahoo Lifestyle, Kwan has brought her beauty to the sport. “Still, Kwan reflects on her competition style as a way to get out of her comfort zone. I portray different characters on the ice. I skated to Salomé and I had black eyeliner, the winged look, and I was the first person to wear jewels on the ice. It was fun, it was playtime, and I really got myself into that character,” she says. “And the following years, I did simple, au naturel looks. In my first Olympic Games in ’98, even my costumes were very simple. I skated to ‘Lyra Angelica,’ so I wanted it to be timeless,” according to Devon in his article “Michelle Kwan on her rule-breaking figure skating style: ‘I was the first person to wear jewels on the ice” on Yahoo Lifestyle.
The 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, hosted in South Korea, will feature skaters from all over. According to the website, NBC Olympics: “All figure skating events will be held at the Gangneung Ice Arena, part of the Gangneung Olympic Park within the Gangneung coastal cluster. Constructed specifically for the 2018 Games, the arena will contain two rinks—one each for training and competition—and will also play host to the short track speed skating competition.”
Not only is skating a competitive sport, but one that consists of the some of the most famous athletes in America such as: Madison Chock in the art of ice dancing, Alexa Scimeca Knierim and Chris Knierim for the duo competition, Ashley Wagner for women’s singles and Vincent Zhou for men’s singles.
You can tune in to watch your favorite skaters starting February 9 through the 28 of 2018 as ice goers will compete in a series of five events.
The debate on whether ice skating is a sport or not can clearly be debated; however, here it has been defined as a sport. When you look to other skating sports such as hockey, it uses the same amount of grit as any other sport. You need strength to perform each move and balance to hold it out. You need to feel the rhythm and exercise regularly.
Some start the sport when they are really young, and have grown up on the ice. Ashley Wagner told PEOPLE: “To be a 26-year-old woman on the ice is an achievement in this sport because you’re working against a lot of different things… If I got to Pyeongchang, I will be the oldest U.S. female figure skating athlete since 1924 or something like that — so I think it really goes to show that my longevity is something that’s very, very rare. And I’m really proud of that…” said Wagner to Adam Darlson in his article “Ashley Wagner Aims to Achieve Her Olympic Dream at the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang” on PEOPLE.
Ice skating is an intricate sport and requires a lot more than just skill. Make sure you tune into all the ice skating broadcasts to see it for yourself, as we enter the winter sports season.