Figure skating

Figure skating is a competitive sport in which individuals, couples, or groups perform on ice using figure skates. This sport became the first winter sport to be competed in in the Olympic Games when it was introduced in London at the 1908 Games. A total of four individual disciplines are featured in the Winter Olympics, including the men's singles event, the women's singles event, pair skating, and ice dance. The four individual disciplines are also merged into a team event, which was first included in the Winter Olympics in 2014. Synchronized skating, Theater on Ice, and four-person skating are among the non-Olympic sports that are practised. As skaters progress from intermediate to senior levels of competition, they generally perform two programmes (the short programme and the free skate), which, depending on the discipline, may include spins and jumps in the field, lifts, death spirals, and other elements or moves, as well as jumps and other elements or moves in the air.

Figurine skaters participate at a variety of levels, ranging from novice to Olympic level (senior), in events held at the grassroots level up to regional, sectional, national, and international levels. The International Skating Union (ISU) is in charge of regulating international figure skating events and judging. The Winter Olympics, the World Championships, the World Junior Championships, the European Championships, the Four Continents Championships, the Grand Prix series (senior and junior), and the ISU Challenger Series are among the events that occur during the year.

The sport is also related with the entertainment industry. Major competitions are usually finished with exhibition galas, in which the best skaters from each discipline perform non-competitive routines for the audience to enjoy. While competing and thereafter, many skaters participate in ice shows, which are held both during the competition season and during the off-season in order to keep their skills sharp.