Tag: figure skating

masha-russia:

Seventeen years ago, ice rinks in Kazakhstan were only opened in the winter, because they were all outdoors. And let me tell you, it gets pretty cold in Kazakhstan in the winter. That’s one reason why we have lots and lots of real snow. Eventually, the first shopping mall in Kazakhstan was built, and included an indoor skating rink. For the first time, we didn’t have to wear snowsuits to practice ice skating. In those first years, I didn’t even have competition ice skates. I had a pair of old side skates with no support at all for jumps. To make them better, my Dad cut plastic water bottles in half, and attached them to each side so I could actually do jumps. Then, at age 8, I attended my first international competition in Omsk, Russia. It took us 3 days to get there by train. I was still wearing my plastic water bottle skates, I trained in a shopping mall, and I had little to no professional coaching. Yet, there I was competing in the qualifying round. I remember being amazed to even be there. But I also remember being ashamed of my skates, commpared to the Russian kids’ skates. And guess what? I won the competition, and the rest as they say is history. This is a long way to explain why Almaty 2022 is important to me and for Kazakhstan. Today is not seventeen years ago, but we still need better resources to develop our young athletes. So, why am I telling you all of this? Why is my story important? It is important because it is a real example of what our country can achieve in winter sports and what the whole region is capable of if we have the right resources and opportunities. That is the reason I agreed to participate in this campaign. I am not here for myself. I’m already living my Olympic dream. I am here for thousands of young Kazakh athletes dreaming their own Olympic dreams. And I am also here for that little kid out there, alone, skating around somewhere on a frozen lake, with skates supported by plastic water bottles.

RIP Denis Ten 13 June 1993 – 19 July 2018  x

cricketcat9:

prosecutorheichou:

Things I’ve learnt as a skater that almost never make it to fanfiction

Because I’ve read enough fics to cringe when the figure skater throws their very expensive skates in their bag and run off somewhere because nobody ever treats their skates like that.

  • DRY OFF YOUR SKATES.
  • You dry off skates with a towel so that you protect the leather and so that the blades don’t rust
  • You put your blades in soakers (aka basically socks for your blades) so that the condensation gets absorbed somewhere and doesn’t rust the blade
  • AIR YOUR SKATES they smell when left in a closed bag
  • It takes like 10 minutes putting on skates and like 15 minutes getting them off because you need to wipe it down
  • YOUR SKATES NEED TO BE REALLY TIGHT SO THEY NEED 10 MINUTES TO PUT ON
  • Literally everyone falls
  • Everyone.
  • Falls.
  • From the board huggers to the pros doing jumps and spins everyone falls and that’s natural
  • Just fall
  • TRIPPING ON TOE PICKS
  • The number 1 cause of falling
  • You can be talking to someone and then end up face down on the ice the next moment because toe pick
  • Stabbing yourself with a toe pick is not fun but extremely common to do so
  • Stabbing yourself in the boot is literally the most heartbreaking thing it’s like stabbing an expensive bag with a fork
  • Boots need to be replaced often if you’re skating at a high level cuz the support breaks down faster than you’ll see physical wear and tear outside of the boot
  • Blades need to be sharpened every 30-ish hours of usage (around once every two weeks-ish if you skate everyday)
  • Blades can sometimes cost as much as a boot
  • There is a break-in time for boots because they’re sooooo stiff
  • Some people wear their new skates around the house to quicken the break-in time
  • Boots have different stiffness ratings and you can’t get any random boot you like because you need to make sure it has sufficient padding for your foot
  • You can’t randomly get custom boots made for someone without their foot measurements
  • Boots need to fit on your feet like a damn glove
  • An exact fit
  • You can’t use anyone else’s skates unless you’re both the same size
  • Rental skates are pieces of shit
  • No matter how pro you are you’ll never be able to skate normally on rentals
  • WEAR GLOVES
  • The ice gets super cut-up and falling without gloves on can scrape your hands
  • It’s extremely painful when that happens
  • Wear gloves pls
  • PEOPLE WEAR PADDING
  • Especially if they’re learning something new
  • Pads for your butt, pads for your knees, heck even padded gloves
  • Padding protects your joints especially if you have joint problem
  • Like smashing your knees against the ice frequently causes you problems
  • A one-way ticket to old lady knees
  • Say goodbye to unblemished legs
  • Your knees will forever be bruised
  • Things people put in their skate bag:
  • Waterbottle, towels, band-aids, exercise tapes, extra socks, extra gloves, extra layers/clothes, hair-ties, skate guards, soakers, gels for blisters
  • You’ll notice that Olympic pros use luggages and that’s cuz they literally lug their entire house with them
  • Costumes, exercise mats, exercise gear, clothes, tracksuits, makeup etc
  • Whatever looks easy on screen is actually really freaking difficult to do
  • Katsuki Yuuri should technically not have been able to land the Quad Flip on a whim without practice unless he actually trained for it in Detroit
  • You can’t learn stuff on your own
  • Like you need a coach or an experienced skater to teach you the correct techniques
  • You need someone to spot your mistakes cuz you won’t be able to tell on your own
  • People record themselves for this reason
  • Throwing yourself in the air and spinning is difficult like try jumping and turning more than 360 degrees on land and see if you can do it well
  • ZAMBONI
  • WHY DOES EVERYONE FORGET THE ZAMBONI
  • Skating on fresh ice after a zamboni is a religious experience
  • ZAMBONI

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

Things to know about skating