There are only a couple of sports that you can immediately recognise, and without even thinking much about them. Ice skating, or more specifically, figure skating, comes to mind. Figure skating is one of those sports that people immediately know, and which is universally acknowledged as being one of the most difficult sports to master.
Figure skating is an iconic sport, but why, one might wonder? Well, there are plenty of reasons but a couple of them can be listed off the top of our heads. Here are a couple of them, in no particular order.
The Fluidity
Often compared to ballet, figure skating is a sport which requires motion, lots of motion. However, most sports have motion and it is only when the motions start to connect, that fans get off their seats. In football, that would be when a playmaker dribbles past many opposing players, to give a striker their opportunity to score, or when a team executes a couple of passes without ever stopping or slowing down the motion of play.
In figure skating, that fluidity is always present, which makes it very interesting to watch, but one also realises that the moves that they are performing are more complex than kicking a ball in the approximate direction of a teammate.
The Balance
Figure skating puts a person’s balance to the test like no other sport, except maybe rope walking. However, given the dynamic nature of the moves used in figure skating, that balance is really put to the test. Figure skating is often done in pairs, even though solo competing has been around for decades, as well.
When paired together, often a man and a woman, the movements they execute are very much akin to acrobatics, but on ice skates, while moving.
The Strength and Precision
It is one thing to balance on a tightrope and another to carry a person while skating and performing intricate moves of your own. Figure skating requires lots of strength and precision, lest something goes awry and someone gets injured.
Figure skaters have to be precise in their moves, while also having the necessary strength and flexibility to jump, spin, and catch themselves and their partners after the move has been executed.
Dancing on Ice
Seeing figure skating is often compared to ballet, dancing also comes to mind, naturally. Almost all figure skating choreographies are performed to music, making them a dance performance, in a way, but way more athletic than most dance performances, and with more consequences should one fail.
With pair figure skating, the choreographies get complex as two people perform, often different moves, intertwined, well-practised, that they seem like one person doing different things, or rather, one entity.
Whether for the grace, fluidity, balance or the precision and time needed to perfect the moves, figure skating has always been an iconic sport. Even today, watching figure skating tournaments is a great way to be surprised in the best possible way, watching professional athletes perform at the highest level.
