Skater Development

This is probably one of the most interesting parts about figure skating. How a skater develops is very dependent upon how their coach trains them. Tests simply validate that a skater knows a set of knowledge, and competition and levels are great, but they actually have nothing to do with development.

It is difficult to explain how I develop a skater, but there is always a method and a reason for what I am developing what I am in a skater. The below chart is rough, but it gives you an idea how a skater develops with jumps, spins, skating skills and off ice skills. As the skater is on their developmental journey, they hit important milestones along the way (i.e. their Senior freeskate test). Development is the over-reaching journey and other important things happen along the way.

There are a few other key points about development families should know:

-Ideally, a double axel jump is landed by the age of 12 yrs old if the skater is skating enough and working hard.

-Every skater is on their own path and their bodies are all different so some skaters may hit certain skills at different ages.

-Competitions are development. Skaters are learning about themselves, how to handle performances and how to achieve a goal in competitions. All Olympic coaches will tell you competitions are just learning experiences until you hit the international levels. Until then, you are just learning and gaining experience.