Competitors perform a variety of manoeuvers, which can be grouped into three main types - jumps, spins, and step sequences. Jumps involve the skater leaping into the air, rotating rapidly to land after completing one or more rotations. There are many types of jumps, identified by the way the skater takes off and lands, as well as the number of rotations that are completed. There are also several types of spins, identified by the position of the arms, leg, and angle of the back. Step sequences are a required element in competition programs. They involve a combination of turns, steps, hops and edge changes, performed in either a straight line down the ice, or a S shape (serpentine step sequence). Spiral sequences are also required, and involve lifting the free leg to a position equivalent of the arabesque in ballet. Spirals can be performed while skating forwards or backwards, and are distinguished by the edge of the blade used.
In pairs competition, many of the elements are similar to singles, but are performed side by side. Other elements include throw jumps, in which the male skater 'throws' the female into a jump, usually a salchow or axel; lifts, in which the female is held above the male's head in a number of different positions, and pair spins, where the pair spin while holding eachother with one partner traveling 'forwards', and the other 'backwards'.
In a figure skating competition, skaters must perform two routines, the "short program", in which the skater must complete a list of required elements consisting of jumps, spins and steps; and the "long program", which as the name suggests is longer and also allows considerably more artistic freedom. Skaters are judged for "technical merit", and "artistic quality" in each performance. The scores for the two performances are combined, with the long program scoring weighted more heavily than the short program. The highest scoring individual or team is declared the winner.
Figure skating is a very popular part of the [Winter Olympic Games]?, with the elegance of both the competitors and the movements they perform attracting many spectators. Unsurprisingly, the best skaters show many of the same physical and psychological attributes as gymnasts. Many of the best skaters are from Russia and the United States.
The sport is closely associated with showbusiness, with a "spectacular" where performers skate unjudged, crowd pleasing routines at the end of competition held at many tournaments, and many skaters both during and after their competitive careers also skate in ice-skating exhibitions.
Many fans of more traditional sports find the judging procedures incomprehensible and the universal practice of judges attending competitors' practice sessions dubious in the extreme.
A related but separate event, [ice dancing]?, removes the aerobatic stunts permissible in figure skating and concentrates on the aesthetics of dancing on ice.
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