International Skating Union
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The International Skating Union (ISU) is the international
governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ...
for competitive
ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...
disciplines, including
figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are m ...
,
synchronized skating Synchronized skating is an ice skating sport where between 8 to 16 skaters perform together as a team. They move as a flowing unit at high speed over the ice, while performing elements and footwork. This complex sport originated in 1956 and was ...
,
speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skatin ...
, and
short track speed skating Short-track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters (typically between four and six) skate on an oval ice track with a length of . The rink itself is long by wide, which is the same size as a ...
. It was founded in Scheveningen,
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, in July 1892, making it one of the oldest international sport federations. The ISU was formed to establish standardized international rules and regulations for the skating disciplines it governs, and to organize international competitions in these disciplines. It is now based in
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
.


History

The International Skating Union (ISU) was founded in 1892 in the Dutch seaside town of Scheveningen. The meeting was attended by 15 men, as the national association representatives from the Netherlands, Great Britain, Germany/Austria, and two clubs from Stockholm (Sweden) and Budapest (Hungary). The ISU was the first international winter sports federation to govern speed skating and figure skating, as it laid down the rules for speed skating, shortly followed by figure skating. In 1895, the organization streamlined its mission to deal only with amateur competitors, not professionals, and hosted its first amateur skating championship in February 1896 in
St. Petersburg, Russia Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
. The United States and Canada formed a competing organization, the International Skating Union of America (ISUA), in 1907. Over the next two years, 12 European nations had joined the ISU, while the ISUA had only its original two members. The ISUA folded in 1927. European and North American figure skaters rarely competed against each other because of differences in their styles of skating. The ISU had "systematized and arranged" the sport of figure skating, with competitions including "a selection of ten or twelve numbers from the ISU programme, ... five minutes' free skating to music, ... ndspecial figures" on one foot. In 1911, Canada joined the ISU, leaving the United States as the only major competitor to not be a member. This changed in 1923, when the
United States Figure Skating Association U.S. Figure Skating is the national governing body for the sport of figure skating in the United States. It is recognized as such by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee "USOPC" under the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act an ...
joined the ISU and in 1926, the Japanese sport governing body followed to acquire ISU membership. The first ISU competitions to emerge were the World and European Speed Skating and Figure Skating Championships. Both disciplines were included in the official program of the first Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix in 1924. The discipline of ice dancing was introduced at the Innsbruck Games in 1976. After 1945, the ISU slowly continued to grow with accession of members from other countries in Europe, Oceania, and (Southern) Africa. In 1967, the ISU adopted
short track speed skating Short-track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters (typically between four and six) skate on an oval ice track with a length of . The rink itself is long by wide, which is the same size as a ...
, and the first official ISU World Championships took place in 1981. Short track speed skating became part of the official Olympic program in 1992. The earliest speed skating competitions hosted by the ISU, between 1976 and 1980, were held under different names but have retrospectively received World Championship status. The discipline was known as "indoor speed skating" at first, until being renamed "short track speed skating" when indoor rinks for the longer speed skating events were introduced. By 1988, 38 nations had joined the ISU. Over the next few years, the organization abandoned one of its long-held practices, eliminating the use of mandatory figures in the singles' figure skating competitions and reducing their use in ice dancing. During the 1970s and 1980s, several Asian countries joined the ISU, followed in the early 1990s by many new countries emerging from the breakup of the USSR,
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
and
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
. In 1994,
synchronized skating Synchronized skating is an ice skating sport where between 8 to 16 skaters perform together as a team. They move as a flowing unit at high speed over the ice, while performing elements and footwork. This complex sport originated in 1956 and was ...
was formally recognized as a separate discipline, and the first ISU World Championships were held in 2000 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After the 2002 Winter Olympics in
Salt Lake City, Utah Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...
, the ISU implemented changes to many of its events. The ISU approved the use of video replay, when available, to review referee decisions. The rules for judging figure skating were also overhauled as a direct result of the
2002 Olympic Winter Games figure skating scandal At the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City, it was alleged that the pairs' figure skating competition had been fixed, in which a French judge had compromised scores. The Russian team was awarded the gold. After limited investigation of ...
. According to
Ottavio Cinquanta Ottavio Cinquanta (15 August 1938 – 18 July 2022) was the President of the International Skating Union and a member of the International Olympic Committee. He held the ISU position from 1994 to 2016 and the IOC position since 1996. In 2000 he ...
, former president of the ISU, "'Something was wrong there,' ... 'Not just the individual but also the system. It existed for 70 years. Now we are trying to replace one system with another.'" A new judging system for figure skating took effect in 2005, replacing the 6.0 system of "perfect" scores and instead giving points for various technical elements. Since the 2000s, the ISU has experienced a new wave of expansion, with several countries in Asia and Latin America joining the organization. In 2019, skating federations from Chile, Peru, Turkmenistan, and Vietnam acquired membership of the ISU. After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the ISU banned all athletes from Russia and Belarus from events until further notice.


ISU Members


Regions

List of 80 Countries (101 Association, Some nations have 2 or 3 organ member) in 5 Zones (Updated at 10 April 2022): # Four Continents (4C) (non-European countries): 35 Members # European Countries: 45 Members


Year of Membership

* Africa: # - 2022 # - 1938/1938 # - 2011 * Asia: # - 2017 # - 1956/1956 # - 1983 # - 2013 # - 2003 # - 1926 # - 1992 # - 2014 # - 1948 # - 2009 # - 1960 # - 2004 # - 1957 # - 2014 # - 2008 # - 1988 # - 2019 # - 1983 # - 2013 # - 1992 # - 2019 * Oceania: # - 1932/1957 # - 1964/1983 * Americas: # - 2004/2006 # - 2002 # - 1894/1947 # - 2019 # - 2015 # - 2021 # - 1987 # - 2019 # - 1923/1965 * Europe: # - 1995 # - 1994 # - 1995 # - 1993 # - 1979/1979 # - 1994 # - 1992 # - 1967 # - 1992 # - 1995 # - 1923/1991 # - 1913 # - 1956 # - 1928 # - 1908/1960 # - 1908 # - 1892 # - 1992 # - 1950/1950 # - 2015 # - 1908 # - 2008 # - 2000 # - 1992 # - 1927 # - 1926 # - 2014 # - 1980/1980 # - 1971/1996 # - 2014 # - 2017 # - 2003 # - 1892 # - 1894 # - 1925/1987 # - 2021 # - 1933 # - 1991/1991 # - 1992 # - 2006 # - 1896/1911 # - 1993/1998 # - 1892/1905/1946 # - 1990 # - 1992/1992


ISU Championships

In addition to sanctioning other international competitions, the ISU designates the following competitions each year as "ISU Championships":


Veteran

* World Veterans Figure Skating Championships * World Veterans Speed Skating Championships * World Veterans Short Track Speed Skating Championships


Olympic

The events such as the Olympic Winter Games and the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating are not ISU Championships. However, they do count towards Personal Best scores.


ISU Cups and Grand Prixs

*
ISU Speed Skating World Cup The ISU Speed Skating World Cup is a series of international speed skating competitions, organised annually by the International Skating Union since the winter of 1985–86. Every year during the winter season, a number of competitions on different ...
- 1985 *
ISU Short Track Speed Skating World Cup The Short Track Speed Skating World Cup is a series of international short track speed skating competitions, organised yearly by the International Skating Union since the winter of 1998/1999. Every year during the winter, a number of competitions o ...
- 1998 * ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating - 1995 * ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating - 1997


First world championships

Dates and locations of first world championships in various disciplines held under the auspices of the ISU: * 1893: Speed skating (men only),
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
* 1896: Figure skating (men only),
St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
* 1906: Figure skating (ladies), Davos * 1908: Figure skating (pairs), St. Petersburg * 1936: Speed skating (women),
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
* 1952: Figure skating (ice dance),
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
* 1970: Sprint speed skating,
West Allis, Wisconsin West Allis is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. A suburb of Milwaukee, it is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 60,325 at the 2020 census. History The name West Allis derives from Edward P. Allis, ...
* 1978: Short track speed skating,
Solihull Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blyth ...
, UK * 2000: Synchronized skating,
Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...


Cooperation with other sports

The ISU has an agreement with the
Federation of International Bandy The Federation of International Bandy (FIB; french: Fédération internationale de bandy, russian: Международная федерация хоккея с мячом, sv, Internationella Bandyförbundet) is the international governing bo ...
to use the same arenas. The cooperation between the two federations is increasing, since both have an interest in more indoor venues with large ice surfaces being built.


Organization

The ISU is an international sport federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee as the body globally administering figure skating and speed skating sports with the following disciplines:
Speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skatin ...
,
Single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...
& Pair skating, Ice dance,
Short track speed skating Short-track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters (typically between four and six) skate on an oval ice track with a length of . The rink itself is long by wide, which is the same size as a ...
, and
Synchronized skating Synchronized skating is an ice skating sport where between 8 to 16 skaters perform together as a team. They move as a flowing unit at high speed over the ice, while performing elements and footwork. This complex sport originated in 1956 and was ...
. Whereas the individual national associations administer these sports at the national level, all international matters are under the sole jurisdiction and control of the ISU. There was an attempt to set up an alternative association to replace the ISU for governing and promoting figure skating throughout the world. In March 2003, a group of several former figure skating champions (who at the time were still practicing as coaches, judges, referees) announced the creation of a new international governing body for figure skating, the World Skating Federation ("WSF"). This attempt ultimately failed. ISU is organized as an
association Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...
pursuant to Swiss laws (art. 60 of
Swiss Civil Code The Swiss Civil Code (SR/RS 210, german: Schweizerisches Zivilgesetzbuch (ZGB); french: Code civil suisse (CC); it, Codice civile svizzero (CC); rm, Cudesch civil svizzer) is a portion of the second part (SR/RS 2) of the internal Swiss law ("Pr ...
). It has its own legal identity and falls under the jurisdiction of Switzerland. Articles of Association define ISU's purpose as
''The objectives of the ISU are regulating, governing and promoting the sports of Figure and Speed Skating and their organized development on the basis of friendship and mutual understanding between sportsmen.The ISU shall work for broadening interest in Figure and Speed Skating sports by increasing their popularity, improving their quality and increasing the number of participants throughout the world. The ISU shall ensure that the interests of all ISU Members are observed and respected.''
The ISU Statutes consist of the ISU Constitution including its Procedural Provisions, and ISU General Regulations setting out framework principles. More detailed provisions are contained in Special Regulations and Technical Rules for Single & Pair Skating and Ice Dance, Synchronized Skating Speed Skating, and Short Track Speed Skating. The ISU Code of Ethics, the ISU Anti-Doping Rules, and ISU Anti-Doping Procedures contain further guidelines. Additional provisions and updates can also be found in ad-hoc published ISU Communications.


Members

The members of the ISU are the individual national associations whose task is to administer figure and speed skating on ice at the national level. Members are typically composed of skating clubs and athletes are individual members of those clubs. As of 20 February 2020, the International Skating Union counts 98 members.


ISU Congress

The highest-ranking body of the ISU is the ISU Congress which consists of the ISU Members. The Congress meets once every two years for an ordinary meeting. Ordinary resolutions are passed by a simple majority of votes of the ISU Members represented and voting at a Congress. Proposals require a two-thirds majority of ISU Members in favor in order to be accepted. Since the ISU's inception in 1892, 58 ordinary meetings in total have been organized.


ISU Council

The ISU Council constitutes the highest ISU body between two Congresses. It is the executive body of the ISU and is responsible for determining the policies of the ISU and deciding upon the general coordination of the ISU structure and strategy. The Council consists of the President, a Vice President, and five members for the Figure Skating Branch and a Vice President, and five members for the Speed Skating Branch. The Council is assisted by the Director General and the ISU Secretariat. The Director General is responsible for the daily management of all business and financially related activities of the ISU and the operation of the Secretariat. As of the summer of 2008, the ISU consisted of 63 member nations, with a governing council of 11. To add any proposal to the agenda of meetings, it must have support from four-fifths of the members. Proposals on the agenda are approved with a two-thirds majority vote.


Presidents of the ISU

ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:20 PlotArea = top:10 bottom:50 right:130 left:20 AlignBars = late DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:1890 till:2026 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:10 start:1892 Colors = id:BLU value:rgb(0.2745,0.5098,0.7059) BarData = barset:PM PlotData= width:5 align:left fontsize:S shift:(5,-4) anchor:till barset:PM from: 1892 till: 1895 color:BLU text:" Pim Mulier" fontsize:10 from: 1895 till: 1925 color:BLU text:"
Viktor Balck Viktor Gustaf Balck KVO KCMG (25 April 1844 – 31 May 1928) was a Swedish Army officer and sports personality who was one of the original members of the International Olympic Committee, president of the International Skating Union for 30 year ...
" fontsize:10 from: 1925 till: 1937 color:BLU text:"
Ulrich Salchow Karl Emil Julius Ulrich Salchow (7 August 1877 – 19 April 1949) was a Danish-born Swedish figure skater, who dominated the sport in the first decade of the 20th century. Salchow won the World Figure Skating Championships ten times, from ...
" fontsize:10 from: 1937 till: 1945 color:BLU text:" Gerrit W. A. van Laer" fontsize:10 from: 1945 till: 1953 color:BLU text:" Herbert J. Clarke" fontsize:10 from: 1953 till: 1967 color:BLU text:" James Koch" fontsize:10 from: 1967 till: 1967 color:BLU text:" Ernst Labin" fontsize:10 from: 1967 till: 1980 color:BLU text:"
Jacques Favart Jacques Favart (30 July 1920 – 27 September 1980) was a French sports official and figure skater. He won the French Figure Skating Championships in men's singles in 1942. As a pair skater, he competed with his wife Denise Favart from 1946 to ...
" fontsize:10 from: 1980 till: 1994 color:BLU text:"
Olaf Poulsen Olaf Poulsen (26 April 1849 – 26 March 1923) was perhaps the best-known Danish comedic stage actor of his time. He was famous for playing such roles as Nick Bottom in ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' and Falstaff, among others for the Royal Danish ...
" fontsize:10 from: 1994 till: 2016 color:BLU text:"
Ottavio Cinquanta Ottavio Cinquanta (15 August 1938 – 18 July 2022) was the President of the International Skating Union and a member of the International Olympic Committee. He held the ISU position from 1994 to 2016 and the IOC position since 1996. In 2000 he ...
" fontsize:10 from: 2016 till: 2022 color:BLU text:"
Jan Dijkema Jan Dijkema (born 23 September 1944) is a Dutch politician, sociologist and President of the International Skating Union. Career Dijkema studied sociology at the University of Groningen and was at the age of 32 in 1978 the youngest Member of th ...
" fontsize:10 from: 2022 till: 2026 color:BLU text:" Kim Jae-youl" fontsize:10
# 1892–1895 , Pim Mulier # 1895–1925 ,
Viktor Balck Viktor Gustaf Balck KVO KCMG (25 April 1844 – 31 May 1928) was a Swedish Army officer and sports personality who was one of the original members of the International Olympic Committee, president of the International Skating Union for 30 year ...
# 1925–1937 ,
Ulrich Salchow Karl Emil Julius Ulrich Salchow (7 August 1877 – 19 April 1949) was a Danish-born Swedish figure skater, who dominated the sport in the first decade of the 20th century. Salchow won the World Figure Skating Championships ten times, from ...
# 1937–1945 , Gerrit W. A. van Laer # 1945–1953 , Herbert J. Clarke # 1953–1967 , James Koch # 1967–1967 , Ernst Labin # 1967–1980 ,
Jacques Favart Jacques Favart (30 July 1920 – 27 September 1980) was a French sports official and figure skater. He won the French Figure Skating Championships in men's singles in 1942. As a pair skater, he competed with his wife Denise Favart from 1946 to ...
# 1980–1994 ,
Olaf Poulsen Olaf Poulsen (26 April 1849 – 26 March 1923) was perhaps the best-known Danish comedic stage actor of his time. He was famous for playing such roles as Nick Bottom in ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' and Falstaff, among others for the Royal Danish ...
# 1994–2016 ,
Ottavio Cinquanta Ottavio Cinquanta (15 August 1938 – 18 July 2022) was the President of the International Skating Union and a member of the International Olympic Committee. He held the ISU position from 1994 to 2016 and the IOC position since 1996. In 2000 he ...
# 2016–2022 ,
Jan Dijkema Jan Dijkema (born 23 September 1944) is a Dutch politician, sociologist and President of the International Skating Union. Career Dijkema studied sociology at the University of Groningen and was at the age of 32 in 1978 the youngest Member of th ...
# 2022–present , Kim Jae-youl


ISU Commissions and Committees

Following the ISU Congress 2018, the organizational chart of the ISU includes alongside the ISU Congress and ISU Council, assisted by the ISU Secretariat, the following bodies: # ISU Disciplinary Commission # ISU Athletes Commission # ISU Medical Commission # ISU Development Commission # ISU Technical Committees. The ISU Disciplinary Commission (DC) constitutes a judicial body of the ISU. It is an independent body elected by the ISU Congress. The ISU Athletes Commission was introduced on the 56th ISU Ordinary Congress 2016 in Dubrovnik and represents Skaters’ positions within the ISU by providing advice to the ISU Council, Technical Committees, Sports Directors, Director General and other internal bodies. The ISU Medical Commission coordinates compliance with anti-doping regulations. The ISU Development Commission implements the ISU Development Program in accordance with the ISU policy and the approved budget. The main functions of the ISU Technical Committees include the preparation, monitoring and maintenance of the Technical Rules. The following Technical Committees are established: Single and Pair Skating, Ice Dance, Synchronized Skating, Speed Skating and Short Track Speed Skating.


Eligibility rules

ISU's role as an international sports federation involves setting the rules to ensure proper
governance Governance is the process of interactions through the laws, social norm, norms, power (social and political), power or language of an organized society over a social system (family, tribe, formal organization, formal or informal organization, a ...
of sport, notably in terms of the health and safety of the athletes and the
integrity Integrity is the practice of being honest and showing a consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values. In ethics, integrity is regarded as the honesty and truthfulness or accuracy of one's actions. In ...
of competitions. Similar to many
international sports federations A sports governing body is a sports organization that has a regulatory or sanctioning function. Sports governing bodies come in various forms and have a variety of regulatory functions. Examples of this can include disciplinary action for rule i ...
, ISU adopted eligibility rules. Under the ISU eligibility rules, skaters participating in competitions that are not approved by the ISU face severe penalties up to a lifetime ban from all major international skating events. Historically, only amateurs were allowed to qualify for the Olympic Games and in 1962, the
IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
issued the Eligibility rules which specified that persons receiving remuneration and other material advantages for participation in sport were not eligible to compete in the Olympic Games. However, the concept of amateur sport developed over time, moving by the end of the 1980s towards professionalisation. Respecting the Olympic principles, the ISU rules made a difference in treatment of amateur and professional skaters wishing to qualify for the Olympic Games. In 1986, the limitations imposed on professional skaters were removed and the categories of "eligible" and "ineligible" persons were introduced to replace the concepts of "amateurs" and "professionals". In 1998, Eligibility rules established a ''comprehensive pre-authorisation system'' by stipulating that eligible skaters could only take part in competitions approved by the ISU, and conducted under the ISU Regulations by ISU-approved officials. Under the 2014 Eligibility rules, the person who breached the Eligibility rules could not be reinstated. This resulted in a lifetime ban, since the loss of eligibility is not limited in time. There were attempts of independent organisers to hold alternative speed skating events. Icederby International co., Ltd sought to set up a series of events titled ‘Icederby Grand Prix’ scheduled to run for six consecutive years from 2014–2020. Run by a Korean event organiser, it offered unprecedented prize money to attract the world's best skaters. In 2011, Icederby International approached the ISU to enter into a partnership agreement and presented its action plan. Initially, Icederby included
betting Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three elem ...
in connection with its planned Grand Prix in countries where betting was not prohibited. In January 2012, the ISU updated its
Code of Ethics Ethical codes are adopted by organizations to assist members in understanding the difference between right and wrong and in applying that understanding to their decisions. An ethical code generally implies documents at three levels: codes of bus ...
to rule out the participation in all forms of betting. Two years later, Icederby notified the ISU that no betting would be organised in connection with the planned Dubai Icederby Grand Prix as betting is illegal in
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
. Nonetheless, the ISU did not authorise the Dubai Icederby Grand Prix 2014 and announced that all skaters who take part in the Icederby event would be subject to the lifetime ban established by the Eligibility rules. In consequence, Icederby decided not to organise the Dubai Icederby Grand Prix 2014 due to its difficulty to secure the participation of speed skaters. Two professional speed skaters,
Mark Tuitert Mark Jan Hendrik Tuitert (; born 4 April 1980) is a retired Dutch speed skater. He won gold at the 1500 m at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Personal life Tuitert married fellow Dutch speed skater Helen van Goozen in 2009. Ten years before, they both ...
and Niels Kerstholt, lodged a complaint and on 5 October 2015, the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
initiated formal antitrust proceedings into alleged anti-competitive restrictions imposed by the International Skating Union on athletes and officials' economic activities and alleged foreclosure of competing alternative sport event organisers. On 20 October 2015, the ISU published the procedure for independent organisers to receive authorisation from the ISU Council. Under the 2016 Eligibility rules, the sanctions imposed on a skater participating in non-authorised events ranged from a warning to periods of ineligibility running from an unspecified minimum to a maximum of a lifetime. In December 2017, the European Commission decided that ISU's eligibility rules breach EU competition laws. The Commission gave the ISU 90 days to amend the rules and did not impose a fine. The ISU disagreed with the decision, suspended the enforcement of the rules subject to the Commission decision, and put in place provisional rules. In addition, the ISU filed an appeal against the EU Commission decision pending before the EU General Court.


Commercial aspects

The ISU, as an Olympic Winter Sport Federation, derives its revenues from #
Broadcast Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum ( radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began ...
partnerships for world-wide media coverage of ISU Events; #
Sponsorship Sponsoring something (or someone) is the act of supporting an event, activity, person, or organization financially or through the provision of products or services. The individual or group that provides the support, similar to a benefactor, is k ...
agreements; # Contributions provided by the
IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
for the
Winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultur ...
/
Youth Olympic Games The Youth Olympic Games (YOG) is an international multi-sport event for athletes between 15 and 18 years old, organized by the International Olympic Committee. The games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consiste ...
; and # Interest income earned from the ISU's financial assets. In 2018, the ISU generated a worldwide consolidated turnover of CHF 35.6 million, as compared to CHF 36.9 million for the financial year 2017. For the financial year 2018, the operating income for Television ISU Events (net) amounted to around 17 million CHF, and for advertising events (sponsorship agreements) to around 6.9 million CHF. Whereas the situation regarding TV events appears to be relatively stable, the conclusion of sponsorship agreements becomes more challenging due to a highly competitive market environment. Thus, ISU has been unable to replace the
Speed Skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skatin ...
Title Sponsor with a similarly lucrative agreement. Also, as ISU Members in China and the Republic of Korea were, for different reasons, unable to host ISU
Short Track Speed Skating Short-track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters (typically between four and six) skate on an oval ice track with a length of . The rink itself is long by wide, which is the same size as a ...
Events during the 2018/19 season, the ISU was also unable to maintain sponsorship agreements in those countries. As the ISU sport disciplines significantly contribute to the success of the Olympic Winter Games, the ISU can also continue to rely on substantial amounts provided by the
IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
. After the successful 2018 Olympic Winter Games (OWG) in South Korea, these incomes have increased as compared to the 2014 OWG in Sochi and are again close to the level of the 2010 OWG of Vancouver. To ensure a substantial annual interest income independent from commercial partners’ interests, the ISU employs a long-standing conservative investment policy. The interest income on high-rated bonds from Credit Suisse,
Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Banque Cantonale Vaudoise (BCV) is the cantonal bank of the Swiss Canton of Vaud. Headquartered in Lausanne, it is Vaud's biggest bank by balance sheet. BCV is a universal bank providing retail banking, corporate banking, wealth management, and ...
, and UBS accrued at the end of the financial year 2018 amounted to CHF 1.44 million. In 2020, the ISU launched the ISU Skating Awards


See also

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International figure skating Figure skating is a sport with participants across the world. Originally based in North America and Europe, the sport has experienced a major expansion in the countries of East Asia. The international governing body of the sport is the Internation ...
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List of international sport federations This is a list of international sports federations, each of which serves as a non-governmental governing body for a given sport and administers its sport at a world level, most often crafting rules, promoting the sport to prospective spectato ...
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Long track speed skating   Long-track speed skating, usually simply referred to as speed skating, is the Olympic discipline of speed skating where competitors are timed while crossing a set distance. It is also a sport for leisure. Sports such as ice skating marathon, ...
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Short track speed skating Short-track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters (typically between four and six) skate on an oval ice track with a length of . The rink itself is long by wide, which is the same size as a ...
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Synchronized skating Synchronized skating is an ice skating sport where between 8 to 16 skaters perform together as a team. They move as a flowing unit at high speed over the ice, while performing elements and footwork. This complex sport originated in 1956 and was ...
* ISU Figure Skating Championships


Notes


References


External links


Official website

ISU Judging System
- Official site for ISU's judging system (software and manuals) {{Authority control International sports organizations IOC-recognised international federations International sports bodies based in Switzerland Sports governing bodies in Europe Ice skating governing bodies Sports organizations established in 1892 Figure skating organizations Speed skating