ISU Judging System
Introduction
The ISU Judging System (IJS) is designed to measure athletes’ performances in an objective manner and has replaced the old 6.0 system. The IJS has been used at Sub-Association and National level in New Zealand since 2006.
Technical Elements
In the IJS, every important element an athlete, couple, pair or team might perform has been assigned a value, called the base value. For example, a double Axel in singles skating has been assigned 3.5 points, while a single toeloop has a base value of just 0.4 points.
Athletes are also judged on how well they perform each element with the judges assigning a grade of execution (GOE) from -3 to +3. The GOE adds points to the base value or takes points away from the base value, the amount added or subtracted can be found in the Scale of Values (a small section from singles skating appears below):
| Scale of Values - Singles | |||||||||
| | | | + + + | + + | + | Base | - | - - | - - - |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Jumps | ||||||||
| Toeloop | 1T | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.4 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.3 | |
| Salchow | 1S | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.4 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.3 | |
| Loop | 1Lo | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.5 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.3 | |
| Flip | 1F | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.5 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.3 | |
| Lutz | 1Lz | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.6 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.3 | |
Table 1: A small section of the Scale of Values showing single revolution jumps.
For instance a single toeloop with a GOE of -3 earns only 0.1 points (0.4 points base value minus 0.3 points for the -3 GOE), while a single toe loop with a GOE of +3 earns 1.4 points (0.4 base value plus 1.0 for the +3 GOE).
For spins, footwork sequences, spirals, lifts, and all synchronised skating elements, the technical panel also assigns a level of difficulty to each element. The higher the level of difficulty, the higher the base value. For spins, variations and number of revolutions are some of the important aspects that allow an athlete to earn a higher level of difficulty.
| Sit Spin Level 1 | SSp1 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.3 | -0.3 | -0.6 | -1.0 | |
| Sit Spin Level 2 | SSp2 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.6 | -0.3 | -0.6 | -1.0 | |
| Sit Spin Level 3 | SSp3 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 2.1 | -0.3 | -0.6 | -1.0 | |
| Sit Spin Level 4 | SSp4 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 2.5 | -0.3 | -0.6 | -1.0 |
Table 2: A small section of the Scale of Values showing sit spins.
There are limits on the number of elements athletes can perform and in the short programme there are many specific requirements regarding the elements an athlete must perform.
The points for all the valid individual elements are added up to get the Total Element Score (TES).
Programme Components
In addition to the technical elements, athletes are awarded points for other important aspects of skating. There are five other aspects for which the athletes are awarded a value between 0.00 and 10.00. For singles, pairs, and synchronised skating they are:
- Skating Skills
- Transitions (the footwork between elements)
- Performance/Execution (body line, carriage, and balance during elements)
- Choreography
- Interpretation
The Total Component Score (TCS) is determined by first adding up the five component marks. This total is then factored for the short programme by multiplying by 0.8 for ladies and 1.0 for men. For the free skate programme, this total is multiplied by 1.6 for ladies and 2.0 for men to get the Total Component Score. In pairs and synchronised skating, similar factoring is used.
In dance, the programme components for the original and free dance are:
- Skating Skills
- Linking Footwork/Movements
- Performance
- Choreography
- Interpretation/Timing
and each individual programme component is factored differently. In compulsory dance there are no choreography or linking footwork/movement marks and interpretation and timing are separate.
Deductions
Athletes can lose points for falling, performing illegal elements, skating over the maximum time allowed, and for costume or music violations.
Total Score
For each programme, the Total Segment Score (TSS) is determined by adding up the Total Element Score, the Total Component Score and then subtracting any deductions. In compulsory dance the TSS is factored (divided by the number of compulsory dances to be skated.)
The final score is just a sum of all the Total Segment Scores for the athete, couple, pair or team.
Panel Makeup
There are two distinct panels under the IJS, each with a different function:
- A "Technical Panel" consisting of a Technical Controller, Technical Specialist, Assistant Technical Specialist, Data Operator and Video Replay Operator who decide which elements were performed and assign levels of difficulty.
- A "Judges Panel" consisting of a Referee and up to five judges (or more overseas) which determine the Grade of Execution (GOE) of each element and assign the Programme Component marks.
A computer system for entering marks, replaying video of elements, and controlling the scoreboard is managed by the chief accountant.