Ice Dancing

In contrast to pairs skating, in ice dancing attention is mainly focused on rhythm, musical interpretation and precision in the execution of steps. As in ballroom dancing, the skaters remain in contact almost throughout the event. Ice dancing is made up of three parts: compulsory dance, original and free dance.

Compulsory Dance

All athletes carry out the same dance as stipulated by the ISU: a specific rhythm and set steps that must be performed with precision and with correct skating technique. The score obtained determines the partial standings. These points are then added to the score obtained in the original and in the free dance to calculate the total scores and the final results.

Original Dance

Athletes are assigned a rhythm to follow. For the 2005/2006 season it was the “Latin Combination”, allowing a choice of two or three rhythms from cha-cha-cha, rumba, and samba, as well as /or one from mambo, merengue, salsa. They must create an original version of the dance with steps of their choice.

The maximum time for the performance is two and a half minutes with a margin of 10 sec more or less. The score obtained determines the partial standings. These points are then added to the score obtained in the free dance to calculate the total scores and the final results.