The World Figure Skating Championships ("Worlds") is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union. Medals are awarded in the categories of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dance. Generally held in March, the World Championships are considered the most prestigious of the ISU Championships, which also include the European Championships, the Four Continents Championships, and the World Junior Championships. With the exception of the Olympic title, a world title is considered to be the highest competitive achievement in figure skating.
Richard Totten "Dick" Button is an American former figure skater and skating analyst. He is a two-time Olympic champion and five-time World champion (1948–1952). He is also the only non-European man to have become European champion. Button is credited as having been the first skater to successfully land the double axel jump in competition in 1948, as well as the first triple jump of any kind – a triple loop – in 1952. He also invented the flying camel spin, which was originally known as the "Button camel".
Karl Schäfer was an Austrian figure skater and swimmer. In figure skating, he became a two-time Olympic champion at the 1932 Winter Olympics and the 1936 Winter Olympics. He was also a seven-time World champion (1930–1936) and eight-time European champion (1929–1930). As a swimmer, he competed at the 1928 Summer Olympics in the 200 metre breaststroke.
Povilas Vanagas is a Lithuanian ice dancer. With his wife Margarita Drobiazko, he is the 2000 World bronze medalist, a three-time Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, a two-time European bronze medalist, the 1999 Skate Canada champion, and competed in five Winter Olympics, finishing as high as 5th.
William Stewart Montgomery "Bud" Wilson was a Canadian figure skater. Competing in singles, he became the 1932 Olympic bronze medallist, the 1932 World silver medallist, a six-time North American champion, and a nine-time Canadian national champion.
Figure skating was first contested in the Olympic Games at the 1908 Summer Olympics. Since 1924, the sport has been a part of the Winter Olympic Games.
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.
Juris Razgulajevs, sometimes spelled Yuri Razguliaiev, is a Canadian ice dancing coach and former competitor who represented the Soviet Union, Latvia, Uzbekistan, and Japan. He is the 1991 World Junior champion with partner Aliki Stergiadu for the Soviet Union.
Ronald Ludington is an American figure skating coach and former pair skater. With Nancy Rouillard Ludington, he is the 1960 Olympic bronze medalist, 1959 World bronze medalist, and a four-time U.S. national champion.
Country changing is a phenomenon in the figure skating world in which skaters change the country they represent in competition. There are many different reasons why competitors switch countries, but it mostly comes down to maximizing the possibility of being able to compete at the World Figure Skating Championships and the Winter Olympic Games. A skater who cannot do that representing their home country often looks for another one. Because spots to Worlds and the Olympics are allotted by country, not by skater, a skater can hope to transfer to a new country and have a better chance of becoming national champion, being sent to Worlds, and qualifying for a spot in the Olympics.
Diane Towler MBE married Green, is an English former ice dancer and currently a figure skating coach. She is a four-time (1966–1969) World and European champion with skating partner Bernard Ford.
Bernard Ford, MBE, is an English former ice dancer. With partner Diane Towler, he is a four-time (1966–1969) World, European, and British champion. He is also a World Professional ice dancing champion. He later became a coach and choreographer.
Hendryk Schamberger is a German former competitive ice dancer. With Jennifer Goolsbee, he is a four-time German national champion and placed ninth at the 1994 Winter Olympics.
The 2009 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships an international figure skating competition in the 2008–09 season. It was held at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, Canada on February 2–8. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing. The compulsory dance was the Finnstep.
Alex Hideo Shibutani is an American ice dancer. Partnered with his sister Maia Shibutani, he is a two-time Olympic bronze medalist (2018), a three-time World medalist, the 2016 Four Continents champion, and a two-time U.S. national champion. The Shibutanis have also won six titles on the Grand Prix series and a silver medal at the 2009 World Junior Championships. They are two-time members of the US Olympic team, competing at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, and the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. In 2018, they became the first ice dancers who are both of Asian descent to medal at the Olympics. They are the second sibling duo to ever share an ice dancing Olympic medal, and the first from the United States.
Figure skating at the 2010 Winter Olympics was held at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The events took place between 14–27 February 2010.
The overall quota for the figure skating competition is 148 total skaters, consisting of 74 men and 74 ladies. There will be 30 skaters in each of the single skating disciplines, 20 pair skating teams, and 24 ice dance teams. The maximum number of entries that can be qualified by a National Olympic Committee is 3 per event, making 18 the maximum number of entries that a country can qualify.
Figure skating at the 2014 Winter Olympics was held at the Iceberg Skating Palace in Sochi, Russia. The five events took place between 6–22 February 2014. For the first time at the Winter Olympics, a figure skating team event was held.
The 2002 Bulgarian Figure Skating Championships were the Bulgarian Figure Skating Championships of the 2002-2003 figure skating season. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies singles, and ice dancing on the senior level for the title of national champion of Bulgaria. The results of the national championships were used to choose the teams to the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, the 2002 World Figure Skating Championships, and the 2002 European Figure Skating Championships.
The following is about the qualification rules and allocation of spots for the figure skating events at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
