Loop jump

Last updated
Figure skating element
Element nameLoop Jump
Alternative nameRittberger Jump
Scoring abbreviation Lo
Element type Jump
Take-off edgeBack Outside
Landing edgeBack Outside
Inventor Werner Rittberger

The loop jump is an edge jump in the sport of figure skating. The skater executes it by taking off from the back outside edge of the skating foot, turning one or more rotations in the air, and landing on the back outside edge of the same foot. It is often performed as the second jump in a combination.

Contents

History

The loop jump was created by German figure skater Werner Rittberger, and is often called the Rittberger in Europe. [1] According to U.S. Figure Skating, the loop jump is "the most fundamental of all the jumps". [2] According to writer Ellyn Kestnbaum, the jump also gets its name from the shape the blade would leave on the ice if the skater performed the rotation without leaving the ice. [3] In competitions, the base value of the single loop jump is 0.50; the base value of a double loop is 1.70; the base value of a triple loop is 4.90; the base value of a quadruple loop is 10.50, and the base value of a quintuple loop is 14. [4]

Firsts

Abbr.Jump elementSkaterNationEventRef.
3LoTriple loop (men's) Dick Button Flag of the United States.svg  United States 1952 Winter Olympics [5] [1]
Triple loop (women's) Gabriele Seyfert Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 1968 skating competition [1]
4LoQuadruple loop (men's) Yuzuru Hanyu Flag of Japan.svg  Japan 2016 CS Autumn Classic International [6] [7]
Quadruple loop (women's)n/an/anone ratified [a] [7]

Execution

The loop jump is an edge jump. [8] [9] The skater executes it by taking off from the back outside edge of the skating foot, turning one or more rotations in the air, and landing on the back outside edge of the same foot. [10] Atlantic Monthly , in its description of all jumps, states, "An easy way to remember this jump is that it's basically a toe loop without the assist of the toe pick". [8] The jump is usually approached directly from back crossovers, which allows the skater to establish their upper body position while gliding backwards on their right outside edge before springing into the air. The loop is more difficult than the toe loop and salchow because the free leg is already crossed at takeoff, so the rotation begins from the edge of the skating foot and the upper body. The coordination and weight shift do not need to be exact while performing the loop, so many skaters consider it an easier jump than the flip and Lutz. [3] It is often performed as the second jump in a combination because it takes off from the same edge as "the standard jump landing". [3] Kestnbaum states, "The fact that the free leg remains in front makes both controlling the landing of the first jump and generating the lift and rotation for the second more difficult than when a toe loop is used as the second jump". [3] A loop jump is considered incorrectly done if the takeoff is two-footed, meaning that the free foot does not leave the ice before the takeoff. [3]

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Not performed yet by women in international competition. Done in a domestic tournament by Adeliia Petrosian in 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Media Guide, p. 20
  2. ↑ "Identifying Jumps" (PDF). U.S. Figure Skating. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2015. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Kestnbaum 2003, p. 285.
  4. ↑ "Communication No. 2707: Single & Pair Skating Scale of Values (ISU No. 2707)" (PDF). International Skating Union. pp. 2–4. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 May 2025. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
  5. ↑ Pucin, Diane (7 January 2002). "Button Has Never Been Known to Zip His Lip". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 11 December 2022. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
  6. ↑ "Hanyu First to Nail Quadruple Loop". The Japan Times. Kyodo News. 1 October 2016. ISSN   0447-5763. Archived from the original on 21 December 2016. Retrieved 4 October 2025.
  7. 1 2 Media Guide, p. 21
  8. 1 2 Abad-Santos, Alexander (5 February 2014). "A GIF Guide to Figure Skaters' Jumps at the Olympics" . The Atlantic  . ISSN   2151-9463. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  9. ↑ Kestnbaum 2003, p. 284.
  10. ↑ "Skating Glossary". Skate Canada. 2015. Archived from the original on 26 November 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2025.

Works cited

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