Brandon Mroz's Quad Video and ISU's YouTube Channel highlight impact internet media is having on figure skating

Brandon Mroz's digitally recorded and first documented quad Lutz is currently the 2nd most watched video at U.S. Figure Skating's YouTube channel. Additionally, thousands of skating fans around the world are subscribing to the new ISU JGP YouTube Channel to view the competitive programs of the international competitors on this season's Junior Grand Prix for the first time.

What must be plain to skating officials around the globe now is "the whole world wants to see these videos, both competitive and non-competitive."

The lesson to be learned? The future of telecast figure skating must include a full use of internet components to maximize the sport's presentation.

Figure Skating is alive and thriving on the web via official sites, streaming entities, websites devoted to specific disciplines, individual skaters (both official and non-official), skating news blogs, forums, competition sites, and event scoring sites.

Skating information is further enhanced through social media entities i.e. Twitter and Facebook that offer links to stories, info and videos all figure skating related.

All this is the new reality that the old world leaders of the sport are being slowly but surely dragged into. Thanks to ISU Vice President for Figure Skating, Mr. David Dore, we finally witnessed (after what I have been told was a several year process) the creation of the new ISU Junior Grand Prix YouTube Channel to digitally document the annual Jr. Grand Prix competitions. This is the first time that all competitive programs from each event have given exposure to the world's elite junior skaters. It's a very big move and the right move, long past due.

Whether one thinks about it or not, the impact YouTube is having and will continue to have upon the sport is huge. Not only the fans and parents of skaters will benefit greatly from this new exposure, but Coaches, Officials and Judges will find their jobs easier to perform. National and International Judges having the availability to view skating performances of the younger skaters will allow for more managed expectations for future competitions and better pre-season advice to coaches and skaters on how to improve their scoring possibilities.

This enhanced and trending impact on the sport means that the previously unknown skaters will now become much better known (at least within the skating community). Reputation issues will continue to lose importance in the discussion as more information becomes visible. Within the judging community, alot of the bias we perceive is not even deliberate but more a lack of objectivity stemming from a lack of factual evidence. This new media availability will help make judges more informed and scoring better determined.

Peter Murray - Editor