Sunday Extra

New system launches in earnest at worlds

By DAVE SCHEIBER,
Published March 13, 2005

It was the scandal of Salt Lake City: a French figure skating judge and her federation president attempted to rig the outcome of the pairs and ice dance competitions of the 2002 Olympics.

In the wake of the controversy, the International Skating Union last year unveiled a new scoring system, the Code of Points. The idea is to add greater objectivity to the scoring than the traditional 6.0 scale - which the United States is to abandon soon - and short-circuit potential corruption.

In the new system, rather than making deductions starting at 6.0, the Code of Points starts every competitor at zero and works up. It awards points based on preset values for various jumps, footwork maneuvers and combinations, and ultimately could favor technical presentations with dazzling and difficult leaps over the more emotive style for which Michelle Kwan is famous.

But while she bypassed recent Grand Prix events that use the new system, Kwan has been training hard with Rafael Arutunian, her coach since 2004, to prepare for the change.

"I have to make sure that I'm keeping the integrity of my own skating and not being pushed in a certain direction," she said in a conference call. "And you know I have to be open to the idea of trying new things, making it artistic, but yet following the rules."

[Last modified March 13, 2005, 00:23:15]