Crystal Skate

After more than 150 years since its official appearance, figure skating finally caught up with modern times last season when the International Skating Union (ISU) decided to allow all disciplines to skate to music with lyrics. This decision was seen by many as the perfect opportunity to bring modern music into the equation. After all, it's been ignored for far too long in competitions, always kept at bay by how much of an impact the lyrics have over it. Joshua Farris took the Four Continents Championships by storm last season with his Ed Sheeran routine. Photograph: Chung Sung-Jun / Getty Images Asia The assumption that the new rule - which kind of translates into 'there are no rules' when it comes to the choice of routine - would encourage more skaters to turn to contemporary tunes was right. There has been a noticeable increase in this type of programmes last season. Some feared that this would take something away from the lyricism of the sport, but anyone who has...

Coco Chanel once famously said that when a woman dresses shabbily, all everyone will remember is the dress; but if you dress impeccably, they will remember the woman. Her words can also be applied to figure skating because the routines that stand out, that are remembered for their quality, are the ones that benefit from fabulous costumes, especially in the exhibition. This routine was initially their free skate in 2012/2013 Photographs: Dave Sandford / Getty Images N America Exhibition programmes can blend into one another if not handled with care. Most of them are set to popular songs, the type that you hear on the radio, love for a few weeks, then quickly forget about when a trendier song hits the radio stations. That is not to say that the routines set to them are not beautiful, but just as the songs themselves, they can be forgettable. To avoid this, some skaters go to great lengths to create programmes so unique, they can never be confused with someone else's. And with ...

In figure skating, exhibitions are like that nice glass of red wine one might enjoy at the end of a really pesky day of work. They're the long satisfied breath you let out or the triumphant fist bump in the air that means: 'I've done it!' Concurrently, they are also a way to show off. Sure, it's nice to be able to throw the rules out the window for a change and skate to whatever, in whatever, however you want it. But figure skaters like being in the spotlight, and what better time to shine than when there is nothing restraining you from showing your full potential? What that means is that some athletes will go to unbelievable lengths to put on a show, like when Adelina Sotnikova  did rhythmic gymnastics on ice,  or when Javier Fernandez  made a mix-tape to get us to get off our butts and join the gym.  These programmes were so good, they will never be forgotten. But they wouldn't have been as fantastic had they not benefited from some terrific costume choices....

If season 2014/2015 has taught us anything about figure skating, it's been that this is an unpredictable sport. From Javier Fernandez winning the World Championships, to Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov not winning the European Championships, we've been fully reminded that it's never safe to bet in figure skating. Skaters who are now on top can abruptly drop tomorrow and rankings can change like the wind. This changeable nature of the sport is also reflected in the costumes. Just because a skater has the best costume in the short programme, doesn't mean they must also have the best costume in the long one. That is certainly true for this next pair: Ksenia and Fedor skated to Notre Dame de Paris  by Richard Cocciante Photograph: David Ramos / Getty Images Europe Their music was sung in English, French and Spanish, depending on the country they were skating in Photograph: Jamie McDonald / Getty Images Europe I decided to begin with the worst costumes this ...

Many people confuse pair skating with ice dancing. Even though there are very few similarities between the two, they seem one and the same to the untrained eye. Perhaps it's because those unfamiliar with the sport can't understand the point of having two categories for couples. There is a point of course because pair skating is not dancing on ice. Pair skating contains a lot more elements that are significantly more difficult than dancing: jumps, throw jumps, death spirals, side-by-side spins, etc. In order to be able to perform them without costumes getting in their way, pair skaters have to wear aerodynamic clothes, which the ice dancers don't. Because of the restriction in length and shape, you'd think pair costumes are less fabulous. Not a chance! This season, especially, was full of gorgeous dresses paired with dashing attires for the boys. Ironically though, neither one of the best costumes of the season was a dress: The Russian pair skated to music from Cro...

If figure skating were a job you had to apply for, the ideal candidate would have to be more than just a skater. They'd have to also fulfill all the following requirements: talent, creativity, hard work, flair and an eye for detail. On their CV, under skills, they'd probably put: great taste in music, masterful presentation skills, ability to choose a great costume, lots of charisma and, yes, of course, outstanding skating skills. Anyone lacking one of these attributes would not even be called for an interview. In the real world though, there is no such thing as an ideal figure skater, which is why we end up with bits and pieces of perfection spread all over the place rather than concentrated in one athlete. The best programme, the best costume, the best choreography, the best music choice, the best jumps, the best spins, the best presentation, etc. cannot all be found in one place. That's why it is no surprise that the best costume worn this season by a man in the free s...

Scott Moir was once asked what the atmosphere was like in the men's locker rooms. He replied that there is a camaraderie between the boys most of the time which springs from them making fun of each other's costumes. Even though Scott could only speak for the ice dancers, it's not hard to imagine that single skaters are also having a laugh at their opponents' (and their own) outfits. Most men, as a rule, don't give as much importance to fashion as women do. So you can imagine that with no partner fussing about what they are going to wear, most male skaters don't stress too much over their costumes. A lot of them settle for a plain jumpsuit or a black tie attire - something comfortable that makes them look decent. There are certain themes though for which 'decent' doesn't do it. That's when things get interesting. Can't you just picture some of them cringe at themselves in the mirror? Soundtracks, musicals and operas are usually the genres ...

What makes figure skating such an interesting sport is that it allows athletes to express themselves through the music they skate to. Whether they're rebels or dashing gentlemen, classy ladies or cheeky girls, all skaters share a bit of their personalities or at least their tastes in music each time they skate. This makes figure skating more diverse than any other sport in the world, and that shines through in the costumes. The free skate (or long programme) is the most important part of the competition. Each skater wants to bring out their best and most impressive skills in the free skate. The costumes are a big part of that, especially in the ladies' competition, where skaters are expected to look impeccable. As far as the ladies' free skate goes, this season has been very good to fashion. From Kanako Murakami's suggestive  Phantom of the Opera costume to Ashley Wagner's perfect copy of the famous red dress worn by Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge , we were not d...

In 1902, a Londoner decided to enter the figure skating World Championships, thus becoming the first professional female figure skater and prompting the ISU to create a separate discipline for women. Her name was Madge Syers and she competed wearing ankle-long skirts, cotton shirts and hats. I wonder what she'd say if she saw some of today's costumes... Madge was able to wear heavy, layered outfits because she didn't perform a lot of elements, but as figure skating took flight and the women's discipline became more difficult, female skaters had to gradually lose fabric to be able to perform. Nowadays, there is a science to how the ladies' costumes are made. They have to be aerodynamic, in other words to allow air to flow easily so that they can move freely and jump. That doesn't mean they cannot be absolutely gorgeous though. The ladies have complete freedom to choose the themes of both their routines, which means that they can wear whatever they want. T...

Sometimes more is less, and although this doesn't usually apply to figure skating ('the more spectacular, the better' is how the motto goes here), this saying certainly seems to summarise the ice dancers' approach to their free dance costumes this season. Choosing to dial down the theatrics in the free dance might have been a consequence of this being the first season after the Olympic Games. Skaters tried so hard to impress last season, that they might have felt they needed to take a breather this time around. Or perhaps they kept it simple because the paso doble was flamboyant enough to draw attention on its own. Whatever the reason, this season was, costume-wise, one of the plainest. There were a few exemptions from the rule, of course, and they stood out like gems in a bowl of rocks. That's not to say that the simpler costumes were ugly, even ordinary rocks have their own wild-sort-of-beauty after all, but they simply couldn't compare to the more sophist...