The Future of Figure Skating

Colin Smith is the Director-General of the International Skating Union. He joined me to talk about the ISU’s approach to safeguarding and athlete welfare. As I’ve talked about on this podcast many times, the physical, sexual and emotional abuse of athletes has been a recurring problem in figure skating. According to survivors I’ve spoken to, the response from institutions has been flawed and fragmented, allowing abusers to continue in the sport while victims are forced out. In the last two years, the ISU has reorganized its investigative and safeguarding processes into a new independent integrity unit, and is committing more resources to protecting athletes. In this interview, Colin Smith goes into detail on these initiatives, what is coming next, and his hope that athletes will come to trust the Integrity Unit to support them when abuse happens.  YouTube: https://youtu.be/bBjnRzp3PrUTranscript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1csgV7z0oFS6HyP8638LqoAgHxjbGRlxY66CvLmMjuck/edit?tab=t.0The Integrity Unit’s reporting form is available at: https://skating.integrityline.com/I have a playlist of prior episodes dealing with abuse and safeguarding on the Future of Figure Skating YouTube channel, including interviews with safeguarding officer Jatta Muhonen, and skating survivors Soléne Mazingue and Olivia Oliver. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLe2pdWMwNXt4pm8L2zW34K3seT4t0RXt0&si=SP1iQF4_FD5IWvz4Other resources for survivors and advocates:https://www.athletesempowered.ca/https://theathletesurvivorsassist.org/https://justicenoabuse.orgYou can reach me at fsfuturepodcast at gmail.com or on Instagram at FutureFSPodcast. You can also support my work by making a contribution at ko-fi.com/futureoffigureskating. Remember to subscribe to the future of figure skating on YouTube and your podcast platform of choice and share it with your friends.

Magdalena Tascher is the president of the Polish Figure Skating federation, and also commentates for Eurosport. You might have seen her in Team Poland’s box during the Olympics waving a pierogi plushie! In this conversation, we got into the challenges of growing figure skating’s popularity in Poland, which of the ISU’s proposals might help that goal, and the importance of maintaining joy as a part of the sport. YouTube: https://youtu.be/pb1JX8447yMTranscript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cvbtk293C96qV8OKBxW9H4gaCZVvdayxNSYI00xa7E4/edit?tab=t.0You can reach me at fsfuturepodcast at gmail.com or on Instagram at FutureFSPodcast. You can also support my work by making a contribution at ko-fi.com/futureoffigureskating. Remember to subscribe to the Future of Figure Skating on YouTube and your podcast platform of choice and share it with your friends.Links:Article on ISU’s proposed changes and athlete reactions: https://anythinggoe.com/bigchangesfromisu/Interview with Ioulia Chtchetinina and Michal Wozniak:https://anythinggoe.com/ioulia-chtchetinina-and-michal-wozniak-if-you-dont-enjoy-it-dont-do-it/Interview with Dasa Grm: https://anythinggoe.com/dasa-grm-2023/

Philip Hersh spent 28 years as Olympic sports writer for the Chicago Tribune and has gone on to write about the Olympics and figure skating for Ice Network and NBC Olympics. He has covered 21 Olympics, 13 winter and 8 summer, as well as 38 US figure skating championships, 21 world championships, and many other competitions in Olympic sports. Recently, Phil has been writing about the changes that the ISU has been proposing for the coming seasons, and the opposition from federations and many athletes to those changes.In this episode, we get into how this is, and is not, the same as past times that the ISU has made a lot of changes. And we also talked a little bit about what we're both looking forward to with the coming 26-27 season.YouTube: Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1i14A8fcqcufgnzNQh5-t8IX7B6RJxFc-APFC_sul9Q0/edit?tab=t.0You can read Phil's reporting at www.globetrottingbyphiliphersh.com.You can reach me at fsfuturepodcast at gmail.com or on Instagram at FutureFS Podcast. You can also support my work by making a contribution at ko-fi.com/future of figure skating. Remember to subscribe to the future of figure skating on YouTube and your podcast platform of choice and share it with your friends.Links:Phil’s articles on rule changes:August: https://www.globetrottingbyphiliphersh.com/home/2026/8/27/save-the-dates-skating-fans-but-which-dates-will-they-beJanuary 2026: https://www.globetrottingbyphiliphersh.com/home/2026/1/16/figure-skating-officials-weigh-major-changes-in-rules-scheduleMy article on proposed changes and athlete reactions:https://anythinggoe.com/bigchangesfromisu/Coverage of Summer Sizzler:https://anythinggoe.com/sizzler26/

K Eri Lee is a Ph.D. student in Feminist Studies with a focus on elite, national-team sport and the Asian diaspora. They are also a figure skating coach and former US national team synchronized skater with the Haydenettes. You might also know Eri through their fabulously informative instagram account, @LiberatingSkating. Eri works to build sporting worlds where everyone, regardless of where they come from or who they are, can experience the joy of movement and community. We had a wide-ranging conversation about nationalism, belonging, synchro, coaching, putting research into practice, and how to communicate on the internet! Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1k-SggOGDZYtB6QJD6lGZEZlL105UyK6PK8RkzyYkXcg/edit?tab=t.0YouTube: https://youtu.be/APBoaHqyLfELearn more about Eri, and read their blog, at their website, www.eri-lee.com Their instagram is @liberatingskating You can reach me with comments or suggestions for topics and people I should talk to, by email at [email protected] or Instagram @futurefspodcast You can also support the podcast by making a one-time or recurring contribution at Ko-Fi.com/futureoffigureskating.Remember to subscribe to The Future of Figure Skating on YouTube and wherever you listen to podcasts, and share it with your friends!Links:I reference the post “Is Synchro a Feminist Sport?” https://www.instagram.com/liberatingskating/reel/DcG2bfiRLov/Eri on “The End of Sport” podcasthttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sports-as-a-weapon-podcast/id1527375756The International Workers’ Olympiadshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Workers%27_OlympiadsThe Tucker Center for Research on Women and Girls in Sporthttps://tuckercenter.umn.edu/

It’s an exciting time for synchronized skating, with the news in July that the sport - or at least the Synchro 9 variation - will be added to the 2030 Olympics. To talk about all things synchro, my guest today is Sabrina Snoad, co-host of the Synchro Skaters Club podcast. She joined me for an episode that is one part “Synchro 101” (for this figure skating fan), and one part a discussion of the future of the sport, and the changes, good and bad, that being in the Olympics could bring. Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cMJUIPuoEC7IyB5pXc1q4dZKUUkKQ-ozDvr6bTmlZqE/edit?usp=sharingLinks:Synchro Skaters Club:https://open.spotify.com/show/3lvq8IvjB9us1vz83p1kVwEpisode with Synchro 9 pioneers:https://open.spotify.com/episode/2Q0TILPhgJYbETmPwqzrDl?si=bba31e37dee34dbeEpisode on Body Image:“Love thy Body, Part 1”https://open.spotify.com/episode/0DAxmJthOCRucNKgVjdx7h?si=mr4aSSV0QlOktm8oVQQCgw“Love thy Body, Part 2 with Marta Pietrasik” https://open.spotify.com/episode/1Hxk6dv81A6pjRjA8GVLl5ISU Synchro Coverage: Blades in Harmony - Ep 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HM_W1eNL74&list=PLuiPiC1Hk8eIbRWrx0V-hec6Llr5iVLjAPrograms:Synchro 9 Finlandhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmO3Hx-2B0YSynchro 9 USAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ub51UhI_yv0NexxiceShort 2022 “Man I Feel Like a Woman”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QB1lw_-SAWYTeam Unique Short 2019/2020 “Bad Guy”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX5-7Lr1qiYDemonstrating Intersection and Death SpiralsHelsinki Rockettes2024-2025 FS at Worldshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eISCw4iP4acYou can reach me with comments or suggestions for topics and people I should talk to, by email at [email protected] or Instagram @futurefspodcast  You can also support the podcast by making a one-time or recurring contribution at Ko-Fi.com/futureoffigureskating.Remember to subscribe to The Future of Figure Skating on YouTube and wherever you listen to podcasts, and share it with your friends!