Synchronized Skating - Competitions

Competitions

There are international synchronized skating competitions at the novice, junior, and senior levels (with senior being the most elite). The International Skating Union held the first official World Synchronized Skating Championships in 2000 in Minneapolis, MN, USA, in which the strongest senior teams from across the globe gather to determine which is the world's best. Although in 1996 the first "World Challenge Cup" was held in Boston, MA, USA, it was unofficially the first competition to crown the world champion of synchronized skating (Team Surprise of Sweden). The top junior teams from around the world compete against one another in the World Challenge Cup for Juniors (WCCJ), held in a different location every year. Recently the top novice teams in the world have had an opportunity to compete against one another with the Leon Lurje Trophy which was held for the first time in the 2006-2007 season.

In the United States and Canada, there are several other recognized age and skill levels. In the US, the divisions include Beginner, Pre-Juvenile, Preliminary, Open Juvenile, Open Collegiate, and Open Adult (the non-qualifying divisions/ the divisions that cannot go to nationals) and Juvenile, Intermediate, Novice, Junior, Senior, Collegiate, Adult, and Masters (qualifying levels).

ISI (Ice Skating Institute) is another governing body which focuses on a more recreational form of competition. Teams can compete in the Tot, Jr. Youth, Youth, Sr. Youth, Teen, Collegiate, Adult, or Master age groups, in any of five categories: Formation, Advanced Formation, Skating, Open Skating, and Dance.

While most skaters participating in "synchro" are female, the rules allow mixed-gender teams.

The Collegiate team level consists of teams with 12-20 skaters who must be enrolled in a college or degree program as full-time students. Skaters must also have passed the juvenile moves in the field test.