ISU

The ISU World Development Trophy continued in Gdansk (POL) from April 1-6. This time the event concentrated on Single and Pair Skating and Ice Dance. 64 young skaters and 30 coaches from 19 ISU European Members attended the event.
The event was divided into two parts, the first part were four days dedicated to practices and lectures with moderators and Technical Specialists. The second part was spread over two days of competition, with the participation of single skaters and ice dancers in Junior and Novice categories.
Every group had two on ice practices and one off-ice session. The main moderator for Single and Pair Skating was Mr. Alexander Vedenin and together with his Assistant Mr. Sarkis Tewanian, who is also an ISU Technical Specialist, provided lessons for skaters teaching technique of figure skating elements and preparing them for competition. Coaches participated in practices on ice and lectures where Mr. Vedenin taught them methods of basic skating, preparation for competitions and many other topics. Mr. Tewanian took part in practices preparing for competitions where skaters performed their programs and provided the coaches with comments from a Technical Specialist point of view.
The same structure applied to the Ice Dancers and their coaches. Mr. Michael Webster was the main moderator and Ms. Sylwia Nowak-Trebacka as his Assistant coached 11 couples and their coaches on the topics concerning basic elements in Ice Dance and provided further information on the ISU Special Regulations and Technical Rules.
In order to help improve the knowledge of coaches, every practice ended with a discussion which gave an opportunity to ask questions. For many participants, it was the first time that they took part in an Event at such an international level where 12 judges were present to score the Program of the skaters that had been practiced and adjusted during the four days of training. The feedback from all involved is very positive and the event was deemed a great success.