Ice dance vs. figure skating, explained: What to know about differences in Olympic events

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Ice dance vs. figure skating, explained: What to know about differences in Olympic events originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Figure skating is nothing if not a lively experience. The movements conjured up by its greatest adherents are artful, with fashion, music, acrobatics and dance coming together atop ice rinks across the world.

The spectacle is certainly an eye-catching one. It's easy to see why it has become such a fan favorite over the years.

And yet, the event is also cloaked in mystery. Judging remains a fickle process, even at the top level. And even the sport itself -- and one of its signature events -- can prove confusing.

Ice dance is one of the Winter Olympics signature offerings, a platform where artistry and rhythm find a home. But just what is the spectacle? And how does it compare to figure skating more broadly? Here's what you need to know.

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Ice dance vs. figure skating, explained​

While both events have proven fan favorites in recent years, there are a few differences in the ways ice dance and figure skating are scored.

The former refers to a specific discipline of figure skating, US Figure Skating says. It's one of five competitions that make up the sport -- the other four are men's singles, women's singles, pairs and synchronized skating.

Like pairs, ice dance features two skate partners. Whereas pairs -- and other figure skating disciplines more broadly -- allows for partners to skip and vault into the air, ice dance is decidedly less aerodynamic. Skaters are tasked with performing artful dance routines. The competition is an offshoot of ballroom dancing, where footwork and technique reign supreme.

Ice dance is split into two segments: a rhythm dance and a free dance. The rhythm dance is more regimented, with skaters expected to perform lifts, step sequences and other pre-selected dance rituals. Each pairing performs specific music played at a specific tempo.

Free dance requires some of the same elements. But it also allows skaters to pick music of their own liking. Performances vary in nature, with creativity and artistry flourishing. Both elements come together to make up a skate pairing's ice dance score.

"We’re really more like ballroom dancers," American Evan Bates told People. "We’re interpreting music, putting a lot of emphasis on the connection between the couple and on the connection to the music."

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Ice dance vs. figure skating scoring​

Leaps and vaults feature heavily in typical figure skating scoring. That’s not the case in ice dance, though. Competitors are judged based on technique, precision of movement and timing. If one ice dance partner performs at a different tempo than the other, it can prove costly for a contestant’s final score.

Ice dance and other figure skating disciplines are judged under the International Judging System. The system features two segments: the technical panel and the judges. The former identifies elements and assigns scores for difficulty. Skaters can receive a maximum of four points in their sequences. A nine-judge panel then hands out grades for execution, with marks ranging from -5 to +5. Those points, combined with the base value from each element as laid out by the technical panel, make up the technical element score.

Judges are also tasked with grading five program components, better known as the artistry score. Skaters can receive grades ranging from 0.25 points to 10 points. The final tally is known as the program component score.

Here's a look at the five categories, according to ESPN:

• Skating skills (edge control, speed across the ice, power and changing direction)
• Transitions (linking of elements with varied movements)
• Performance (connection to the audience, music and choreography)
• Composition (arrangement of all elements and transitions within the music and choreography)
• Interpretation of the music (creativity and interpretation as it relates to music)

Program component scores undergo a bit of multiplication, with their scores altered to incorporate technical element marks. The final sum of the equally-weighted marks is the total segment score. Figure skating sees competitors graded on leaps, spins and step sequences. As for ice dance, skaters' tallies are determined by their performance on spins, step sequences and twizzles, among other factors.

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