Ricky Hatton has become the first celebrity to be eliminated on the new series of Dancing on Ice. The much-loved entertainment show is just getting started with comedian Lou Sanders, telly presenter Claire Sweeney and S Club 7 singer Hannah Spearitt all still competing.
The icy action on ITV 1 is enough to make anyone want to bust some moves on the rink. However, there are some moves so difficult that it’s not worth anyone trying unless you’re a trained professional.
The team at SportsBoom.com have looked at five extremely difficult ice-skating moves that nobody should try on the rink.
1. The Triple Axle
The triple axle is an impressive ice-skating move to watch, but one that’s incredibly difficult to perform. It involves a high jump, with the skater then proceeding to perform a full three-and-a-half turns in the air.
This is extremely dangerous, as it’s very easy to fall and seriously injure yourself.
Japanese figure skater Midori Ito became the first woman to ever land a triple-axle in the 1988 NHK Trophy, and performed it many more times since. Because of this, Ito is widely recognised as one of the all-time greatest figure skaters.
2. The Quadruple Jump
Quadruple jumps, landed successfully, includes a full four turns in the air. A quadruple axel, by contrast, is 4 and a half turns, and nobody has ever managed to land this jump in a world competition.
US Skater Nathan Chen has a routine that comprises quadruple jumps in five different ways – salchow, loop, toe loop, flip, and lutz – which makes him the first of his kind.
3. The Quintuple Jump
Yuzuru Hanyu, a world champion figure skater, believes that a quintuple jump is physically possible, requiring a huge increase in speed and lift – but it remains to be seen whether anybody can perform one in competition.
Because of this, nobody has ever performed a quintuple jump in skating, because it requires a lot of strength and agility, but that doesn’t stop people from trying. However, you definitely shouldn’t try it.
4. The Triple Lutz
Unlike axel jumps, lutz jumps require a skater to launch themselves into the air using their toe pick, the bit at the end of their skate that provides grip.
If this sounds brutally difficult, it is. South Korea’s Yuna Kim, who lit the cauldron at the PyeongChang Games, is famous for her triple lutzes because she somehow makes them look easy.
5. The Throw Quad Salchow
The throw quad salchow is regarded as one of the most dangerous things you can do as a duo on the ice and has only been successful on very rare occasions at competitions. Kavaguti and Smirnov famously landed this move in the 2008 European Championship, the second time ever that this move was successfully performed.
As opposed to quad salchows in individual skating, where skaters take four turns in the air going counterclockwise, throw quad salchows are performed when the female partner is thrown into four turns by the male partner and has to land perfectly.
Quadruple turns in the air is difficult enough, but being thrown into the air by a partner is extremely difficult and dangerous to get right.
