On the 23rd of October 2022 the first quadruple axel in Grand Prix of Figure Skating history was landed. This jump was previously thought to be impossible and from that moment on, the figure skater became known as the ‘Quad God’. But what is a quadruple jump? Why is this feat so impressive? And who pulled it off?
Though there are many variations of the quadruple jump, at its core it is defined by four full rotations in the air. The first and simplest quadruple jump, the quad toe-loop in which the skater begins a jump backwards and both takes off and lands on the same outside edge, was ratified in the 1988 World Championships by Canadian Skater Kurt Browning. This led to a push within the sport for skaters to learn the quad toe-loop in order to keep up with their competition. However, this took years for it to be commonly used in competition given how difficult the quad jumps were and how detrimental continued usage of them can be for skaters given the immense force on the skater’s joints. Competitive figure skaters generally have short careers because to the damage these kinds of jumps can inflict.
It took a full ten years until the next type of quad was landed in competition. This time the so-called quad Salchow, in which the take-off and landing foot are different, was completed by American skater Timothy Goebel in the 1998 Junior Grand Prix Final. However, quads were still few and far between, as they need a large runup before the jump to build speed. This meant that the points skaters could have earnt in artistic elements and interpretation during this time would be sacrificed in order to make the big jumps.
There are seven types of jumps within figure skating of increasing difficulty, but by the middle of 2016 only two remained to be ratified in competition, the quad loop, and the quad axel.
Then, on the 30th of September 2016 Japanese figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu landed the first ratified quad loop in the Autumn Classic International competition. Yuzuru had shown great interest in the quad jumps, especially the quad axel, from a young age. After winning his first international gold medal in the senior division he told the media “My goals for the future are to land all quad jumps in competition. I would also like to learn the quad axel. Another goal is to win the next two Olympics, or at least win medals.”. And he did, winning gold in Sochi in 2014, where he broke the world record and became the first skater to score over 100 points in the short program in the men’s short program individuals. Then he followed this in the next Olympics in Pyeongchang by winning gold again and once again breaking the world record. It is safe to say Yuzuru Hanyu was an extremely talented and hardworking figure skater and the fanbase he amassed certainly showed this.
If you asked any figure skating fan who they thought influenced the popularity of the sport the most I would wager that they would say Yuzuru Hanyu. He became extremely popular, due to both his technical skill and artistic interpretation (which has been declining as jumps have been taking centre stage), not to mention his beautiful outfits and highly impressive saves when he messed up. The tradition of throwing stuffed toys and flowers onto the ice after your favourite skater’s performance showed just how dedicated his fans (affectionately called ‘Fanyus’) were. The ice was often flooded with Winnie the Pooh bears after his performances, a tradition given the skater’s own Pooh good luck charm, which created a visual aptly referred to as the ‘Pooh rain’. This iconic tradition only further helped him become more well-known.
He became so popular that he became the face of figure skating, dramatically increasing the popularity of the sport worldwide. And with his increasing following, the tensions behind the quad axel only increased. Yuzuru Hanyu had made it clear that he wanted to be the first to land the previously impossible jump and he was seemingly getting closer. Fans followed this eagerly, wanting to see their favourite skater make history. He attempted the quad axel in the 2021 Japanese National Championships but landed with two feet, meaning the quad was not ratified. The quad axel is substantially harder than the other quads given that instead of just four rotations, it must include four and a half. He had not finished the last rotation in its entirety.
Yuzuru Hanyu retired on the 19th of July 2022, after being ranked top ten in the world for eleven years. At the press conference in which this was announced, he stated, “[I] had achieved everything [I] could achieve” and would continue to skate outside of competitions, ending an era of figure skating. Yuzuru has subsequently put on an ice show (which sold out almost immediately) and has planned another for February this year.
So, if Yuzuru Hanyu did not ratify the quad axel, who did?
Just three months after announcing his retirement from competitive skating another landed the impossible jump; Ilia Malinin. The then seventeen-year-old, American-born figure skater landed the first quad axel in history at the 2022 CS U.S Classic. This was an unexpected event, as the competition which he competed at was not large and because of this the video footage of him is subpar, with fewer fans attending. But, at the end of the day, Ilia Malinin made history and did what was previously thought impossible, starting a new era of figure skating.
