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Toe loop (figure skating jump)
- Sport
- Figure skating
- Type
- Toe jump
- Take-off
- right back outside edge, left toe pick
- Landing
- right back outside edge
- Abbreviation
- T
The loop with a toe pick
The toe loop is closely related to the loop. Here too, the skater glides backwards on the outside edge of the right foot. Instead of taking off from the edge alone, however, they pick into the ice with the toe pick of the left skate and use it as a lever. This makes the take-off considerably easier. The landing is on the right foot. That is also where the name comes from: toe for the toe pick, loop for the loop.
The ideal second jump
Because almost all jumps end on the right back outside edge and the toe loop starts exactly there, it is the most common second jump in combinations. After landing the first jump, the skater just picks in with the left toe and jumps again. Combinations such as triple Lutz–triple toe loop or quad toe loop–triple toe loop are part of the repertoire of the world's best.
Value
For the same number of rotations, the toe loop has the lowest base value of the six jumps. Nevertheless it is important: the quad toe loop is the quad that most men master. The first recognised quad toe loop in competition was landed by Canadian Kurt Browning in 1988.
Recognising it
Watch whether the skater travels backwards on a straight or slightly curved path and, just before the jump, places the left leg back and picks in. On the flip and Lutz, by contrast, the right foot picks in. Many skaters enter the toe loop with a three turn.
Mistakes and scoring
A common mistake is starting to rotate while picking in, so that part of the rotation takes place on the ice. In combinations it is also important that there is no intermediate step between the jumps. Execution is scored with the GOE; under-rotation lowers the base value.
Learning it
The single toe loop is usually learned early, often at the same time as the Salchow. Many skaters gain their first experience of multi-rotation jumps with the double toe loop. This makes the jump an important building block of any training.
History
Who first jumped the toe loop is not clearly documented. It is often attributed to American Bruce Mapes, who was active in the 1920s. The jump has since become the backbone of modern programs.
Toe loop in pair skating
The toe loop is also common in pair skating, both as a side-by-side jump and in combinations.
Frequently asked questions
+Why is the toe loop so common in combinations?
Because it starts on the right back outside edge, on which almost all jumps end.
+Who landed the first quad toe loop?
Canadian Kurt Browning, in 1988 at a recognised competition.
Sources & further links
Editorially researched and checked against association and rulebook information. Found a mistake? Write to us via the Contact page.
Read more in the encyclopedia
Term
Figure skating jumps: Axel, Lutz, flip & co.
Figure skating has six basic jumps: toe loop, Salchow, loop, flip, Lutz and Axel. They differ in the take-off – whether with the help of the toe pick (toe jump) or from the edge (edge jump). The landing is almost always backwards on the right foot (for anticlockwise rotators).
Term
Figure skating judging system (IJS, GOE, PCS)
Since 2004, figure skating has been scored under the ISU Judging System (IJS). The total score is made up of the technical score (base value of the elements plus the GOE execution score) and the program components, minus any deductions, for example for falls.
Sport
Figure skating
Figure skating combines athleticism and expression: skaters perform jumps, spins and step sequences to music, which a judging panel scores under the ISU judging system. Olympic disciplines are singles, pair skating, ice dance and the team event.
Term
GOE (Grade of Execution)
GOE stands for Grade of Execution, the execution score in figure skating. Judges use it to score every element on a scale from −5 to +5. The GOE changes an element's base value up or down by a percentage.
Term
Axel (figure skating jump)
The Axel is the only figure skating jump with a forward take-off. That is why it always has half a rotation more than its name suggests: a triple Axel has three and a half rotations. It is considered the hardest of the six standard jumps.
Term
Lutz (figure skating jump)
The Lutz is a toe jump in figure skating that takes off from the back outside edge. Because the approach curves one way and the rotation goes the other, it is considered the hardest standard jump after the Axel. It is named after Alois Lutz from Vienna.