(downloaded from ISU web site
WARNING cover old OBO 1998 rules,
See also new OBO 2000 rules)
Following the acceptance of the New ISU Figure Skating Results System by the ISU Congress in Stockholm, please find below the description and explanation of its working.
Guidelines for the manual use of the New ISU Figure Skating Results System
The 47th Ordinary Congress in Stockholm, Sweden, June 1998 accepted the New ISU Figure Skating Results System which will be implemented from now on at all ISU Championships, Olympic Winter Games and International Competitions in Figure Skating, Ice Dancing and Synchronized Skating. This System is based on a direct comparison of the marks awarded to a competitor with the marks awarded to all other competitors and operates in the way described below.
Nothing has been changed in the work of the individual Judge, so that he/she judges every event in the same manner as with the previous Result System. The difference is how the opinion of the majority of the Judges is taken into account.
1. Principles involved
After the completion of the performance of the first competitor (couple, team) A, the scorekeepers enter the marks on the result calculation forms and add the two marks of every Judge. The sum of these two marks is called the total points for each Judge. After the completion of the performance of the second competitor B, the marks are entered on the result calculation forms, added in the same way and compared with the marks of the first competitor.
If a Judge has awarded one of these two competitors higher total points, this Judge counts as a Judge in Favor (JiF) (for the competitor with higher total points). If the two competitors are awarded from one Judge an equal number of total points, a Judge in Favor is received by the competitor with:
If these marks are also equal, both competitors receive a Judge in Favor.
The number of Judges in Favor is added over all Judges from the panel for both compared competitors A and B separately. The number of Judges in Favor is written down for both skaters. The competitor with the highest number of Judges in Favor receives a Win (in this comparison). If the number of Judges in Favor is equal for the two competitors (A and B), they both receive a Win.
After the completion of the performance of the third competitor C his/her marks are entered, added and compared first with the marks of competitor A and then with the marks of competitor B in the same manner. The marks of the fourth competitor D are likewise compared separately with the marks of all three previous competitors A, B and C and so on. Thus in every such comparison one of the compared competitors (or both of them) receive a Win and each of these competitors receives a certain number of Judges in Favor.
Then the total number of Wins and the total number of Judges in Favor is calculated for every competitor by adding the numbers received in all the comparisons.
The result of each part of the event is determined the following way: the competitor with the highest (total) number of Wins is first, with the next highest (total) number of Wins is second and so on; if two or more competitors have obtained the same (total) number of Wins, the highest place is awarded to the competitor with the highest (total) number of Judges in Favor and so on; if this number is also equal, the competitors are considered as tied. If two competitors are tied for the first place, they are both awarded this place and the next place to be awarded is the third place and so on.
The results of all the comparisons are entered on to a Matrix.
A matrix is a graph on which the one by one comparisons are recorded manually and looks like this:
A B C D E F Wins JiF Place A B C D E F
2. How to apply the result system manually to one part of an event
Step 1: Example of Short Program/Compulsory Dance event, in which the first mark breaks the tie
Shown below in an example of a competition in the Short Program in which 6 competitors received from a panel consisting of 7 Judges the following marks:
Comp Judge 1 Judge 2 Judge 3 Judge 4 Judge 5 Judge 6 Judge 7 A 4.8 5.1 5.0 5.1 5.1 4.9 4.9 5.2 5.3 5.1 5.1 5.1 5.1 5.1 10.0 10.4 10.1 10.2 10.2 10.0 10.0 B 5.3 5.5 5.4 5.5 5.7 5.2 5.4 5.5 5.5 5.4 5.4 5.6 5.3 5.4 10.8 11.0 10.8 10.9 11.3 10.5 10.8 C 5.7 5.6 5.6 5.5 5.6 5.5 5.4 5.8 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.6 5.6 5.6 11.5 11.3 11.3 11.2 11.2 11.1 11.0 D 5.4 4.9 5.3 4.9 5.0 5.3 5.4 5.6 5.2 5.6 4.9 5.2 5.5 5.5 11.0 10.1 10.9 9.8 10.2 10.8 10.9 E 5.6 5.2 5.4 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.4 5.5 5.2 5.5 5.3 5.4 5.6 5.4 11.1 10.4 10.9 10.5 10.7 11.0 10.8 F 4.6 5.2 5.2 5.1 5.5 5.1 5.2 5.5 5.5 5.7 5.6 5.7 5.5 5.5 10.1 10.7 10.9 10.7 11.2 10.6 10.7
Step 2: How to Compare Competitor to Competitor
To facilitate comparisons, the scorekeepers use the regular marking sheets for recording the marks. After each competitor skates the short program/dance, the sheet is folded under the totals for the short program/compulsory dance. (This folding is repeated after the marks and totals are recorded for other program.)
To compare the marks for competitor B against competitor A, the folded sheet is lined up under the totals for competitor A, and the comparisons are more easily made. When C has skated and the sheet folded, his or her sheet is lined up with the totals for competitor A and the comparisons made, (then the A sheet is set aside) and then for competitor B and the comparisons made ( and the B sheet is set aside). When D has skated and the sheet folded, his or her sheet is lined up with the totals for A (which is then set aside), then for B (which is then set aside), then for C (which is then set aside) and so on so that the totals for each competitor are compared with those for all skaters who have already skated in order.
After 2 competitors A and B: B receives a Win and 7 Judges in Favor, A receives no Judges in Favor.
After 3 competitors A, B and C: comparing C and A - C receives a Win and 7 Judges in Favor, A receives no Judges in Favor; comparing C and B - C receives a Win and 6 Judges in Favor, B receives 1 Judge in Favor.
After 4 competitors A, B, C and D; comparing D and A - D receives a Win and 4 Judges in Favor, A receives 3 Judges in Favor; comparing D and B - D receives a Win and 4 Judges in Favor, B receives 3 Judges in Favor; comparing D and C - C receives a Win and 7 Judges in Favor, D receives no Judges in Favor.
After 5 competitors, A, B, C, D, E: comparing E and A- E receives a Win and 7 Judges in Favor, A receives no Judges in Favor; comparing E and B - they both receive a Win and 4 Judges in Favor (Judge 7 tied these competitors); comparing E and C - C receives a Win and 7 Judges in Favor, E receives no Judges in Favor; comparing E and D - E receives a Win and 6 Judges in Favor, D receives one Judge in Favor.
And finally after all 6 competitors A, B, C, D, E and F: comparing F and A - F receives a Win and 7 Judges in Favor, A receives no Judges in Favor; comparing F and B - B receives a Win and 5 Judges in Favor, F receives 2 Judges in Favor; comparing F and C - C receives a Win and 7 Judges in Favor, F receives no Judges in Favor; comparing F and D - D receives a Win and 4 Judges in Favor, F receives 3 Judges in Favor; comparing F and E - E receives a Win and 4 Judges in Favor, F receives 3 Judges in Favor.
Step 3: How to enter comparison on the Calculation Matrix
After B skates - write in the matrix as follows:
A B C D E F Wins JiF Place A 0 B (7) C D E F (A receives 0 Judges in Favor, B receives 7 JiF plus a win indicated by brackets.) After C skates - write in matrix as follows: A B C D E F Wins JiF Place A 0 0 B (7) 1 C (7) (6) D E F (A receives 0 JiF, C receives 7 JiF and a win indicated by brackets; B receives 1 JiF, C receives 6 JiF and a win indicated by brackets.) After D skates - write in matrix as follows: A B C D E F Wins JiF Place A 0 0 3 B (7) 1 3 C (7) (6) (7) D (4) (4) 0 E F (A receives 3 JiF, D receives 4 JiF and a win indicated by brackets; B receives 3 JiF, D receives 4 JiF and a win; C receives 7 JiF and a win, D receives 0 JiF.) After E skates - write in matrix as follows: A B C D E F Wins JiF Place A 0 0 3 0 B (7) 1 3 (4) C (7) (6) (7) (7) D (4) (4) 0 1 E (7) (4) 0 (6) F (A receives 0 JiF, E receives 7 JiF and a win; B receives 4 JiF and a win, E receives 4 JiF and also a win [tie judge 7]; C receives 7 JiF and a win, E receives 0 JiF; D receives 1 JiF, E receives 6 JiF and a win.) After F skates - write in matrix as follows: A B C D E F Wins JiF Place A 0 0 3 0 0 B (7) 1 3 (4) (5) C (7) (6) (7) (7) (7) D (4) (4) 0 1 (4) E (7) (4) 0 (6) (4) F (7) 2 0 3 3 (A receives 0 JiF, F receives 7 JiF and a win; B receives 5 JiF and a win, F receives 2 JiF; C receives 7 JiF and a win, F receives 0 JiF; D receives 4 JiF and a win, F receives 3 JiF; E receives 4 JiF and a win, F receives 3 JiF.)
Step 4: How to complete the Matrix
Only at this point can the matrix be completed:
a)The Total Number of Wins are totaled and filled in. For each
competitor the total is the number of times the Judges in Favor are
bracketed (e.g. 0 for competitor A, 3 for competitor B).
A B C D E F Wins JiF Place
A 0 0 3 0 0 0
B (7) 1 3 (4) (5) 3
C (7) (6) (7) (7) (7) 5
D (4) (4) 0 1 (4) 3
E (7) (4) 0 (6) (4) 4
F (7) 2 0 3 3 1
b) The Total number of Judges in Favor for each competitor are added
and filled in (e.g. 3 for skater A). This column is only used if
there is a tie in the number of wins.
A B C D E F Wins JiF Place
A 0 0 3 0 0 0 3
B (7) 1 3 (4) (5) 3 20
C (7) (6) (7) (7) (7) 5 34
D (4) (4) 0 1 (4) 3 13
E (7) (4) 0 (6) (4) 4 21
F (7) 2 0 3 3 1 15
c) The places are determined for this part of the event. The competitor
with the highest number of Wins is first (competitor C with 5 Wins),
the competitor with the second highest number of Wins is second
(competitor E with 4 Wins) and so on. Competitors B and D both have
the same number of Wins (each 3) the one with the higher number of
Judges in Favor is placed 3rd and the other 4th (so competitor B
with 20 is 3rd; competitor D with 13 is 4th). Competitor F is placed
5th with the next highest number of Wins (1) and so on.
A B C D E F Wins JiF Place
A 0 0 3 0 0 0 3 6
B (7) 1 3 (4) (5) 3 20 3
C (7) (6) (7) (7) (7) 5 34 1
D (4) (4) 0 1 (4) 3 13 4
E (7) (4) 0 (6) (4) 4 21 2
F (7) 2 0 3 3 1 15 5
Step 5: The Format of the Matrix for the Protocol
This calculation matrix must be included in the protocol of all events.
The order of lines in the matrix can at the conclusion be changed so it
starts with the competitor placed firs, then continues with the competitor
placed second and so on.
C E B D F A Wins JiF Place
C (7) (6) (7) (7) (7) 5 34 1
E 0 (4) (6) (4) (7) 4 21 2
B 1 (4) 3 (5) (7) 3 20 3
D 0 1 (4) (4) (4) 3 13 4
F 0 3 2 3 (7) 1 15 5
A 0 0 0 3 0 0 3 6
3. Determination of the final result
Steps 1-5 are repeated for all parts of the event, bearing in mind which of the two marks breaks the tie.
After having determined the results in each part of the competition, the final placings are determined by the normal procedure.
4. Classification list required
The Report of the Referee must contain a classification list containing the placings awarded by every Judge to every competitor. These placings are also determined as in the previous way on the result calculation forms (but not used for determining the final placing of the competitors).
This is essential so that Referees can assess the Judges' work and so that Judges can assess their own work.
Milano, Ottavio Cinquanta, President October 30, 1998 Lausanne, Fredi Schmid, General Secretary
(c) International Skating Union
See also Ranking rules description by Fred and Fred skating home page