Free dance (ice dance)

Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron during the 2017-18 season.

The free dance (FD) is a segment of an ice dance competition, the second contested. It follows the rhythm dance. Skaters perform "a creative dance program blending dance steps and movements expressing the character/rhythm(s) of the dance music chosen by the couple". Its duration is 4 minutes for senior ice dancers, and 3.5 minutes for juniors. French ice dancers Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron hold the highest recorded international FD score of 123.47 points.

Background

The free dance (FD) is the second segment contested in all junior and senior ice dance competitions, after the short dance. The 2019 U.S. Figure Skating Rulebook defines the FD as "the skating by the couple of a creative dance program blending dance steps and movements expressing the character/rhythm(s) of the dance music chosen by the couple". It must have combinations of new or known dance steps and movements, as well as required elements. The program must "utilize the full ice surface," and be well-balanced. It must contain required combinations of elements (spins, lifts, steps, and movements), and choreography that express both the characters of the competitors and the music chosen by them. It must also display the skaters' "excellent skating technique" and creativity in expression, concept, and arrangement. The FD's choreography must reflect the music's accents, nuances, and dance character, and the ice dancers must "skate primarily in time to the rhythmic beat of the music and not to the melody alone." For senior ice dancers, the FD must have a duration of 4 minutes; for juniors, 3.5 minutes.

American ice dancers Meryl Davis and Charlie White in 2009.

Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang

Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron hold the highest recorded international FD score of 123.47 points, which they achieved at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Papadakis and Cizeron hold the 7 highest recorded FD scores, achieved from 2016-2018. Meryl Davis and Charlie White hold 10 out of the next 21 highest scores. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir earned 124.70 points in their FD at the 2018 Canadian National Championships, the highest FD score ever recorded at the Canadian national level.

Required elements

The ISU announces the specific requirements for the FD each year. For example, the ISU published the rules for the 2018–19 season in March 2018. The following elements make up a well-balanced program: the Dance Lift, the Dance Spin, the Step Sequence, Twizzles, and Choreographic Elements.

Elements	Junior	Senior
Dance Lift	Not more than two different types of Short Lifts or one Combination Lift	Three different types of Short Lifts or one Short Lift and one Combination Lift
Dance Spin	Not more than one Dance Spin (Spin or Combination Spin)	Not more than one Dance Spin (Spin or Combination Spin)
Step Sequence – Types: Straight line or Curve	Two: one Step Sequence in Hold; one Combination One Foot Step Sequences	Two: One Step Sequence in Hold; One Combination One Foot Step Sequences
Synchronized Twizzles	One Combination Set of Synchronized Twizzles	One Combination Set of Synchronized Twizzles
Choreographic element	Two different Choreographic Elements chosen from: Choreographic Lift Choreographic Spinning Movement Choreographic Twizzling Movement Choreographic Sliding Movement Choreographic Character Step Sequence	Three different Choreographic Elements, One of which must be a Choreographic Character Step Sequence Two additional chosen from: Choreographic Lift Choreographic Spinning Movement Choreographic Twizzling Movement Choreographic Sliding Movement