Freestyle Skating

Freestyle is one of the newest skating fields and at the same time it is one of the most attractive field of skating in which people have to cross equally spaced small cones using slightly complex and rhythmic dramatic movements.

If you have joined the fans of this field and would like to work in this field, you should know that before entering it, you must first pass the basic / supplementary skating course and have an acceptable mastery of the basic movements of skating.

After passing this course and gaining an acceptable balance, you can enter the specialized field of freestyle skating.

Mobility and liveliness in this field is very high, which requires a very high concentration and balance of people.

In freestyle skating training, movements that prepare the athlete mentally and physically and also the exercises that help maintain the balance for going around the obstacles are first taught. Some of these movements are simplified movements of lower levels and some are simplified movements of higher levels.

Getting started in this field is easy with balance exercises and slalom moves. The purpose of the basic course of the freestyle skating is to raise the person’s balance as soon as possible and prepare to start training and training on the obstacle. Primary trainings and the ones being done without obstacles will last between 4 and 10 sessions. This also depends on the level of the person in skating and the balance he/she has gained before entering the freestyle field.

After this period, the movements and exercises with the obstacles will begin. At first, they will get acquainted with the types of movement categories, and from the simplest movement in each category, the exercises will begin and gradually the movements of each category will become more difficult and complex.

Basic freestyle skating movements with 8 wheels (using both feet and all wheels) forward and backward over and around obstacles are taught.

Among the basic movements and exercises in this field, we can mention the fish movement. This movement, as its name suggests, is the movement of a person between obstacles in a spiral way similar to a fish. The coordination of weight distribution between the heel and the toe as well as the use of the outer and inner edges of both feet is a feature of the fish movement exercise.

 

 

These movements are new for the athlete and mastering them will take some time, and complete mastery of these movements will prepare him/her to perform movements at higher levels. The primary challenge in this field and at this stage is the coordination between the nervous system and the muscles, which is initially uncoordinated and requires a high focus on movements during training. The more you add to your workout history, the better the coordination between your muscles and your nervous system, you can have a better understanding of your workouts and movements, and the more ready you will be to work out harder.

The number of basic training movements of the freestyle skating field varies according to each person’s condition and the coach’s opinion. For example, for people who have good and acceptable balance, about 30 movements and for people with poorer balance and skills, a higher number of basic movements is considered. The variety of basic movements of freestyle skating, which all tend to increase balance and skills on skating, is very wide, and according to weak points of each person, a special movement and exercise is used for him/her.

After the person has gained relative mastery of the simple movements performed around the obstacles, he/she is asked to perform a mix of his movements back and forth around the obstacles. These movements are made and performed by the person at that time, who will definitely use the help and guidance of the coach if necessary.

This is the first and easiest performance of an athlete in freestyle skating. You should be careful that the principles of education and training that the instructor gives to the student must be valid in a skating academy so that not only the person makes progress but also achieves the highest elegance in all movements. In this way, the way will be paved for his/her progress to be increased to compete at national and world competitions.

After this stage, when the learning period depends on the athlete, people get prepared for a little more difficult and complex movements in which rotational, sitting, jumping and moving on one foot with 4 wheels are taught. Performing these movements and mastering them sufficiently at higher levels will help the athlete to perform more complex movements that require more balance. The exact number of complete movements (performing a movement with a certain number around the obstacle during the mix performance) varies in different people, and according to the coach, the number of each movement is determined and a mix of movements is made. After passing this stage, the person will go to a higher level and by trying to perform harder movements with a higher number of performances around the obstacle, he/she makes a mix of movements.

At higher levels, movements are performed on the front wheels or rear wheels or the combination of both, and performing various movements at this level will require the athlete’s high strength, concentration and endurance.

The beginning of the movement training is done on a rear wheel or a front wheel in different categories of movements, including sitting, jumping and rotational movements and other movements. Athletes at this stage are at the highest level of the tournament.

In general, the start of freestyle trainings and movements is done on 8 wheels (two feet) and over time and as the quality level and balance of people increases, the trainings are provided step by step on 4 wheels (one foot) and finally on only one wheel (either front or rear). Keep in mind that learning the movements from the coach alone is not enough, and one must devote more time to individual trainings to reach the highest levels in freestyle skating.

All sports require bodybuilding at the professional level so that players can increase their physical and mental fitness and keep it at a high level. Freestyle skating is no exception to this rule, and due to the wide range of movements and their difficulty, high physical fitness is essential and requires spending part of the training time, to bodybuilding exercises.

 

 

Freestyle bodybuilding generally involves movements that aim to strengthen the muscles, increase concentration, and improve the athlete’s balance. In the balance section, a device called the BOSU Balance Trainer is used.

This device is in the form of a hemisphere, the spherical side of which is placed on the ground and athletes try to control the center of gravity of the body by standing on it (with the style of doing movements) and according to the instructions of the coach, which, as a result, makes it easier for them to perform the same movements by skating.

Competitions in this field are held in various branches such as Battle / Classic / Pair Classic / Speed Slalom / Jump and Slide, which fortunately in Iran and especially Tehran, competitions are held at a very high level. Among the most prestigious of these competitions, we can mention the Marshall Cup World Championships which several rounds of these popular competitions were held in Iran. Holding these competitions in Iran and the presence of international players and referees along with Iranian players and referees, in addition to increasing the attractiveness and the quality level of these competitions, it brought a very good experience for our country’s players and referees and provided the possibility of gaining international competition experience for many athletes in our country in this field.

It should be noted that all players participating in the Marshall Cup will be ranked in the world rankings.

Freestyle Jumping Competition

In jumping competitions, jumping over a bar with a height of 80 cm starts and step by step 10 cm is added to its height and players who hit the bar while jumping will be eliminated from the competition. This process continues until the winner is determined.

Freestyle Speed Slalom Competitions

In this branch, 20 obstacles are placed at a distance of 80 cm. The participant starts and reaches the desired speed before reaching the first obstacle. As soon as the player reaches the first obstacle and before crossing the obstacles, he/she must go through these obstacles with one foot and in a spiral way and record his best time. The player who crosses these obstacles with the shortest time and the least error will win the first title. In this branch, the difference of one hundredth of a second is decisive and in the high levels of these competitions, the top people with very small differences from each other win the first to third titles, this has made this branch more attractive among freestyle enthusiasts.

Freestyle Slide Competitions

In this branch, we will see beautiful types of brakes in a certain range, and the least error made will be the criterion for determining the top people.

Battle Freestyle Competitions

In this course, participants compete in groups of 3 or 4 people. The time for the performance of each person is 30 seconds, and players must perform their best moves correctly and in large numbers to reach the final of the competition and finally become first, second, or third.

The number of obstacles in this branch is 4 rows.

Classic Freestyle Competitions

A race around 3 rows of obstacles where the distance between the obstacles and their number are different. Thus, 14 obstacles with a distance of 120 cm, 20 obstacles with a distance of 80 cm and 20 obstacles with a distance of 50 cm form three rows of obstacles. Players must start their performance with the music of their choice and in harmony with it. (Music duration is between 1:45 to 2 minutes according to the competition circular which has been announced.)

Pair Classic Freestyle Competitions

Pair Classic competition is quite similar to the classic competition, with this comparison that two players perform movements around the obstacles at the same time. In pair classic competition, coordination of the two players with each other is one of the main and very important elements in getting scores. In this way, team activities are included in this sport.

As mentioned in the introduction of other fields, each specialized field has its own professional and specific skating, which is also considered in freestyle skating. Performing heavy and hard movements in which the entire weight of the player will be focused on one point of the skate shoes will require a very hard and strong skate shoes. The body of the freestyle skate shoes is very hard and strong, and the toe and ankle are completely supported by the skate shoes so that it does not cause the slightest damage or bending in the foot. The frame length of the skate shoes is smaller than the usual skate shoes and is in the form of a rocker (2 middle wheels are bigger than the front and rear wheels)

 

 

The distance between the wheels in these skate shoes is very short and this feature, along with having a rocker frame, helps a lot to improve maneuverability and does not hit obstacles while performing movements.

Freestyle can be considered as one of the least expensive skating fields and for that, a flat ground, a number of obstacles and specialized standard skate shoes are enough.

In this section, we want to know a little more about professional skate shoes in the field of freestyle skating.

As you know, there are various free style skate shoes with many familiar and unfamiliar brands in the market, and in this section, we will introduce the features of good skate shoes in the market.

The quality and price of skate shoes are important characteristics for respectable families when buying specialized freestyle skates, but for the coaches of this field, the form of skate shoes and the type of skate boot design are important.

The first characteristic for a good professional freestyle skate shoes is its low weight, if the weight of the freestyle skate shoes is not suitable and high, it will have a negative and direct effect on the performance of the movements.

By making carbon skate shoes, companies have been able to greatly reduce the weight of these skate shoes and at the same time increase the strength of them. Therefore, another characteristic of a good specialized freestyle skate shoes is that it must be made of carbon.

Another advantage of skate shoes made of carbon is that over time, they become the exact size for the feet of the player and become the shape of their feet. This process makes the player feel comfortable and makes the movements easier for the person without feeling pain in the leg.

 

Due to the high cost of skate shoes made of carbon, many people tend to buy hard skates. These skate shoes have advantages and disadvantages in comparison to those made of carbon, which we will discuss more:

Disadvantages of hard skate shoes compared to skate shoes made of carbon

1. Hard skate shoes weigh more than skate shoes made of carbon.
2. The shape of hard skate shoes is fixed and like skate shoes made of carbon, they do not take the shape and form of a player’s foot.
3. Hard skate shoes are less resistant than skate shoes made of carbon.

Advantages of hard skate shoes compared to skate shoes made of carbon

1. Hard skate shoes are much more affordable than skate shoes made of carbon.
2. They have much higher variety in terms of design and color.

One of the most important parts of freestyle skate shoes is the frame and wheels of them. We must make sure that the frame or wheel of the freestyle skate shoes is rocker. To determine if skate shoes are rocker or not, simply place the shoe on a flat surface. In rocker mode, the two middle wheels are on the ground, and the front and rear wheels of the skate shoes are slightly higher, and normally do not come into contact with a flat surface.

Skate shoes being rocker prevents the three or four wheels from touching the ground in different positions, which increases the speed of the player’s feet when performing movements between obstacles, and generally eliminates the monotony of the player’s movements and body.

As we mentioned before, the specialized field of freestyle skating has different branches, and in some of these branches, at the higher levels of that branch, the need for specialized skate shoes becomes more noticeable.

For example, the Speed Slalom branch, where players at very high speeds have to zigzag through obstacles with one foot in the shortest possible time. Professional players of this branch use three-wheeled skate shoes made of carbon to achieve the highest speed as well as performing easier slalom movements.

These skate shoes have wheels of 110 mm that are very suitable for gaining speed and in rocker mode, only two of its wheels (middle wheel and front wheel or middle wheel and rear wheel) hit the ground which increases the maneuverability of the skater.

In the battle and classic branches, due to performing different types of movements, the best skate shoes are four-wheeled ones and for skate shoes from sizes 36 to 41, 76 mm wheels should be used, and for skate shoes from size 42 and above, 80 mm wheels should be used. In all sizes, the skate must be rocker.

After all, three-wheeled skates have recently been designed, which are also suitable for the battle and classic branches, and with three wheels of 90 mm, they make the movements easier for the player.

There is no need for special skates in the free jump and free slide branches, and participants can compete in these branches with almost all kinds of skate shoes.

However, the best advice for you to buy a freestyle skate shoes is to consult with the coach and officials of the skate academy to make the best decision. Freestyle skating has a unique variety in every way, and if you are interested in progressing in it professionally, it is better to get the skate shoes you need.