The International Skating Union says the new age limit will protect young skaters from 'burnout, disordered eating, and long-term consequences of injury', but the move has been criticised by Russia.
Figure skaters at the 2026 Olympics will be required to be at least 17 years old following a ruling aimed at protecting child skaters from a repeat of the controversy that engulfed Russia's 15-year-old Kamila Valieva at the Beijing Games.The ISU said the rule would protect from burnout, disordered eating and injuryThe new age limit for figure skaters at senior international events was passed on Tuesday by the International Skating Union in a 110-16 vote.
The youngest women's champions have been Germany's Maxi Herber, who won in pairs in 1936 at the age of 15 years and 128 days, Russia's Yulia Lipnitskaya, who won in the team event in Sochi in 2014 at 15 years and 249 days, and American Tara Lipinski, who took the singles gold medal in Pyeongchang four years later while aged 15 years and 255 days.
The ISU said the new rule was "for the sake of protecting the physical and mental health and emotional wellbeing of the skaters". However, her main routine was filled with errors and she dropped to fourth place. She was then criticised rink-side by her coach, Eteri Tutberidze.The ISU drafted an age-limit proposal saying "burnout, disordered eating, and long-term consequences of injury" were a risk to young teenage skaters, who are pushed to perform more quadruple jumps.
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