Salchow jump

The Salchow jump is an edge jump in figure skating. It was named after its inventor, Ulrich Salchow, in 1909. The Salchow is accomplished with a takeoff from the back inside edge of one foot and a landing on the back outside edge of the opposite foot. It is "usually the first jump that skaters learn to double, and the first or second to triple".^[1] Timing is critical because both the takeoff and landing must be on the backward edge. A Salchow is deemed cheated if the skate blade starts to turn forward before the takeoff, or if it has not turned completely backward when the skater lands back on the ice.^[1]

Figure skating element
Element name	Salchow jump
Scoring abbreviation	S
Element type	Jump
Take-off edge	Back inside
Landing edge	Back outside
Inventor	Ulrich Salchow

In competitions, the base value of a single Salchow is 0.40, for a double Salchow it is 1.30, for a triple 4.30, 9.70 for a quadruple, and 14 for a quintuple.^[2]

History

Ulrich Salchow, inventor of the Salchow jump

The Salchow jump was named after its inventor, Swedish world champion Ulrich Salchow in 1909.^[3][4] According to writer Ellyn Kestnbaum, American skater Theresa Weld "received reprimands" at the 1920 Olympics "for performing a single Salchow jump because her skirt would fly up to her knees, creating an image deemed too risque".^[5][6]

Firsts

Abbr.	Jump element	Skater	Nation	Event	Ref.
2S	Double Salchow (women's)	Cecilia Colledge	Great Britain	1936 European Championships	[7]
3S	Triple Salchow (men's)	Ronald Robertson	United States	1955 World Championships	[8]
	Triple Salchow (women's)	Petra Burka	Canada	1962 Canadian Championships	[8][a]
		Helli Sengstschmid	Austria	1961 European Championships	[8]
		Jana Mrázková	Czech Republic		[8]
4S	Quadruple Salchow (men's)	Timothy Goebel	United States	1997–98 Junior Grand Prix Final	[8]
	Quadruple Salchow (women's)	Miki Ando	Japan	2002–03 Junior Grand Prix Final	[8]

Japanese figure skater Miki Ando (2009)

Multiple quadruple Salchows in one program

Description	Skater	Nation	Event	Ref.
Quad Salchow w/quad toe loop jump (male's)	Ilia Klimkin	Russia	1999 Nebelhorn Trophy	[8]
Quad Salchow w/quad toe loop (women's)	Alexandra Trusova	Russia	2018 World Junior Championships	[8]
Two quad Salchows in combination with the triple and quadruple toe loop (men's)	Timothy Goebel	United States	1999 Skate America	[8]
Four quad jumps in the same program: Two quad Salchows, one in combination with the double toe loop; the quadruple toe loop in combination with the double toe loop; and the quadruple toe loop (men's)	Nathan Chen	United States	2016 U.S. Championships	[9]
Four quad jumps in the same program: Quad Salchow, quad Lutz, quad toe loop jump-triple toe loop, quad toe loop-Euler-triple Salchow (women's)	Alexandra Trusova	Russia	2019 Japan Open	[9]
Five quad jumps in the same program: the quad Salchow; the quad Lutz jump in combination with the triple toe; the quadruple flip jump; the quadruple toe in combination with the double toe and double loop; and the quadruple toe (men's)	Nathan Chen	United States	2017 U.S. Championships 2017 Four Continents Championships	[9]
Throw quad Salchow (pair skating)	Tiffany Vise and Derek Trent	United States	2007 Trophee Eric Bompard	[9]

Execution

As defined by the ISU, the Salchow jump is an edge jump. Its takeoff is made from the back inside edge of one foot and its landing is made on the back outside edge of the opposite foot.^[3] The skater enters into the jump with a backward approach, launches it using their inside edge, and lands on the opposite outside edge.^[10] The free leg is extended behind the skater and swings toward the front as they spring into the air while, at the same time, drawing in their arms.^[11] Skaters do not have to draw in their arms or free leg close to their bodies while performing the single Salchow because bringing the free side of their bodies forward and around the opposite side of their bodies after they turn towards the back, is enough to produce the necessary rotation.^[1]

The rotation in the air, with respect to a fixed point, is slightly less than 360 degrees because the takeoff edge curves in the same direction as the rotation in the air. When a skater pulls the arms into their body and/or brings their free leg inward, more rotations can be performed; for this reason, the Salchow is "usually the first jump that skaters learn to double, and the first or second to triple".^[1] As U.S. Figure Skating states, however, "timing is critical"^[11] because both the takeoff and landing must be on the backward edge.

Gallery

• 
  Sarah Isabella Bardua begins the take-off of a Salchow
• 
  Keiji Tanaka begins the take-off of a Salchow
• 
  Roman Sadovsky begins the take-off of a Salchow
• 
  Amélie Lacoste landing

Footnotes

1. Not definitely established. A report from the 1961 European Championships stated that Helli Sengstschmid from Austria and Jana Mrazkova from Czechoslovakia had already successfully landed a triple Salchow.