Figure Skating and Backflips

Backflips on ice. The most controversial and difficult move in the history of figure skating. A move done by those most daring. In fact, it was so concerning that it was banned for decades in the 1900s. Skaters could face penalties as severe as disqualification for performing the dangerous move on ice. And though the backflip was illegal until 1976, that did not stop a certain someone from making a daring decision.

That certain someone I am referring to is Surya Bonaly. A retired figure skater from Nice, France. An audacious athlete, breaking barriers and making history in the world of figure skating, a very notable career. She succeeded in doing a backflip, landing on one blade during the 1998 Winter Olympics. She incorporated the move throughout her career countless times.

Surya isn’t the only athlete to succeed at performing the backflip. As the move has become more popular to add to skaters’ routines, people like Ilia Malinin, Nathan Chen, and Siao Him Fa have done so. And if jumping off the ice to do full rotations in the air seemed daunting, backflips could
cause nausea. First off, concerning the mind, there’s like a mental rift you have to cross without a bridge. Second, you have to weigh the risks. Third, you have to be courageous. It’s not something anyone can do.

Watching a backflip being per-
formed on ice was shocking, scary, and stunning. The first time I ever saw the movie performed was by Nathan Chen during the Stars on Ice tour in Boston, Massachusetts, in 2023. I did not expect to see a backflip during the show, much less on ice. This was when I

was ignorant of the backflip existing as a figure skating move. Since then, I am still scared when seeing it done, but praying no person is injured. If there’s something we can all agree on, it’s that we don’t want to watch anybody possibly break any bones. But I believe these athletes know what they’re doing and must be confident in their abilities to take risks that they believe are worth taking. To set new records and challenge themselves by doing what hasn’t been done before. It’s exciting to set a new bar while aiming to reach for the one higher than it.

Photo Credits: Eric Feferberg/AFP via Getty Images