A number of issues arose concerning the ISU All Final System which is used on Star Class Series. This document is meant to point out the problems and to suggest a solution for each of those problems. We divided the documents in two parts. A part specifically related to the all final system used at Star Class competitions last year and a part concerning more general problems which are more fundamental, but also need attention in our opinion.

The most important thing for us is that we reach a simple, yet fair system that is applied everywhere in the same way. The solutions presented in this document mainly originate from discussions with West-European coaches during the StarClass events.

1. Specific problems with the current system

1. Drawing in qualification rounds

During the first 5 StarClass competitions the draw of qualification round past the heats was done by using the distance classification instead of the overall classification. Since the top ranked skaters get the easiest heats, their time is usually too slow to be on top of the distance qualification. Meaning, they end up in a hard quarter final. We saw it multiple times this season where the top 3 skaters (from the overall classification) end up in the same quarter final and therefore one is missing qualification and therefore also his chance to defend the podium.

Solution:

• 1st distance: distance classification = overall classification
• 2nd distance: use distance classification (shortest distance, time represent the skill of the skaters)
• 3rd distance: use overall classification (longer distance, slower times, allow the top skaters to make it until the final by avoiding each other)
• Alternative: use overall classification everywhere, although this has the disadvantage that skaters who don’t perform well on the first distance due to penalty or fall are breaking the progression for other skaters.

2. Progression schedule

On the first StarClass it was told that we would get progression schedules that show how to progress to each final (group). We did get those, but during competition, they were changed too often. Contradictory communication on both paper and SOLCoach added to the confusion. In our opinion progression schedules should be fixed at the start of the competition or published every round too avoid multiple versions.

Solution:

If you have X skaters for distance Y and category Z, there should be a lookup table in which the competitor steward can find the right progression schedule. This lookup table should be made as such that if some skaters drop out, the whole progression schedule should not be redone. That way every competitor steward would follow the same progression schedule for the same number of skaters and make it more transparent for us.

3. Best skater vs fastest skater

Third times are no longer a thing past the heats. The best third skater qualifies according to the distance classification. The more rounds there are with a subset of third skaters qualifying the more complicated this becomes. Since distance classification is based on places from previous rounds and only when that is equal, the fastest time in any of those rounds is used. Obvious problems arise with such system:

• ADV skaters are in a disadvantage because their position is kept (and they usually have a worse position than regular qualified skaters for that round, so they cannot proceed with third places to the next round).
• Fallen skaters who obtained a bad ranking or a bad time have a big disadvantage during the rest of the distance.
• Skaters who did not obtain a time for any reason (fall, no time equipment, too many laps, too few laps) break the system, not only in the current qualification round, but also in subsequent ones.

Solution:

The whole best skater idea is nice in theory, but as coaches and athletes want to know what they are at, the third time system is much more transparent.

4. Number of skaters progressing

This season we saw all kinds of qualification schedules which exceeded anyone’s imagination at some points. For instance, progression of 21 skaters in the first round of a 1500m, only to race 3×7 and then progress them further to finals of 6 skaters. The remaining 3 skaters who successfully qualified in the first round are send to the D-final where they had to skate with the best skaters of the non-qualifying group in the heats. This makes no sense, it creates dangerous situations where more than 7 skaters will skate because of advancements and it creates confusion since we are used that once you qualify for a higher group, you can’t be kicked back by skating bad, only by penalties.

Solution:

Only qualify the number of skaters needed for direct qualification to the subsequent finals.

5. Penalty/ADV fixed number of skaters in finals

In every round, the number of skaters in a certain group is fixed using the progression schedule (not taking into account ADV). People who get a penalty are send to a lower group and their place (if any) is filled up with the best skater from the lower group.

That all goes well, until the ADV happen. In the next round of an advancement the extra skater(s) are allowed as part of this group, but in the subsequent round, the skaters that are too many are send to the group just beneath it, creating problems of each own. This skater could kick out the last skater from this group to an even lower group, although that skater had nothing to do with anything.

Solution:

ADV happen. There is no elegant solution to the problem except for athletes following the regulations more strictly. Let ADV be. If you have too many skaters in a group, so be it. Have the race with an extra skater. Penalties in the higher group solve the problem partially because they are send down to the lower group and if there were too many skaters, no skater is added to the higher group again. But also in this lower group, the one that was send down should not be kicking anyone out of that group, it should just be an extra skater, just like it was an extra skater in the highest group.

In case of penalties when the number of skaters is according to the progression schedule, we understand that filling up by the best skaters of the lower group makes sense to avoid dangerous races with too many skaters.

6. Number of skaters in a race within the same distance

Please keep the number of skaters constant in every round of the same distance. Sure it could vary one skater, but avoid qualification races with 4 and having 6 skaters in a final as happened in Bergamo. There should be strived to the same amount of skater for every final. A, B, C finals. It makes the progression schedule more logical and more transparent for everyone.

2. Other problems that need attention

1. Drawing of the heats

Currently based on the overall classifications, which has been the case for years. Big drawback of this system: fast skaters who fall or got a penalty end up in the back of the pack using the overall classification after one distance. In the second distance they get a heavy heat (or maybe not for them, but another skater is kicked out of the qualifying position).

Solution:

Since World Cup ranking does not exist, use times on 500m and 1000m in order to make fair heats. For instance: use 1000m best times for 1000m and 1500m in the first round and 500m best time for the 500m. Best times of the distance at hand could be used, but we do not really see the point for longer distances as the times do not represent the skill of the skater necessarily.

2. DNS – big sanctions in case of lack of excuse

There are very big sanctions for athletes missing their race. If a skater does not show up for his race in the heatbox on time, he is excluded for the rest of the competition. Why? All athletes come to race and a misreading of the time schedule should not have such big consequences. Coming to a competitions costs a lot of money. They only get a limited number of races, so don’t take those chances away… By the way, for a progression schedule to work, you need all skaters in all distances and every round!

3. DNF makes no sense

Did not finish is given to athletes who cannot or do not make it to the finish line. After a fall, athletes are supposed to finish their race, but for safety reasons they sometimes better don’t. From falling to the head, they can get disoriented and become a real danger for the other skaters. In such case it is much safer to stay in the middle of the track until all skaters are finished. However, not finishing your race in the current system awards you no points (in A or B final). That means that if athlete A performs a bad overtaking action on athlete B and athlete B ends up in the padding, despite the penalty for athlete A, athlete B will not be awarded any final points of he does not finish the race, while in case of an A final, athlete A will still get the same number of points as the athlete winning the B final. Where is the fairness in that?

Solution:

Give no time instead of DNF and award the final points where applicable.

4. Starting positions

Starting positions are currently based on two rules:

• Heats: random
• Other rounds: time from previous round

Especially for the 500m, we see that the starting position matters. However, in case of a fall you have a bad time and end up in last starting position in most cases.

Solution:

Use the fastest time on the distance instead of the last round. Fastest times are also usually not skated in the semi final, but in the heats or quarter final. Why not reward those skaters who go all out from the first round?

5. Stopping the race in case of danger

Last but not least, we want to stress the importance of stopping the race if a skater has fallen and is lying in a dangerous place on the track while the other skaters are continuing their race. Unfortunately, this season, we saw very dangerous situations were the chief referee waited more than 3 rounds or did not even stop the race at all when there was clearly a dangerous situation occurring.

Solution:

Stop the race when a skater does not move within the time the other skaters lap him/her.

This might raise another issue: who can restart a race?

• In case the skater could not get up because he/she is stuck under the padding -> allow restart
• A skater that does not move until the race is stopped -> should leave the race and should get a no time instead of DNS/DNF (see 2.3)
• Skaters that fell but got up before the end of the race, are allowed to restart.
• Skaters that obtained a penalty before the race was stopped should also be removed from the ice.

By West-European coaches