The 2011–2012 figure skating season began on July 1, 2011, and ends on June 30, 2012. During this season, elite skaters competed on the ISU Championship level at the 2012 European, Four Continents, World Junior, and World Championships. They also competed in elite events such as the Grand Prix series and Junior Grand Prix series, culminating in the Grand Prix Final.
Season notes On September 26, 2011, American Brandon Mroz landed a quad Lutz in the short program at the 2011 Colorado Springs Invitational. The U.S. Figure Skating-sanctioned competition was a small non-ISU event with three men's entries, making it unclear whether the accomplishment would be recognized by the International Skating Union. In October, the ISU announced it had ratified the jump as the first quad Lutz to be performed in a sanctioned competition. World Champion Patrick Chan of Canada commented, "I don't think it can be an official ISU record until [Mroz] has done it in an ISU event." On November 12, Mroz landed it in the short program at 2011 NHK Trophy, becoming the first skater to land it in an international competition.
Between seasons, the ISU sometimes adjusts elements' base values and/or grades of execution. On December 28, 2011, the ISU announced it had discovered that the calculation program had not been updated with a new GOE introduced in July. The ISU explained: "The calculation program used up to and including the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final had erroneously calculated the Dance result with the previous Grade of Execution (GOE) for the Combination Lift, which was upgraded with ISU Communication 1677 in July 2011." The error affected the free dance results at the Grand Prix Final, with Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir winning the segment instead of Meryl Davis and Charlie White, however, Davis and White remained in first place overall due to their lead from the short dance.
In December 2011, the International Skating Union released details of the team figure skating event at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Age eligibility Skaters competing on the junior level were required to be at least 13 but not 19 – or 21 for male pair skaters and ice dancers – before July 1, 2011. Those who had turned 14 were eligible for the senior Grand Prix series and senior B internationals. Those who turned 15 before July 1, 2011 were also eligible for the senior World, European, and Four Continents Championships.
Date of birth Eligibility Born before July 1, 1998 Eligible for Junior Grand Prix Born before July 1, 1997 Eligible for senior Grand Prix series, senior B internationals Born before July 1, 1996 Eligible for senior Worlds, Europeans, Four Continents Born before July 1, 1992 Not eligible for junior events (except male pair skaters and ice dancers) Born before July 1, 1990 Male pair skaters and ice dancers not eligible for junior events Rules may not apply to non-ISU events such as national championships
Minimum scores Minimum score requirements were added to the senior Grand Prix series, following on requirements introduced in the previous season to the European, Four Continents, and World Championships. The Grand Prix minimums were set at two-thirds of the top scores at the 2011 World Championships. Prior to competing in a senior Grand Prix event, skaters were required to have earned the following:
Discipline Minimum Men 168.60 Ladies 117.48 Pairs 130.71 Ice dance 111.15 Skaters who had not earned the minimums in the previous season could attempt to do so at: 2011 Nebelhorn Trophy 2011 Ondrej Nepela Memorial 2011 Finlandia Trophy 2011 Coupe de Nice 2011 Ice Challenge 2011 NRW Ice Dance Trophy.
The International Skating Union decided minimums were not required for "host picks", i.e. Canadians Adriana DeSanctis and Elladj Balde were allowed to compete at their home country's event, 2011 Skate Canada, despite failing to reach the minimums at the 2011 Nebelhorn Trophy.
Changes Partnership changes Date Skaters Type Notes July 27, 2011 Ice dance Formed For Canada August 22, 2011 September 27, 2011 Dissolved Andreev retired. September 27, 2011 October 3, 2011 Formed For Slovakia November 2011 For the Czech Republic November 19, 2011 Pairs January 2012 Dissolved Bidař with Martina Boček February 2012 Ice dance Teamed up again in July 2012 February 6, 2012 February 15, 2012 Pairs February 24, 2012 March 19, 2012 Ice dance Formed Russian/Georgian team to represent Georgia. March 21, 2012 Pairs Dissolved Shevchuk with Natalia Mitina March 21, 2012 March 22, 2012 Formed March 2012 Dissolved March 23, 2012 Formed March 2012 Ice dance Dissolved Frolenkova with Vitali Nikiforov Pairs April 2012 Formed April 10, 2012 Dissolved Evora retired. April 2012 Ice dance April 27, 2012 April 30, 2012 Formed April 30, 2012 Pairs Dissolved May 4, 2012 Formed May 6, 2012 Dissolved Zhang Hao with Peng Cheng; Zhang Dan retired. May 2012 Ice dance Formed Split in June 2012 June 2012 Dissolved July 5, 2012 Pairs July 23, 2012 Formed Russian/French team; did not officially represent a country competitively.
Coaching changes Discipline Announced Skater(s) From To Ladies November 2011 Cynthia Phaneuf Annie Barabé, Sophie Richard Brian Orser Ice dance December 2011 Sara Hurtado / Adria Diaz John Dunn Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon Ice dance February 18, 2012 Ksenia Monko / Kirill Khaliavin Elena Kustarova, Svetlana Alexeeva Alexander Zhulin, Oleg Volkov Ice dance January 2012 Lorenza Alessandrini / Simone Vaturi Roberto Pelizzola, Nicoletta Lunghi Pasquale Camerlengo, Massimo Scali, Anjelika Krylova Ladies April 2012 Mirai Nagasu Frank Carroll Wendy Olson Men April 2012 Michal Březina Petr Starec, Karel Fajfr Viktor Petrenko Men April 16, 2012 Patrick Chan Christy Krall Ice dance April 25, 2012 Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev Elena Kustarova, Svetlana Alexeeva Alexander Zhulin, Oleg Volkov Men April 25, 2012 Yuzuru Hanyu Nanami Abe Brian Orser Ice dance June 4, 2012 Meryl Davis / Charlie White Maia Shibutani / Alex Shibutani Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir Igor Shpilband Continued with Marina Zueva Ice dance June 12, 2012 Madison Chock / Evan Bates Marina Zueva Continued with Igor Shpilband Ice dance June 14, 2012 Isabella Tobias / Deividas Stagniunas Marina Zueva Continued with Igor Shpilband Men June 15, 2012 Daisuke Takahashi Not applicable Continued with Utako Nagamitsu as primary coach Nikolai Morozov as advisory coach Ice dance June 2012 Alexandra Paul / Mitchell Islam David Islam, Kelly Johnson, Tyler Myles Pasquale Camerlengo, Anjelika Krylova
Retirements Discipline Announced Skater(s) Ladies March 25, 2012 Laura Lepistö Men April 2, 2012 Kevin van der Perren Men June 15, 2012 Samuel Contesti
Competitions The following competitions were scheduled in the 2011–2012 figure skating season. Key OlympicsISU ChampionshipsGrand PrixOther internationalNationals