Some scientists think that the human body is incapable of surpassing the quadruple jump, currently considered the most challenging figure-skating move
By Laura Poppick and LiveScience
For a sport judged partially on style, figure skating has not changed much with the times: The billowing, sequined costumes look the same as they have for decades, the classical music never goes in or out of style, and the jumps (which actually determine the score) have more or less stayed the same.
While the unwavering costume and music choices may be the product of tradition, the consistency in jumps through the years has more to do with the physical limits of the human body. And given those limits, fans shouldn't expect moves to change much in the future either, said Tom Zakrajsek, a world and Olympic figure-skating coach based in Colorado Springs, Colo., who will head to Sochi this Thursday (Feb. 6) to coach Italian Men's Competitor Paul Bonifacio Parkinson.
Zakrajsek said the most challenging figure-skating move currently performed in Olympic competition is the quadruple jump, or four spins in midair. The next plausible step above that would be a five-spin jump, or quintuple, which has yet to be achieved and would require skaters to jump higher and stay in the air longer than they do for four spins. Skaters typically spend between 0.65 and 0.70 seconds in the air for jumps, and fitting in an extra spin would require them to extend that time to between 0.72 and 0.75 seconds, Zakrajsek said.
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