Australia has been involved Short Track Speed Skating for many years. Australia's first Winter Olympic Gold

medal was won at the Salt Lake 2002 Winter Olympic Games by Steven Bradbury. Australia also won its first

Winter Olympic medal at the Lillehammer1994 Winter Olympic Games with a Bronze medal in the 5000m Relay

with Richard Nizelski, Kieran Hansen, Andrew Murtha and Steven Bradbury. Australia sends teams to ISU World

Cup events each season. We also send Junior teams to ISU competitions .

Information on events and results can be seen on this web site below:

www.isu.org
www.cyberscoreboard.com

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Age - Individual Competitions - Relay - Individual vs. Team Comps - Australian events - Map of ice

rink



Imagine yourself tearing across a sheet of ice at 50 km/hour (30ish mph) on long blades a millimetre wide. A

sharp curve looms ahead. Several other skaters are attempting to cut you off and leave you behind in a cloud

of ice shards. If you crave speed, a little danger, and a lot of strategy, then welcome to the thrill and spectacle

of Short Track Speed Skating.



Short Track Speed Skating is a different sport from long track. Long Track skaters race the clock. In Short Track,

four to six skaters race each other to the finish line, jockeying for position while maintaining speed and balance.

Short Track skaters wear hard-shelled helmets, gloves, neck guards, knee and shin pads to protect themselves

from spills. The walls of the rink are coved in safety mats to provide protection for the skaters.

The short track speed skating events are constructed in heats where skaters are eliminated and the heat

winner's are advanced to the next round, eventually leaving four or six skaters who compete in a final.

ISU events are run over 500m 1000m 1500m and 3000m and relay events in 3000m and 5000m more

information can be found on the ISU web site. www.isu.org.

In Australia we also have events for younger skaters. The track on the ice is 111m and there are from 5 to 7

tracks that can be laid out on the ice depending on the rink. This allows the skaters to race on new ice every

couple of races. The ice is then recut by machine so skaters can then use the same tracks again and again.

All ages can skate Boys and Girls.
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Age Divisions are worked on the 1st of July, this means if your age at the 1st of July is 14 then you will be a

Sub junior. if you turn 15 on the 30th of June you will be in the Junior Division.

Individual Competitions
500 meters: Being the shortest race, this is an all out sprint from beginning to end. Skaters rip around the track

4.5 times. Here is where the most false starts occur. The skaters' anticipation for that crucial good start may

throw them off before the starting gun is fired.


1000 meters: In this 9 lap race, strategy is important. Skaters must position and pace themselves to be in a

good standing for the final laps. The last few laps turn into a full out sprint to the finish line.


1500 meters: At this longer distance, 13.5 laps are required to finish the race. Again, strategy is very important,

but so is stamina. This race consists of six skaters per heat while the 500 and 1000 meter races have only four

per heat.


3000 meters: This race is saved for last. The top eight skaters in the competition thus far are the only ones who

advance to this gruelling 27 lap race. The skaters will start out slow and tactically position themselves

throughout the race. Strategy continues to play a crucial role in this long-distance race. BACK TO LINKS

Relay Competitions
The relay is so much fun to watch! This race consists of (usually) four teams. Four skaters represent each team.

Each skater from each team must take at least one turn performing a 1.5 lap sprint around the track. The

skater will then push off his/her next team-mate, transferring the momentum onto the next skater. This

continues for a total of 27 laps in the women's relay and 45 laps for the men's. The skaters who are waiting

their turn wait in the centre of the track. The final two laps must be completed by the same skater. With so

many skaters on the ice at once, it is an exciting race to see. BACK TO LINKS

Individual versus Team Competitions
Most of the competitions are individual competitions. The 500, 1000, 1500, and 3000 meter events are raced

on an individual level where skaters are racing for their own best times and generating points for themselves,

not for the overall team. Skaters from the same country may end up racing each other for an individual medal.

The point system for these competitions is: 34 pts for first place, 21 for second, 13 for third, 8 for fourth, 5 for

fifth, 3 for sixth, 0 if DQ. These points are called Seeding Points and are used to determine the overall scores.

The relay is scored the same way, but these points determine team rankings, not individual.

There is also a team competition where skaters earn points for their team/country. The point system is quite

different for this one. In each race first place gets 5 points, 3 points for second place, 2 for third, and 1 for

fourth. If a skater is disqualified during the race, they don't get any points for that race. Races are performed at

the typical distances of 500, 1000, and 3000 meters. The team competition does not have a 1500m distance.

Relays are also part of the team competition. Here, the first place team receives 10 points, 6 for second, 4 for

third, and 2 for forth. The team with the most points wins and a lot of times the relay is the determining factor!

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