what are twizzles in ice skating

Twizzles are a traveling spin on one foot where the skater rotates rapidly while gliding across the ice, either forward or backward, instead of spinning in one spot.

What a twizzle actually is

• Technically, a twizzle is defined as a “traveling turn on one foot with one or more rotations, done in a continuous, uninterrupted motion”.

• The skater stays on one foot, keeps moving across the ice, and does fast, repeated turns without pausing or turning it into a stationary spin.

• Unlike a spin, if the skater stops traveling and just rotates in place, it’s no longer counted as a twizzle but as a spin and won’t get credit as a twizzle in competition.

Imagine a skater gliding down the rink like a moving top: they’re not stuck in one place, but spinning and sliding at the same time—that’s the basic idea of a twizzle.

Where you see twizzles in skating

• Twizzles show up in all disciplines (singles, pairs, and ice dance), but they are most famous and heavily emphasized in ice dance.

• In ice dance, partners perform sets of twizzles side‑by‑side and are judged on how synchronized, difficult, and clean they are.

• Modern ice dance rules give higher levels and points when skaters add difficulty like more rotations, tricky entry edges, arm variations, or changes of position while maintaining control.

Fans often talk about “twizzle sections” in rhythm dance or free dance programs because they can decide how strong a team looks technically.

Why twizzles are a big deal

• Twizzles are considered one of the hardest non-jump elements in figure skating footwork because they demand balance, edge control, and precise body alignment while moving at speed.

• American ice dancers (like Alex Shibutani) have called them the “quads of ice dance” , comparing their importance and difficulty to quadruple jumps in singles skating.

• Small mistakes—like tapping the free foot down, catching a toe pick, or losing the clean edge—can downgrade the level or cause big point losses.

A good twizzle sequence looks effortless and smooth; a bad one stands out immediately, which is why commentators and fans obsess over them during big events.

How a twizzle works (in simple terms)

• The skater uses a specific edge on the blade to start: forward inside, forward outside, backward inside, or backward outside.

• They rotate quickly while keeping their weight centered over the skating foot and controlling their free leg and upper body so the rotation stays aligned and traveling straight (or along a chosen curve).

• After finishing the rotations, the free foot comes back beside the skating foot to flow smoothly into the next step or element.

In ice dance, both partners must do at least one full rotation on one foot at the same time for each twizzle to count in a synchronized or sequential twizzle set.

Quick FAQ style recap

• What are twizzles in ice skating?
  Traveling one‑foot turns with fast, continuous rotations while moving across the ice.

• Are they just spins?
  No. Spins stay mostly in one spot; twizzles travel while rotating.

• Why do commentators make a fuss about them?
  Because they’re technically demanding, easy to mess up, and heavily scored, especially in ice dance.

• Why do fans call them “quads of ice dance”?
  They’re a high‑risk, high‑reward element that showcases top technical skill, similar to how quadruple jumps function in other disciplines.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.