The other five jumps take off while skating backward. Only the Axel takes off facing forward.
All six jumps land facing backward. The Axel takes off facing forward, so it has half a rotation more than the others. A double Axel is 2.5 rotations.
Q2 — Toe pick2
Does it take off fromthe toe pick or the edge?
In a toe jump (toe loop, flip and Lutz), the skater reaches one leg back and plants its toe pick, the teeth at the front of the blade, in the ice to jump. In an edge jump (Salchow and loop, plus the Axel, which takes off facing forward), the skater takes off from the edge without the toe pick.
Q3 — Which toe3
Planting the left toe pickmeans a toe loop.
In a toe loop, the skater glides in on the right foot and plants the left toe pick to take off. In a flip and a Lutz, the skater glides in on the left foot and plants the right toe pick. The toe pick is on the opposite foot.
A toe loop lands on the same right foot the skater glides in on.
Q4 — Edge4
The edge decides:inside for a flip,outside for a Lutz.
The two jumps that plant the right toe pick differ in which way the edge of the left foot, the takeoff foot, tilts. A flip takes off from the inside edge (the big-toe side), and a Lutz from the outside edge (the little-toe side). If the edge of a Lutz tilts to the inside, it is a takeoff error (an edge error), and the base value goes down.
Q4 — Continued
Only the Lutz rotatesagainst its entry curve.
A Lutz takes off from the outside edge, so it rotates in the direction opposite to the entry curve, the curve it skated in on.
FlipInside edge
LutzAgainst the curve
Rotation: both counterclockwise
Against the entry curveDotted line = straight
Q5 — Free leg5
A swinging right legmeans a Salchow,crossed legsmean a loop.
The two edge jumps differ in how the legs are used. In a Salchow, the skater takes off from the left foot and swings the right leg up. In a loop, the skater jumps off the right foot alone, from a position with the feet crossed.
The key
The six takeoffs.
Look closely at the takeoff and you can tell which jump it is.
Did it take off facing forward?YesAxel
Did it take off from the toe pick?
YesWhich toe pick?LeftToe loop
RightWhich edge is the left foot on?InsideFlipOutsideLutz
NoWhat does the leg do?Swings upSalchowStays crossedLoop
Names
A jump’s name isits rotations plus its kind.
On a broadcast, a jump is named by its number of rotations followed by its kind, as in “triple Lutz” or “quad toe loop”. Two, three and four rotations are called double, triple and quad.
The Axel has half a rotation more, so a double Axel is 2.5 rotations and a triple Axel is 3.5.
3 rotations+Lutz= triple Lutz
4 rotations+Toe loop= quad toe loop
double+Axel= 2.5 rotations
Try it
Can you tell allsix jumps apart?
Use the five ways of telling jumps apart that you have just seen, and name the jump in each clip.
Which jump is it?
How to tell
Result
All the jumps are doubles (2 rotations).Skater C’s jumps, converted from the FS-Jump3D motion-capture data (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
Axel
The only one of the six jumps that takes off facing forward. The skater swings the right leg up and through to jump, and lands facing backward, so the jump has half a rotation more than the others. All six jumps end the same way: a landing on the right foot, facing backward.
Step forward,then jump facing ahead.
The skater glides backward, steps forward onto the left foot, and swings the right leg through to jump. The Axel is the only jump that takes off facing forward, and because the skater can see what lies ahead, it is said to feel frightening in a different way from the other jumps.
Short Program or Free Skate,an Axel is required.
In the Short Program, every skater must jump either a double Axel (2.5 rotations) or a triple Axel (3.5 rotations). In the Free Skate, too, one of the jumps has to be an Axel.
Named after Axel Paulsen of Norway, who first performed it in Vienna in 1882.
Sources
Olympics.com (Japanese edition), “Figure skating jump types and their difficulty, explained one by one” (March 8, 2025), U.S. Figure Skating, “Identifying Jumps”, Olympics.com, “What’s the difference between the figure skating jumps” (February 3, 2022), THE ANSWER (Japanese), “Why Japanese fans are drawn to the triple Axel” (March 23, 2021), ISU Technical Panel Handbook Single Skating 2026-2027, ISU Figure Skating Media Guide 2025/26 Motion: converted from Skater C’s jumps in the motion-capture data FS-Jump3D (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). It shows how the movements described here look in practice.
Lutz
The skater glides backward on the outside edge of the left foot and jumps by planting the right toe pick (the teeth at the front of the blade) in the ice. The jump rotates the opposite way to the curve of the approach.
A long glide backwardleads into the jump.
This jump often follows a long, diagonal glide backward toward a corner of the rink. In recent years, though, some skaters jump straight out of steps, so it has become harder to tell the jump by its approach alone.
The left foot’s edgeis the outside edge.
The skater keeps the edge of the left takeoff foot tilted to the outside (the little-toe side) and jumps by planting the right toe pick. Because the jump turns against the curve on an outside edge, the speed of the glide cannot be put into the rotation. It is said to be the hardest jump after the Axel. The tilt in the diagram is one measured example.
Compare
Its edge is the oppositeof the flip’s.
Both jumps glide on the left foot and take off by planting the right toe pick. The flip takes off from the inside edge; the Lutz, from the outside edge.
InsideOutsideFlip, left footInside edgeInsideOutsideLutz, left footOutside edge
Rotation runsagainst the curve.
Seen from diagonally above, the curve of the glide and the rotation of the body in the air go in opposite directions.
An inward tilt of the edgelowers the score.
If the edge tilts inward at takeoff (informally, a “flutz”), an “e” is added on the score sheet and the base value goes down. If the edge is unclear, a “!” is added instead. The officials are allowed to check the tilt of the edge in slow-motion replay.
It is said to have begun in 1913, when Alois Lutz of Austria performed it.
Sources
Olympics.com (Japanese edition), “Figure skating jump types and their difficulty, explained one by one” (March 8, 2025), U.S. Figure Skating, “Identifying Jumps”, THE ANSWER (Japanese), “How to tell figure skating jumps apart: making the six types easy to understand, even for beginners” (February 3, 2022), ISU, “Figure Skating Jumps Explained” (July 29, 2026), Seiko HEART BEAT Magazine (Japanese), “Knowledge that makes watching more fun: figure skating, jumps edition” (December 15, 2021), Jiji.com (Japanese), “Figure skating viewing course: jumps edition”, ISU Technical Panel Handbook Single Skating 2026-2027, ISU Figure Skating Media Guide 2025/26 Motion: converted from Skater C’s jumps in the motion-capture data FS-Jump3D (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). It shows how the movements described here look in practice.
Flip
A jump that takes off backward. The skater rides the inside edge of the left foot and jumps by planting the right toe pick (the teeth at the front of the blade) in the ice.
Turn around,then jump.
The skater glides forward, turns to face backward just before the jump (for example with a three-turn, a turn made on one foot), and plants the right toe pick straight away. The telltale sign is that the skater seems to look back over the shoulder while jumping.
The left foot’s edgeis the inside edge.
The edge of the left takeoff foot is the inside edge (the big-toe side). The skater glides almost straight into the takeoff and does not tilt the edge deeply. The difficulty is timing the toe-pick plant while holding that unstable inside edge. The tilt in the diagram is one measured example.
Compare
Its edge is the oppositeof the Lutz’s.
Both jumps glide on the left foot and take off by planting the right toe pick. The flip takes off from the inside edge; the Lutz, from the outside edge.
InsideOutsideFlip, left footInside edgeInsideOutsideLutz, left footOutside edge
An outward tilt of the edgelowers the score.
As with the Lutz, the tilt of the edge at takeoff is judged. If it tilts outward, an “e” or a “!” is added.
Who invented it is not known. It is sometimes credited to Bruce Mapes.
Sources
Olympics.com (Japanese edition), “Figure skating jump types and their difficulty, explained one by one” (March 8, 2025), U.S. Figure Skating, “Identifying Jumps”, Number Web (Japanese), “Jumps explained with illustrations: the figure skating questions you want answered” (February 7, 2014), Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC), “Skating / Figure Skating” (Japanese), THE ANSWER (Japanese), “How to tell figure skating jumps apart: making the six types easy to understand, even for beginners” (February 3, 2022), Wikipedia, English edition (one article per jump), ISU, “Figure Skating Jumps Explained” (July 29, 2026), ISU Technical Panel Handbook Single Skating 2026-2027, ISU Figure Skating Media Guide 2025/26 Motion: converted from Skater C’s jumps in the motion-capture data FS-Jump3D (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). It shows how the movements described here look in practice.
Toe loop
The skater glides backward on the right foot and jumps by planting the toe pick (the teeth at the front of the blade) of the left foot in the ice. The landing is on the right foot as well.
It takes offfrom the left toe pick.
The skater plants the left toe pick in the ice and uses that push to jump. Because the toe pick helps, it is considered the easiest of the six jumps.
Often the second jumpof a combination.
It is the jump most often used as the second jump of a jump combination, in which two jumps are done in a row. It is often performed as a quad, too. If a skater plants a toe pick for the second jump, it is most likely a toe loop.
The toe loop is considered a jump whose takeoff is easy to cheat. If the skater clearly takes off facing forward, it is treated as a jump well short of full rotation (a downgrade, marked “<<” on the score sheet). This call is made on normal-speed replay.
It began in the 1920s, when Bruce Mapes of the United States performed it.
Sources
Olympics.com (Japanese edition), “Figure skating jump types and their difficulty, explained one by one” (March 8, 2025), Seiko HEART BEAT Magazine (Japanese), “Knowledge that makes watching more fun: figure skating, jumps edition” (December 15, 2021), Wikipedia, English edition (one article per jump), U.S. Figure Skating, “Identifying Jumps”, Jiji.com (Japanese), “Figure skating viewing course: jumps edition”, THE ANSWER (Japanese), “How to tell figure skating jumps apart: making the six types easy to understand, even for beginners” (February 3, 2022), ISU Technical Panel Handbook Single Skating 2026-2027, ISU Figure Skating Media Guide 2025/26 Motion: converted from Skater C’s jumps in the motion-capture data FS-Jump3D (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). It shows how the movements described here look in practice.
Salchow
A jump that takes off backward from the left foot. The toe pick (the teeth at the front of the blade) is not used; the skater swings the right leg up to jump.
From a forward turn,onto the left inside edge.
The skater glides forward, turns to face backward with a turn made on one foot (a three-turn), and settles onto the inside edge of the left foot.
The right legswings up and forward.
The right leg, stretched out behind, swings forward and up while the arms are pulled in, and the skater jumps. The timing of the swing is the key. Before takeoff, the legs are said to look like an inverted V, though some skaters in recent years do not fit that description.
Often the last jump ofa three-jump combination.
In a combination of three jumps, it is often the third jump, coming after a small jump in between (an Euler).
It began in 1909, when Ulrich Salchow of Sweden performed it.
Sources
Olympics.com (Japanese edition), “Figure skating jump types and their difficulty, explained one by one” (March 8, 2025), U.S. Figure Skating, “Identifying Jumps”, Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC), “Skating / Figure Skating” (Japanese), Jiji.com (Japanese), “Figure skating viewing course: jumps edition”, THE ANSWER (Japanese), “How to tell figure skating jumps apart: making the six types easy to understand, even for beginners” (February 3, 2022), Seiko HEART BEAT Magazine (Japanese), “Knowledge that makes watching more fun: figure skating, jumps edition” (December 15, 2021), ISU Figure Skating Media Guide 2025/26, ISU, “Figure Skating Jumps Explained” (July 29, 2026) Motion: converted from Skater C’s jumps in the motion-capture data FS-Jump3D (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). It shows how the movements described here look in practice.
Loop
The skater glides backward and jumps from the right foot alone, from a posture in which the legs look crossed. The toe pick (the teeth at the front of the blade) is not used.
The jump starts froma pose like sitting down.
With both feet on the ice, one in front of the other, the skater glides along a large curve, settles into a posture like sitting down, and then jumps.
Takeoff is fromthe right foot alone.
The legs stay crossed, and the skater takes off from the right foot alone.
Also used as the second jumpof a combination.
After the toe loop, it is the jump most often used as the second jump of a jump combination. The skater takes off from the same right foot that just landed, without using the toe pick, so it is harder than the toe loop.
In German and Russian, it is called the “Rittberger.” The name is said to come from Werner Rittberger of Germany.
Sources
Olympics.com (Japanese edition), “Figure skating jump types and their difficulty, explained one by one” (March 8, 2025), U.S. Figure Skating, “Identifying Jumps”, Number Web (Japanese), “Jumps explained with illustrations: the figure skating questions you want answered” (February 7, 2014), Wikipedia, English edition (one article per jump), Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC), “Skating / Figure Skating” (Japanese), ISU, “Figure Skating Jumps Explained” (July 29, 2026), ISU Figure Skating Media Guide 2025/26 Motion: converted from Skater C’s jumps in the motion-capture data FS-Jump3D (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). It shows how the movements described here look in practice.