“He’s running out of time” – the dreaded 30 second rule.
I meant to make this a long time ago (and probably HAVE made a long-forgotten draft somewhere), but kept convincing myself that it wasn’t important enough.Â
It’s a small figure skating scheduling tidbit.
This is ep12, after Yuuri and Victor have their pre-FS rinkside talk and Morooka mistakes their laughter for crying.
In this scene, Takeshi is commenting on the length of time Yuuri took to head out to center ice after his name was called by the announcer.
Rule 350 on page 12 of the 2016 Special Regulations rulebook (the rulebook edition that was out when YoI was created and finished, and currently still in effect), addresses the Call to Start. It outlines the expectations for skaters taking a starting position, and the consequences upon failing to comply. A skater has thirty (30) seconds to take their starting position upon having their name called. If they take even 1 second too long, the skater(s) will receive a penalty of 1.00 point, and if they are not in position by 60 seconds, then they are considered withdrawn from the segment of the competition (Short Program, Free Skate, Short Dance, etc.).
This rule was put in place after the 2013-2014 season ended because… the ISU wanted to shorten times and speed things up for TV programming. Prior to the 2014-2015 season, the time limit was 1 minute so that skaters had time to center themselves before starting. But the ISU deemed that 30 seconds was plenty of time. As you can imagine, that tripped up some skaters in following seasons. The most recent one I can remember off the top of my head is Yuzuru at the 2017 Worlds Men’s SP.
I do want to stress that the 30-second countdown only starts once the announcer introduces the next skater to skate.
As we see with J.J. and Otabek in ep11, the next skater is allowed onto the ice as soon as the previous skater steps off. So while the judges are calculating scores, the next skater can skate around a bit and get a feel for the ice again. This means that a skater might be on the ice for a few minutes before their name is finally called.
——————–
On a related note, in case fic writers would like to know for whatever reason:
Finishing AFTER the music ends can also incur a 1 point penalty for every 5 seconds passed the maximum allowed program time (rule 502, page 74).
It’s not a big deal if a skater moves slightly after the music ends, but if their movement makes it so that they exceed the maximum time limit (2:45 for SP; 4:35 for FS), then that’s when a timekeeper and referee make the call. For example, if a skater’s program is 2:40 seconds, then they are right on the exact allotted time, and if they miss the end of the music by 2 seconds, it would put them at 2:42 which is still within the 5-second grace period. If a skater’s program is 2:45, then they need to end EXACTLY with the music or they will be penalized because they exceeded the 5 second grace period. This is why it’s a good idea to NOT make a program the maximum time, because even a second or two of wiggle room at the end can be the difference between being OK, and being dinged a point by the Referee (in consultation with the Timekeeper). This happened recently with Shoma Uno at the 2017 GPF Men’s SP.Â
Same goes with being under the minimum time limit: 2:35 for SP/4:25 for FS. Better to make a program slighter longer than the minimum, in case the skater strikes their final pose a tad early.
So to tie it all up, Yuuri
used up the preparatory time to resolve issues and set himself at ease. The announcer called his name while he was talking with Victor. When they parted, Yuuri was cutting it close to being penalized for taking his starting position late, but he made it in time, so he received no deductions.
I think I’m a little obsessed with Yuri!!! On Ice… I love this anime so much, more than other animes that I have watched, more than Attack on Titan, more than every one… so I NEED season two so much, it’s the only way I can pass school and everything.
MAGICAL BOI YURI AND VILLAIN VICTOR!!! OwO a smol magical AU that @lucycamui and I have been gabbing about for a bit now XD It won’t be as big a thing as the Siren AU, but you’ll see some ficlits and art here and there :3
Yuri’s magical boi name is “Eros” and he’s a very good boi!!! >W< Victor goes by “VIcious” but tells Yuri to call him Victor for short XD HE AND MALICIOUS MAKKA TERRORIZE THE CITY
But doing things like stealing all the dogs in the city “HAHAHAHAHA, EROS, NOW I AM THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN HAVE A DOG!!!” *drowns in pupper kisses*
“Put that camera down right now! How do I know the angle of those shots are gonna be worthy? At least have the decency of obtaining my approval before you upload those! I can’t have my image ruined like this so early on!”
Yuuri shielded his eyes from the morning sky, resting the pad of his thumb atop his signature blue frames. “How long has he been up there?”
“Uhhh, don’t know. However long it took for the kids to see him and start taking photos? Which was when we got here. Maybe an hour ago or so?”
“Hmmm.” If Yuuri remained staring up for much longer, he was going to pinch a nerve in his neck. He could not even be sure if the view was a good one or not.
From the roof of Ice Castle, a man was hanging, a golden cape snagged on a broken section of drain pipe. His legs kicked occasionally, high-heels tipped and pointed accusingly at the triplets snapping away below. Yuuri could not be sure if that would make for good social media buzz or not, but if their father was not stopping them, he would not object.
Very shapely legs, Yuuri would give him that. Not many men had to structure or confidence to pull off pink thigh-high boots.Â
“Can you get him down, Eros? It’s almost opening time. I don’t know what the customers are gonna think.”
Yuuri flashed his best public smile. “Just keep your girls safe and out of the way.” With a click of his heels, Yuuri leapt.
A single stride took him halfway up the side of the building, the short fabric of his skirt ruffling with the sweet-scented breeze he generated. The red insole of Yuuri’s boot planted firm on the edge of the roof. From down below, he heard the rapid continous clicking of cell phone cameras.
From down by his feet, he heard a “Wow amazing!”
Frigidly blue eyes stared up at him from behind a golden mask. Yuuri felt himself groan. Not another one… That jawline though. Wow amazing indeed.
“Eros! You’ve come to save me!”
Masked-and-Gorgeous thrust his arms out in invitation to Yuuri. The broken drain pipe buckled under the sudden motion, dropping. Yuuri seized fistfuls of golden cape, preventing the culprit from dropping with it. A chorus of impressed “ooooh"s floated up to the roof, sounding over the crash of metal on concrete.
“Ahhh, help me, I haven’t figured out if I can fly yet!”
“Stop squirming then!” Yuuri yelled back to the panicking man, winding the fabric of the cape around his wrist to pull him up far enough to be able to grab onto his arms. Yuuri’s grip slipped. The man yelped as he dropped an inch before Yuuri managed to latch on again. “Get your feet against the wall and help me!”
“These shoes are Louboutin’s, I’ll die first!”
Yuuri chose not to point out that drop of not nearly two stories would not kill him. He did contemplate letting go in demonstration. Probably not while the triplets are recording though. “Can you– you need to– I need you to– what’s your name?”
“Oh!” The heart-shaped smile that got flashed at Yuuri was breath-taking. Not literally. If it had been, Yuuri might have dropped Masked-and-Gorgeous. “I am the masked villain Vicious! But you can call me Victor for short.” He winked, as if his ridiculously expensive shoes weren’t in danger of being ruined.
“That isn’t really shorter?”
“I just want to hear you say my name.”
“Ohmygod,” Yuuri muttered under his breath and heaved.
There was a rip. A shout. Several actually. Then a massive weight knocking Yuuri over in a tangle of limbs and fabrics. For a moment he was not sure where he ended and Victor began. Perhaps with the knee pressed precariously high between his thighs.
Yuuri’s hands plunged down to cover his frilly undergarments while his head snapped up to glare at– a very well sculpted chest. Why did he have to be so massively gay? Thank heavens he was so massively gay. Because the laced corset that Victor wore had a heart-shaped breast window. “Oh…”
Before Yuuri could process a single thing past the delightfully dusty pink nipples that he was eye-to-eye with, he was tackled, arms looping around his neck.
“I can’t believe Eros rescued me!”
“What… You said you were-…. I don’t understand?” Though Yuuri could hardly be blamed for not being able to think straight with such a fine male specimen planted in his lap.
“Oh, let me explain!” Victor pulled back and smiled again. Yuuri’s heart went doki-doki. “Eros, I am here to challenge you! From this day forth, I shall be your mortal enemy!” With a flourish, Victor tipped up his golden mask and winked. “Surprise!”
Yuuri’s heart stopped. Because that wasn’t just a Victor.
That was his Victor. Very suddenly, Yuuri regretted his profession.
Plume de Lynx 