club matters
DID YOU KNOW? WFSC hosted the 1950 and 1989 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and it was the sanctioning club for the ISU World Championships held in Washington, D.C., in 2003.
singles and test‒track competition, is held each August, offering competitors at qualifying levels late-season IJS scoring and critiques before re- gionals and before school starts. Hosting qualifying competitions is yet an-
other way WFSC supports its members. U.S. Figure Skating awarded WFSC the 2014 Eastern Sectional Figure Skating Championships. Host- ing these competitions means WFSC members can participate without incurring additional travel and hotel expenses for themselves and their coaches. It also provides a platform for future skaters to see what high-level competition is all about.
WFSC hosts a send-off for its qualifying
skaters each year before regionals, a five-hour extravaganza in which both singles skaters and dancers exhibit competitive programs. “Tis is an opportunity for each skater to
perform their program in costume without oth- ers on the ice, and without the pressure of being judged,” Tsai said. “Family and friends fill the stands.”
Te club maintains honor rolls recognizing the accomplishments of its competitive skaters, including singles, dancers, adults, synchronized, artistic and solo dance, which are published on the club’s website. Specially designed pins are pre- sented to new members of the honor roll. In addi- tion, standard track singles, pairs and ice dancers who advance in qualifying competitions receive club logo jackets embroidered with their names and accomplishments. Stipends are awarded to these skaters as well, and to those who participate in international competition. WFSC provides gold medal pins to its members who have passed their senior freestyle and gold dance tests Te club holds a winter social and summer
picnic (also its annual meeting) each year. Be- cause the membership is geographically diverse, its members look forward to these two off-ice oc-
The flourishing Wheaton Ice Skating Academy is part of the Washington Figure Skating Club.
their knowledge and to support tasks before tak- ing a leadership role. Five of the 15 members are elected each year at the club’s annual meeting. “WFSC is fortunate to have dedicated board members who are passionate about figure skating and running an effective club,” Gold said. “Tey bring a variety of business skills to the club that have allowed it, in recent years, to bring its mem- bership renewals and test registration online, and to bid successfully for three U.S. Figure Skating qualifying competitions. Te board is also repre- sentative of multiple skating disciplines, includ- ing both adult skaters and parents of skaters, and strives to keep itself educated about changes in
casions to socialize with fellow members whom they may only see a few times during the year at competition.
A club as large as WFSC means a huge de- mand for testing. WFSC hosts four-hour dance tests about every other month, and moves-in-the- field/freestyle tests that last six to eight hours and are held nearly every month.
Tese tests, competitions and other activities
are all organized and run by volunteers, spear- headed by WFSC’s 15-member board of gover- nors. Each board member is elected for a three- year term, which allows new members to develop
figure skating.” Te board meets monthly and always in-
cludes a review of its budget and financial condi- tion. WFSC has approximately one year’s operat- ing budget maintained in reserve. Before bidding on any competition or taking on a new project, WFSC creates a projected budget and analyzes whether it will have a sufficient volunteer base. Te board delegates most functions to commit- tee chairs, who report progress and seek guidance from the board.
WFSC communicates with its mem-
bers in a variety of ways. It maintains a website,
www.wfsc.net, that provides information about membership, subscriptions, club-run competi- tions, testing and other basic information. WFSC’s Facebook and Twitter pages,
www.facebook.com/ WashingtonFSC and
www.twitter.com/Washing- tonFSC, provide more current information not only about club activities but also about area com- petitions and current events in figure skating. To date, WFSC has also communicated with its mem- bership through an email listserv. Beginning this season, WFSC is utilizing an online membership service that will allow it to communicate through email with its entire membership or sub-groups of its membership. Te presence of WFSC, the number of rinks
in the area and the cosmopolitan nature of the D.C.-metropolitan area, has attracted many ex- perienced and qualified coaches.
WFSC is also the host club for a large num- ber of skating judges who reside in the capital area. “Tis is a rich and valuable resource that al-
lows the club to sponsor competitions and test sessions without incurring otherwise significant expense,” Gold said. “WFSC recognizes this resource is becoming limited, primarily due to attrition and thus is making substantial efforts recruit new judges.”
SKATING 35
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