Kathy Dalton - Canada's Coach

Every industry has a leader. And for Synchronomics, her name is Kathy Dalton.

As far back as the eighties, Kathy has been pushing synchronized skating boundaries. In the early nineties, after developing Leaside Skating Club's Junior team, Kathy and sister Susan Pettes went on to be the founding coaches of arguably Canada's strongest Senior team, Black Ice.

With over 32 years of coaching under her belt, Kathy is Lever 4 NCCP certified, and has earned a seat on the Skate Canada Board of Directors and the ISU Synchronized Technical Committee.

Over the years, Black Ice has seen it's fair share of championships including seven podium appearances at the World Championship level. And despite competitive team development in clubs throughout the Ontario region, Black Ice has consistently proven to be among the highest caliber of synchro teams in the country with Dalton's leadership.

From Kaleidescope in 1993 to the 2006 'Batman' long program, Black Ice sets trends in choreography and costumes. Kathy brings innovation to the ice with a personal twist. Often changing image standards with dark tights and white boots (traditionally, skaters wear beige tights and keep beige boots to add continuity through the leg), Kathy is always the first to try something new. A pillar in the community, And Canada's most influential coach.

Watch their 2006 Long Program below. Skating to the music of 'Batman' and taking home gold at National's, this is one of their strongest and most cohesive programs. Take note of how smooth the transitions are from element to element and notice the judging standards on step sequences and elements aren't yet clear - You'll have to wait a couple more years for that!

International Competition: VIDEO - Les Supremes (CAN1) World's 2003

In the last 10 years or so, synchronized skating has moved into respected territory throughout the skating community. Before only recognized for its costumes and capacity to be a glorified Can-Can on ice type spectacle, in 2004 the International Skating Union (ISU), comprised of leaders in the sport with compounding excellence in skating, coaching, and judging abilities, implemented the International Judging System (IJS), a comprehensive judging system similar to that used in singles competition at the Olympic level.

Complimenting a higher standard of performance and incorporating choreography and execution, the IJS is an objective platform that measures degrees of difficulty in a series of program components (dependent upon the level of competition), and grades of executing them. In an effort to eliminate unfounded subjectivity between judges and the personal bias prevalence affective in the old 6.0 system, this new statistical based method has proven to be welcomed but incomprehensible to master.

Attempting to build consistency and clout, the IJS has caused problems from day one. With new rules and changes and new amendments almost every year since its birth, the ISU has struggled to keep a handle on communicating the new formulation to skating organizations. But some how, some way, some of the world's best coaches continue to rise to the occasion, and synchro teams hit competition season year after year with some of the most unbelievable programs.

Below is a performance from one of my favourite Canadian team's, Les Supremes, at the World Championships in Ottawa in 2003. This was the last time time 6.0 was used in International competition, and what's interesting about it is that the program was already tailored to the new system which wasn't implemented until the following season. Les Supremes are known for their Montreal style skating, and their emotionally executed performances. Talented and beautiful skaters, too. Watch:

Welcome to Synchronomics

40 blades with aggressive edges. Synchronized Skating is a straight heart shooter. Yet with plenty of international recognition in a sport 30 years in the making, and the Olympic committee has yet to turn a sharp head towards this challenging and entertaining ice sport.

Synchronized skating is fun. It's art. It's discipline. It's like being in a band...On ice. You often rise before the sun, throw back an earl grey, and sweat the ice to shreds with 20 of your favourite people. But it takes a lot more than friendship and discipline to succeed in this sport, you need heart, be driven by risk, and train yourself to make 20 bodies skate as one.

Synchro is the only place in the world you're encouraged to blend in. An arena where individuality is thrown by the way side. As a skater, you're as strong as your weakest link, you do your job, nothing less, nothing more. Coaches strives sleeplessly to reach perfection day in and day out, only to lose every ounce of carefully orchestrated control the second you set foot on the ice alone. And as a parent, despite your better judgment, choose another thankless job.

From a skater, and as a young coach, I want to thank you. All of you.

"If there was no change, there'd be no butterflies at all."