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There may not be a more highly-scrutinized or emotionally-charged Olympic event than figure skating.

For decades, the sport has teetered on the razor’s edge between high-stakes athleticism and subjective artistry, often becoming as famous for its judging scandals and ice dramas as its triple axels. That legacy of intrigue remains front and center, promising a competition where the margin for error is non-existent and the potential for heartbreak is absolute.

The 2026 competition feels particularly unsettled as the sport continues to find its footing amidst a shifting global landscape and evolving regulations. With the departure of several longtime icons, a new hierarchy is still being established, leaving the podiums in nearly every discipline wide open. This lack of a clear “sure thing” has created a rare sense of parity, where the gold medal is less about legacy and more about who can maintain composure under the crushing weight of the Olympic spotlight.

The Sporting News brings you a full explanation of how the scoring system works in Olympic figure skating.

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Figure skating scoring system in Olympics

In the Olympics, skaters earn points based on two systems, the “Technical Element Score” (TES) and the “Program Component Score” (PCS), which was introduced in 2002.

The TES is the “objective” half of the score. Every jump, spin and footwork sequence has a base value determined by its difficulty. A panel of 9 judges then awards a Grade of Execution (GOE) from -5 to +5. A perfect, high-flying jump adds points to the base value; a shaky landing or a fall subtracts them. Per the Milan Cortina site, “Levels reflect the complexity and quality of execution, such as variations and rotations.“

The other half is the PCS, which is scored from 0.25 to 10 based on composition, presentation and skating skills

These two scores are combined into the “Total Segment Score” (TSS), which is the final score after “deductions for errors, including falls and time violations, are subtracted from the sum of the TES and PCS.”

IJS vs. 6.0 judging system differences

This current International Judging System (IJS) was born out of the 2002 Salt Lake City “Skategate” scandal.

Under the old 6.0 system, a French judge admitted to being pressured to favor a Russian pair over a Canadian one in a “vote-swapping” deal. To restore credibility, the International Skating Union scrapped the subjective 6.0 perfect score in 2004.

The IJS was designed to be a receipt of a performance, replacing relative rankings with quantifiable math to ensure that every turn, edge and rotation is accounted for and rewarded.

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What are figure skaters judged on?

Technical Element Score (TES)

This score reflects the physical difficulty and precision of the performance. A technical panel, separate from the judges, identifies each move in real-time.

Judges look for the number of rotations, the height of the jump, and a clean landing on one foot. In 2026, the “Quadruple” (four rotations) is the gold standard for men, while the “Triple Axel” is a high-stakes move for both.

Program Component Score (PCS)

Often called the “artistry score,” this is where the 9-judge panel evaluates the overall performance on a scale of 0.25 to 10.

As of 2026, the five previous categories have been condensed into three key components:

• Skating Skills: Measures speed, power, and how effortlessly a skater glides. If a skater looks “scratchy” or shaky on their feet, this score drops.
• Composition: Judges look at the choreography, the use of the ice, and how well the technical moves (jumps and spins) are woven into the story.
• Presentation: Evaluates expression, musical timing, and whether the skater is actually “performing” for the audience rather than just completing a checklist.

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Deductions

After both the TES and PES are calculated, before the final score is released there’s one more critical element: deductions. These are automatic penalties subtracted from the total score for specific violations of the rules.

While the judges evaluate the quality of what was done, the technical controller and referee ensure the program adhered to the strict technical standards of the Olympic stage.

The most common deductions are falls, which result in a -1.0 point deduction on the first and second occurrence. If a skater continues to struggle, the penalty increases to -2.0 points for the third and fourth falls and -3.0 points for any subsequent falls.

Other deductions include time violations, if a part of the costume falls onto the ice and a late start after their name is announced.

Total Segment Score (TSS)

The TES score decides who gets on the podium, which is the sum of the technical and artistic halves, minus any penalties. 

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What is a perfect score in figure skating?

Under the IJS, the closest thing to perfection is receiving a +5 Grade of Execution (GOE) on every single technical element and a 10.0 in every Program Component category.

However, since the TES has no ceiling, the perfect score is essentially a moving target. If a skater lands five quadruple jumps instead of four, their maximum score increases.

Some fans were used to the former 6.0 system, which was based on rankings. This system was retired in 2004 following a major judging scandal at the 2002 Olympics, replaced by the IJS “itemized receipt” approach.

Instead of looking for a 6.0, fans today look for skaters to break the 300-point barrier for men or the 220-point barrier for women.

Are figure skating judges biased?

The new scoring system is designed to be unbiased, but the human element is impossible to fully erase.

While the current International Judging System was created specifically to kill off the “backroom deals” of the 1990s and 2000s, bias remains a major talking point in 2026. Despite reforms, data still shows that judges are biased towards skaters from their own country and reputation bias, or the pre-conceived notion of what a skater’s score should be.

Figure skating judging scandals

Figure skating’s history is defined by moments where the math didn’t quite settle the debate.

The sport’s most notorious moment occurred off the ice in 1994 when Nancy Kerrigan was struck in the knee by an assailant hired by the ex-husband of her rival, Tonya Harding. The drama turned the Lillehammer Games into a massive media circus, ending with Kerrigan winning a remarkable silver medal while Harding received a lifetime ban from the sport.

Eight years later in Salt Lake City, a French judge admitted to being pressured to favor a Russian pair over a flawless Canadian duo as part of a vote-swapping deal. This scandal was so significant that it led to the awarding of a second set of gold medals and forced the sport to scrap the old “6.0” system entirely in favor of the current point-based system.

The first scandal with the IJS system happened in 2014, where local favorite Adelina Sotnikova won Russia’s first women’s individual gold. But, the victory was immediate controversy. Despite a visible stumble, her scores eclipsed the lperformance of South Korea’s Yuna Kim, sparking global claims that “home-cooked” judging and anonymous scoring had inflated the Russian’s artistry marks.

Most recently during the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, 15-year-old phenom Kamila Valieva tested positive for a banned substance, though the news only broke after she led Russia to gold in the team event. The ensuing legal battle and her emotional collapse on live TV led to the Russian team being stripped of their gold in 2024 and the Olympic minimum age being raised to 17 to protect young athletes.