Law 3: How a score is built

Every element, and every section of a Pattern Dance, has a base value set in the Scale of Values chart, published in an ISU Communication for each season.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.a-b · recall

The GOE runs in whole grades from -5 to +5, and the Scale of Values gives every grade its value in points for each element. A -3 to +3 scale was used until 2018; 0.25 to 10 is the scale of the Program Components.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.b; ISU Communication 2786, Scale of Values · recall

The base value carries the difficulty of the element and its level; the GOE grades the quality of its execution, up or down from that base value.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.a-b and 1.f · recall

Each judge gives one GOE per element, sequence or section, or two where the ISU publishes that in a Communication.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.b · recall

The panel's score for an element is its base value plus the panel's GOE, so a GOE of 0 leaves the base value as it is.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.f · applied

The panel's trimmed-mean GOE for the element is added to the element's base value.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.f; ISU Sports Rules SYS 2026, Rule 856 · recall

At ISU Events and both Olympic Games the results must be calculated electronically; offline marking on paper is for competitions without online marking.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 352.1 · recall

The base value comes first; the judges' grades are trimmed and averaged into the panel's GOE, and that GOE goes on top of the base value.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.a-f · applied

In single and pair skating the extreme grades are worth 50% of the base value either way: 2.00 at -5 and 6.00 at +5, so even a perfect GOE stays well short of doubling it.

Source: ISU Communication 2786, Scale of Values (Single & Pair Skating) · applied

In single and pair skating every GOE grade is worth 10% of the base value, so +3 adds three of the ten parts: mark C, at 130%.

Source: ISU Communication 2786, Scale of Values (Single & Pair Skating) · applied

Each grade has a value in points in the Scale of Values for that element, and the panel's GOE is the trimmed mean of those point values.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.b-c · applied

The trimmed mean drops the highest (+5.00) and the lowest (+1.00) and averages the rest: (2.00 + 2.00 + 3.00) / 3 = 2.33. The plain average of all five would be 2.60.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.c-e · applied

The trimmed mean of the GOE values becomes the element's final GOE, rounded to two decimal places.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.e · recall

Each element's score is its base value plus the panel's GOE, and the scores of all the elements together make the Total Elements Score.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.g · recall

The Total Segment Score adds the Total Elements Score and the Program Component Score and subtracts any deductions.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353.2 a; ISU Sports Rules SYS 2026, Rule 856 · recall

At ISU Events and both Olympic Games the ISU answers for the accuracy of the results and the software; at other international competitions the host ISU Member does.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 352.2 · recall

The results display at ISU Championships shows the place in the previous segment, the current place in this segment and the overall current place.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 352.3 b · recall

Element scores add up to the Total Elements Score; with the components and deductions it makes the Total Segment Score; the segment scores add up to the Final Score.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.g, 2.a and 3.a · applied

Five, seven or nine judges lose their highest and lowest mark (3, 5 and 7 count); with fewer than five judges nothing is dropped, so all four count.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353 1.d · applied

The Final Score is the Total Segment Scores of the segments added together: 80.00 + 150.00 = 230.00. It is not their average or the better of the two.

Source: ISU Sports Rules S&P/ID 2026, Rule 353.3 a · applied