Twist lifts

A twist lift is a pairs figure skating hand-to-waist lift. The man lifts the lady in the air, where she performs one or more rotations in a laid-out position. He catches her in the air and lets her down onto one foot. The element is judged on a variety of factors, such as speed, smoothness of the take-off and landing, the height reached, the position of the lady in the air, the continuous rotation, and good coverage of the ice surface.

Technique

The twist lift movement starts with both skaters skating backward. The man holds the lady by the waist and she holds him on his wrists. The lady toe-picks into the ice and springs into the air, while the man assists into lifting her above his head and then throwing her into the air. In the short program in International Skating Union (ISU) competition, the twist lift take-off is either a Flip take-off or a Lutz take-off. In the free skating of ISU competition, there is no such restriction.

The lady rotates a specific number of times in the air. The number of rotations may be part of the requirement for the element.