The second edition of the World Ice Skating Day (WISD) is about to take place on December 3, 2023, and promises to present a series of worldwide events celebrating ice skating sports in the most fun, creative and inclusive ways. This year, the International Skating Union (ISU) is glad to reconduct the “Best WISD Contest”, which will reward the organizers having demonstrated the most ingenuity in the activities and promotional actions undertaken. In 2022, the “Best WISD Awards” were bestowed upon Indonesia (Federasi Ice Skating Indonesia), Mexico (Nuevo Léon Winter Sports Association) and the Ice Academy of Montreal (Canada) for their impressive initiatives. In particular, the Montreal Ice Academy excelled in the “Best #WISDance” category and was given the honor to create the new official choreography for the 2023 WISD edition.
The “Best WISD Contest”: a second round of Awards for 2023
Launched for the first time in 2022, the WISD was created with the ambition to bring greater accessibility, diversity, and inclusion on the ice through a variety of fun skating events open to everyone all over the world. Last year’s inaugural edition was joined by 47 countries embracing these values with a great dose of support and creativity. To thank the WISD organizers for their efforts and invaluable contributions, the ISU introduced the “Best WISD Contest” rewarding the most original and impactful events, which were assessed across three categories and through a number of targets and criteria (such as promotion, education, attendance numbers, creativity, etc. – see details below).
In the first category, which gathered all the events with more than 500 persons in attendance, Indonesia (through its federation Federasi Ice Skating Indonesia) came out as winner with the organization of 9 events reaching around 3600 participants and delivering a range of successful activities. An Award with a substantial cash prize of USD 5000 were offered to the Indonesian federation.
Meanwhile, Mexico was honored in the second Award category (events with less than 500 persons in attendance) and was rewarded with a prize of USD 3000 for its remarkable overall achievement in turning the WISD into an insightful event, especially in a country where ice skating is not the most popular sport.
As for the last category of the contest rewarding the “Best #WISDance” performances, the Ice Academy of Montreal (IAM) emerged triumphant, securing USD 3000 in recognition of their outstanding interpretation of the 2022 #WISDance, the signature choreography of the worldwide event.
The “#WISDance”: the new 2023 choreography unveiled
The #WISDance is the official World Ice Skating Day dance which aims at uniting all participating skaters across the world around a set of moves on the ice. Last year’s #WISDance was choregraphed by the Club des Patineurs Lausanne-Malley (SUI) who created a unique hook step moving their hands in the shape of ‘W’ ‘I’ ‘S’ and ‘D’ to hit song of the Black-Eyed Peas “Don’t you worry”. The Ice Academy of Montreal (IAM) delivered a fun rendition of the choreography performed by the club’s coaches, senior skaters, and local kids. In addition to receiving a cash prize of USD 3000, the IAM has also been given the opportunity to choreograph the 2023 #WISDance. The result is a very lively #WISDance choreography that even beginners can “skate a leg” and get moving on the “Ice Floor”. Created by IAM’s Choreographer Sam Chouinard, the dance is performed on Pink’s song “Never Gonna Not Dance Again” which, in his own words, is the perfect music for this day of Ice Skating festivities.
The ISU President, Mr. Jae Youl Kim, is very enthusiastic about the positive outcomes that the “Best WISD Awards” are bringing to the WISD organizers and the Ice Skating community at large. “Our goal with the WISD has always been the development of our beloved sport and adding the “Best WISD Awards” incentive promotes a healthy competitive spirit among all the organizers, and it has been a treat to see the various creative ways in which the WISD has been organized by the participating clubs, ice rinks and fellow ISU Members. I hope everyone participates and we get to see new sets of #WISD winners every year in addition to the growth of our sport”.
Let’s join the move and be part of the WISD contest:
To be eligible to participate and to have a chance to be crowned as the “Best World Ice Skating Day 2023” organizer, you need to:
-
Be a rink / club / association / federation hosting a WISD event
-
Offer programs / initiation sessions for the children / young adults
-
Feature the WISD branding throughout your venue
The WISD organizers will be assessed across three categories, and one winner will be announced per category. In addition, each winner will receive prize money as indicated below:
-
Best WISD Organizer (with more than 500 persons in attendance) – USD 5000
-
Best WISD Organizer (with less than 500 persons in attendance) – USD 3000
-
Best #WISDance Choreography - USD 3000
The contest will start running after the WISD has taken place on December 3, 2023. To participate, the ISU invites WISD organizers to check the below requirements and submit the necessary information to contact@worldiceskatingday.com.
Step 1: Detailed report of the WISD activities at your venue/ice rink/club with the following elements:
-
Overview of activities undertaken during your WISD event(s)
-
Total number of attending participants
-
Usage of WISD Branding toolkit at your event(s)
-
Promotional efforts undertaken.
-
Advertisement and promotional activities through print media, social media, TV/Radio networks, collaboration with influencers / skaters / celebrities, etc.
-
Social media analytics and insights
-
Digital reach, likes, impressions, retweets, engagement rate, etc.
-
Creativity
-
Use of out of the box ideas to make your WISD event(s) stand out from the rest
-
A video of the participants doing the 2023 #WISDance signature dance move
-
Google drive link to download the choreography can be found here
-
A short note on what made your WISD event(s) special.
World Ice Skating Day event taking place in Monterrey, Mexico, 2022. @Nuevo Léon Winter Sports Association
Step 2: A Dropbox / WeTransfer / Google Drive link containing the images and videos of your WISD
World Ice Skating Day event taking place in Millcreek, Utah, USA, 2022. @Millcreek Common
Step 3: Please provide all the above information to contact@worldiceskatingday.com
World Ice Skating Day event taking place in Gyeonggi, Korea, 2022. @Korean Skating Union
Application deadlines:
-
February 5, 2024: Last date to submit your reports and images/videos folder
-
March 4, 2024: Announcement of the “Best WISD 2023” Award winners
World Ice Skating Day event taking place in Texas, USA, 2022. @Heart of Texas Figure Skating Club
We look forward to celebrating with you, and excited to receiving your entries for the “Best World Ice Skating Day 2023” Awards. But first get ready for the big day and let your imagination flow to create a memorable 2023 WISD event !
World Ice Skating Day event taking place in Łódź, Poland, 2022. @Polish Figure Skating Association
For all social media related promotions, please use the following hashtags:
@worldiceksatingday, #WorldIceSkatingDay2023, #WISD, #WISD2023 and #WISDance
About World Ice Skating Day
The World Ice Skating Day presented by the International Skating Union (ISU), is a one-day global festival dedicated to Ice Skating celebrated on the first Sunday of December. The key objectives are to make Ice Skating sports accessible to everyone in a fun and safe environment – for first-timers, amateurs, professionals or retired competitive skaters – by creating a memorable experience for the entire family. The concept of the World Ice Skating Day stemmed from the idea to popularize and share the spirit of Ice Skating worldwide through a celebration with a vision towards development, inclusion and fairness. For further information please visit World Ice Skating Day website.
.png){kind=small}