Every four years, when the Winter Olympics airs, announcers lose their minds over the triple axel. Skaters cry after landing it. Coaches embrace. Crowds erupt. Casual viewers sense that something remarkable just happened — but without a clear explanation of what makes this jump different from the others, the full weight of the moment can get lost.
Here's exactly what the triple axel is, why it's considered the hardest jump in the sport, and why so few skaters — especially women — have ever landed one cleanly in competition.
The Six Jumps of Figure Skating
To understand the triple axel, it helps to understand the full landscape of figure skating jumps. There are six standard jumps performed in competition today, divided into two categories:
Edge jumps (the skater launches directly from the edge of the blade):
- Axel
- Loop
- Salchow
Toe jumps (the skater plants the toe pick to assist the launch):
- Toe loop
- Flip
- Lutz
Each jump can be performed as a single (one rotation), double (two rotations), triple (three rotations), or in rare cases, a quadruple (four rotations). The technical difficulty and scoring value increases with each additional rotation.
What Makes the Axel Different From Every Other Jump
Every figure skating jump except the axel begins with a backward takeoff. The skater glides backward, builds momentum, and launches into the air rotating in the same direction they were already traveling.
The axel is the only jump in competition that takes off forward.
That single distinction is what makes it the hardest jump in the sport. Here's why it matters:
When you take off going backward, your body's momentum naturally aligns with the rotation you need to complete. Your weight is balanced toward the heel of the blade, away from the toe pick, and the direction of rotation requires no sudden shift in body position.
When you take off going forward, everything is working against you. Your body weight naturally settles toward the middle of the blade to avoid catching the toe pick and tripping. To launch forward into a rotating jump, the skater must forcefully shift their weight against that instinct, explode upward and sideways simultaneously, and immediately begin rotating in the opposite direction from their approach.
Then there's the rotation count. Because the axel begins facing forward and must land facing backward, there is an inherent extra half-rotation built into the jump. A single axel is actually 1.5 revolutions. A double axel is 2.5. A triple axel is 3.5 revolutions in the air. What is technically called a "triple" is physically equivalent to almost four rotations.
This is why figure skating historian James Hines has called the axel "figure skating's most difficult jump" — and why experts sometimes note that a triple axel is technically closer to a quadruple jump than a triple.
The Physics of 3.5 Revolutions
To complete 3.5 revolutions before landing, a skater must:
Generate enough height. The rotations all happen in the air. More height equals more time. Less time means incomplete rotations, which means a crash.
Achieve maximum rotational speed immediately. The skater must pull their arms and free leg tightly into their body the instant they leave the ice to increase rotation speed through the physics of angular momentum — the same principle that causes a spinning figure skater to speed up when they pull their arms in.
Maintain a precise body position throughout. Any deviation from the tight, vertically aligned air position slows the rotation. Bent knees, a loose arm, a tilted torso — any of these costs fractions of a revolution that can mean the difference between landing and falling.
Absorb immense landing force. Landing a triple axel means coming down on a quarter-inch blade with force equivalent to four to ten times the skater's body weight, on a single foot, while moving backward, after having just completed 3.5 rotations. The landing foot absorbs that force through the knee and hip. Injuries on failed triple axel attempts — stress fractures, broken bones, hip and knee damage — are common and can be career-ending.
Who Invented the Axel?
The axel was invented by Norwegian speed skater Axel Paulsen, who performed the first single axel at the inaugural international figure skating competition in Vienna in 1882 — while wearing speed skates, not figure skates. The jump was considered so remarkable that it was named in his honor.
The progression of the axel over time tells the story of the sport's technical evolution:
- First double axel in Olympic competition: Dick Button (USA), 1948
- First triple axel in competition: Vern Taylor (Canada), 1978 World Championships
- First woman to land a triple axel in competition: Midori Ito (Japan), 1988
- First woman to land a triple axel at the Olympics: Midori Ito (Japan), 1992
- First American woman to land a triple axel in competition: Tonya Harding, 1991
- First American woman to land a triple axel at the Olympics: Mirai Nagasu, 2018
Why Women Rarely Land the Triple Axel
At the Olympic level, nearly every men's singles skater includes the triple axel as a standard element. For women, it remains rare — even among the world's best.
There are a few reasons. Biomechanically, women tend to have a lower center of gravity and wider hips relative to their frame, which makes the tight rotational body position required for 3.5 revolutions more difficult to achieve. The extra rotational challenge compounds with the forward-takeoff mechanics unique to the axel.
But the gap is narrowing. At the 2026 Milan Olympics, Amber Glenn and Alysa Liu were both among the very few women in the entire women's field to attempt the triple axel in competition. Glenn landed hers in the short program and became the first U.S. woman to land three triple axels at a single Olympic Games. Liu's consistent execution of the jump was a key factor in her individual gold medal performance.
The scoring reflects how rare and valued the jump is: the base score value of a triple axel is 8.0 points, nearly double the base value of a triple loop (4.9 points) and significantly higher than a triple lutz (5.9 points), which is otherwise considered the second-most difficult jump.
The Quadruple Axel: The Next Frontier
If the triple axel is the hardest jump women regularly attempt, the quadruple axel — 4.5 revolutions — is the frontier being pushed by men's skating.
American skater Ilia Malinin became the first person to land a quadruple axel in competition in 2022 at the CS U.S. Classic. He has performed it in multiple competitions since. At the 2026 Milan Olympics, Malinin was expected to include the quad axel as part of his program.
No woman has yet landed a quadruple axel in competition. It remains the final frontier of figure skating's jump hierarchy.
How to Identify the Triple Axel While Watching
If you want to spot the triple axel the next time you're watching figure skating — here's the cheat code:
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Watch the takeoff foot and direction. If the skater takes off skating forward and then launches, it's an axel. Every other jump takes off backward.
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Count the rotations. Three and a half turns is a lot — the skater will be spinning very fast in the air. If it looks like more rotations than other jumps, it probably is.
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Watch the announcer or commentator reaction. Even broadcast professionals get excited. A clean triple axel, especially in women's competition, is consistently one of the loudest crowd moments in the sport.
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Look for the landing position. A clean axel lands on the back outside edge of the opposite foot from the takeoff, with the free leg extended back. A clean landing has a long, controlled glide out of the jump. A fall or "pop" (reduced rotation) makes the landing look abrupt or unstable.
Why the Triple Axel Matters Beyond the Score
The triple axel has become something larger than its 8.0 base value suggests. It has become a symbol of what's possible when elite athletic ability meets years of disciplined training.
For Amber Glenn, landing the triple axel in both the team event and the individual short program at the 2026 Olympics — after a career that included an eating disorder, mental health treatment, missed Olympic qualifications, and years of grinding toward her first national title — was evidence that the work had been worth it. "I told myself, no matter how the program was going to go, I was going to look up and tell myself, 'You're at the Olympics,'" she said after the individual free skate.
For beginners watching the Olympics and wondering if they could ever do something like that — the answer involves years of training, and a great beginner program is where it starts.
Want to Start Your Own Skating Journey?
You don't need to land a triple axel — or even a single axel — to enjoy ice skating. The vast majority of skaters never attempt competition-level jumps, and the sport offers enormous pleasure and challenge at every level below the triple axel stratosphere.
If the 2026 Olympics inspired you to try skating for the first time or get back on the ice, Nashville has excellent rinks open year-round:
- Centennial Sportsplex (222 25th Ave N, Nashville) — walk-in public skating, rental included, home of the Nashville Figure Skating Club
- Ford Ice Center Antioch (5264 Hickory Hollow Pkwy) — structured learn-to-skate programs, online reservation required
- Ford Ice Center Bellevue (7638 Highway 70 S) — learn-to-skate programs and public sessions
- Ford Ice Center Clarksville (150 College Street, Clarksville) — serving Montgomery County and north of Nashville
Find schedules and session info at Ice Skating Index. If you're just getting started, our beginner's guide to ice skating covers your first session from what to wear to your first strides.
The triple axel is the ceiling of the sport. The first step onto the ice is where every skater — including Amber Glenn — began.