In figure skating, the quadruple axel is generally considered the most difficult jump. But for skaters who aren’t generational talents like Malinin, grasping exactly how to pull off a quadruple axel can be tricky. A simple axel, therefore, requires one and a half rotations to complete, while a quadruple axel requires four and a half rotations in the air. To shed light on the specific kinematic strategies used by athletes to perform the quadruple axel jump, Hirosawa’s study focused on footage of two skaters who attempted this jump in competition. Contrary to previous biomechanical studies, which suggested that jump height does not change significantly, Hirosawa’s study found that increasing jump height is crucial to successfully performing a quadruple axel jump.