Figure skating just got a lot more hype!
At Thursday’s U.S. Figure Skating Championships in San Jose, California, skater Jimmy Ma shocked the audience and social media when he performed his routine to the Turn Down For What by DJ Snake and rapper Lil Jon.
‘We kind of wanted to make something that had a lot of excitement,’ Ma said to BuzzFeed News on Friday.
‘Something to get the older generation excited and also draw in a new audience.’
At Thursday’s U.S. Figure Skating Championships in San Jose, California, skater Jimmy Ma performed his set to Turn Down For What by DJ Snake and Lil Jon
‘We kind of wanted to make something that had a lot of excitement,’ Ma said
He added that he had been looking at several songs but something just ‘clicked’ when he started skating to the Lil Jon banger.
In a brief clip of the performance, Ma launches into his routine as the 2013 summer-jam kicks off and the crowd loses its mind.
The Queens, New York, skater pulls off stellar trick after trick as he grooves to the hard-hitting beats of the song.
He added that he had been looking at several songs but something just ‘clicked’ when he started skating to the Lil Jon banger
Even in the audience, people can be seen shaking their hips and waving their hands as they watch a mesmerizing Ma finish his performance with dazzling spins.
Ma completes the routine with an aggressive pose and celebrates his success, as the crowd goes wild and the announcers laugh over the skater’s music choice.
Video also shows a group of women in the stands ‘turning up’ to the music as Ma performs.
‘It was amazing,’ Ma said when asked about the audience.
‘The energy was great.’
And while he came in 11th place, many on social media praised his bravery and song selection.
2014 Olympic bronze medal figure skater Jeremy Abbott shared his thoughts on the routine and said: ‘Jimmy Ma just turned down for what!’
2014 Olympic bronze medal figure skater Jeremy Abbott shared his thoughts on the routine and said: ‘Jimmy Ma just turned down for what!’
It was a sentiment shared by another who added: ‘QUAD TOE TO TRIPLE AXEL TO MILLY ROCK ON ANY BLOCK’
‘Jimmy Ma out there skating to house remixes, looking like a guy my mother wouldn’t have let me ride home from school with,’ said another
It was a sentiment shared by another who added: ‘QUAD TOE TO TRIPLE AXEL TO MILLY ROCK ON ANY BLOCK.’
‘Jimmy Ma out there skating to house remixes, looking like a guy my mother wouldn’t have let me ride home from school with,’ said another.
Ma still has a free skating competition on Saturday, so there will be more to see of him.
And he wasn’t the only skater to rock out to popular jams in their routine.
The change in music from traditionally classical pieces came about in 2014, when the International Skating Union voted to allow skaters to use songs and lyrics
Third-place finisher Jason Brown did his set The Room Where It Happens from Hamilton.
The change in music from traditionally classical pieces came about in 2014, when the International Skating Union voted to allow skaters to use songs and lyrics.
The Winter Olympics in South Korea, this year, will be the first games where skaters can do routines to popular lyrical songs.