Beatrix Schuba

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Olympic medal record
Ladies' figure skating
Gold	1972 Sapporo	Singles

Beatrix Schuba (born April 15, 1951) was an Austrian figure skater.

She won the European and World championships in 1971 and 1972 and was the Olympic gold medallist at the 1972 Sapporo games. She was especially noted for her skill in performing compulsory figures. In fact, some say that in the compulsory figures, she was the best ever.

Schuba's victory at the 1972 Winter Olympics proved the catalyst for diminishing the importance of compulsory figures in figure skating competition. Schuba won the Olympic title despite a lackluster free skate because of the points she racked up in the compulsory figures portion of the competition, which counted for 50% of the overall score at that time. However, compulsory figures were not watched by television spectators. The free skate was widely televised, however, and viewers expressed frustration that the enchanting American skater Janet Lynn and the Canadian skater Karen Magnussen skated so well and yet placed behind Schuba, who did not skate her free program nearly as well.

To counter the growing criticism, in 1973, the importance of compulsory figures was diminished, and a new 'short program' was introduced, which required skaters to perform mandatory jumps, spins, and footwork elements. However, Schuba retired from amateur skating after the 1971-72 competitive season, so the new changes did not have an impact on her amateur career.