What does Salchow mean? A Salchow (pronounced SAL-cow) is a figure skating jump in which the skater jumps from the back inside edge of one skate, fully rotates (at least once) in the air, and lands on the back outside edge of the other skate. It is sometimes spelled uncapitalized, as salchow. The jump can be performed with multiple rotations, resulting in a double Salchow (two rotations), triple Salchow (three rotations), or quad (or quadruple) Salchow (four rotations). The Salchow is one of the six recognized jumps in competitive figure skating and is classified as an edge jump (along with the loop and axel; the toe loop, Lutz, and flip are classified as toe jumps). Example: She had some trouble with the Salchow in warmups, which is unusual for her, but I expect her to nail it during the routine.
1920–25; after Ulrich Salchow (1877–1949), Swedish figure skater, who first performed it
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Shaidorov hit five quads and an incredible opening triple Axel-Euler-quadruple Salchow combination which racked up big points and settled his nerves.
From Barron's ● Feb. 14, 2026
That exhibition, which concluded in May, featured a fictional installation by artist Mona Kuhn, with a soundtrack by Boris Salchow, inspired by Schindler’s romantic life and the home’s bohemian vibe.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2022
Skaters should be mathematically able to do a quint Salchow or toe loop.
From Scientific American ● Feb. 14, 2022
The Japanese skater landed a quadruple toeloop-triple toeloop combination and a quad Salchow on his way to a score of 95.81 points.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 26, 2021
But the program went horribly awry on the third element, a throw triple Salchow, and the couple never seemed to regain their composure.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 14, 2018
It didn’t matter that he could pull off a side-by-side triple salchow.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 17, 2026
On his quad salchow, he only executed a double, then fell.
From BBC ● Feb. 13, 2026
Japan's Yuma Kagiyama, the favourite two weeks after his victory at the NHK Trophy, only managed third place with 88.16 points, after a fall on his quadruple salchow and a mistake on his triple axel.
From Barron's ● Nov. 21, 2025
Skating to “Believer,” Kagiyama opened with a quad salchow and followed with a quad toe-loop, triple toe-loop combination and a triple axel for a season’s best score of 105.51 points.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 24, 2023
Two-time Olympic figure skating champion Yuzuru Hanyu was supposed to open his short program with a quad salchow, but his blade hit a hole in the ice and he aborted the jump.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 14, 2022
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
