In past years, the process of selecting athletes for team envelopes and competition assignments has been highly subjective and often fraught with controversy. The USFSA's International Committee, which is charged with making the selections, has had an explicit mission to select the team that can win the most medals at international competitions, and to provide experience and support for skaters who have been identified as having the potential to win medals in the future. But sometimes it has seemed that subjective evaluations of skaters' future "potential" has just been an excuse for playing favorites -- or at least it has been viewed that way, by both skaters and fans.

Rudy Galindo, for instance, has written in his autobiography that he felt he was being repeatedly passed over for competition assignments during his eligible career at least in part because the USFSA took a dim view of his identity as an "effeminate gay man." More recently, last year many skating insiders scoffed at Nicole Bobek's inclusion on the elite Team A in view of her dismal international record over the previous few seasons and the fact that she did not compete at all at 1999 Nationals. It was widely speculated that the USFSA was continuing to support Bobek only because she had friends in high places or because she was perceived as a TV ratings draw, not because she was likely to win any medals.

But this year, according to the annual report prepared for the USFSA's Governing Council meeting later this month, it seems that the International Committee is moving away from subjective evaluations of "potential" and is instead making its decisions based, as much as possible, on concrete competition results over the past season.

For example, this year the Team A description has changed from "athletes who have demonstrated the potential to win an Olympic or World medal" to "the highest performing athletes in ISU Championships"; and the criteria specifically includes the current U.S. National senior champions, skaters who place in the top 10 at the World Championships, and medalists from the World Junior and Four Continents Championships.

The "Bobek clause" allowing "designated high-performance athletes" to be named to Team A has been replaced with much more restrictive language that is effectively an "Eldredge clause": medalists from the previous two World Championships who intend to actively compete in the coming season.

The criteria for the B and C teams, which carry lesser levels of funding, has also now been tied to specific placements at the U.S. Championships and international competitions, and in the USFSA Ranking System. The latter is a cumulative point system based on competition results over the most recent two seasons. It essentially rewards consistently good results rather than only placements at any one event, giving more weight to senior international competitions such as the Grand Prix events than to U.S. Nationals or to junior events.

Stacey Pensgen's runner-up finish at the Four Continents event could earn her a berth on Team A.(AP)

One fairly surprising result, for instance, is that the No. 4 U.S. senior lady, according to the Ranking System, is Amber Corwin, who placed only 13th at this year's U.S. Championships. This ranking reflects respectable finishes at three international competitions last fall, and a silver medal at the Four Continents Championships last season. On the other hand, Andrea Gardiner, who placed fifth at Nationals, is only 16th in the Ranking System because she did not compete internationally at all in the previous two years.

The Ranking System is certainly flawed if one tries to interpret the results as a true current ranking of the skaters. Because of its cumulative nature, it seriously underranks skaters who have been making rapid improvement, who have just moved up from junior to senior, who were not selected for international competitions in the past season, or who have formed new pair or dance partnerships. On the other hand, viewed as an adjunct to the other criteria used for selecting the team envelopes, it's not unreasonable to have an additional yardstick that measures long-term consistency.

In any case, while some of the team envelope selections this year might be surprising and controversial in their own way, at least now the USFSA can point to the specific process and rationale behind the selections. Many people might find it surprising to see Stacey Pensgen and Matt Savoie included in Team A, and not Tim Goebel -- but Pensgen and Savoie earned their spots based on their placements at Four Continents and World Juniors, respectively, while Goebel failed to crack the top 10 at the World Championships. Goebel will be assigned to Team B instead, on the basis of his second place at the U.S. Championships.

In addition to revising the criteria for selecting the team envelopes, this year the International Committee has announced a new policy for actual competition assignments.

In February, the USFSA's Executive Committee directed the International Committee to restructure the selections process "so that the USFSA will have the best possible chance to qualify U.S. skaters for the Grand Prix Series Finals." In response to this directive, the International Committee has announced that this year, skaters who are selected to compete in the Senior and Junior Grand Prix competitions will not automatically receive a second assignment, which is necessary to get enough points to qualify for the final. Instead, the second assignment will be contingent on doing well enough in the first event to still have a chance to qualify for the final in the second.

Philip Dulebohn and Tiffany Scott will get strong Team A consideration after earning a silver in pairs at nationals.(AP)

In practical terms, what this policy will likely mean is that more skaters will be given opportunities to compete in the Grand Prix events this fall. It also means that skaters will be rewarded with a second assignment this fall based on their abilities and performances at the time -- not on their skating in the previous season. As a secondary effect, it might also motivate skaters to better performances at their fall events.

Are there other changes in the works as well? The International Committee's report also raises the possibility of more aggressive monitoring of athletes and a ranking system based on demonstration of technical skills and artistic ability, not just placements.

In Canada, the CFSA is already using such offseason monitoring sessions, rather than competition results from the previous season, as the primary factor in determining competition assignments. And the CFSA's published international competition selection criteria are in the form of a checklist of technical elements. In order to be considered for Grand Prix assignments, for example, ladies must demonstrate a triple lutz and men must have a triple axel.

According to the USFSA's International Committee chair, Bob Horen, it's unlikely that the USFSA will take this approach to such extremes. "We have a large number of athletes, and I don't think it's really practical to think that we can monitor them effectively enough, and often enough, to be able to make our selections based on this alone. I still think that placement will be our primary tool."

But, he said, "Our top skaters do need more effective monitoring and a closer relationship with the association."