Parent's Guide to Speed Skating Canada Short Track Ages 6-13 2026-27

SSC officially recognizes these individual short track distances. Where a different track size is used, a proportionate number of laps determines the distance raced. Organizers may also race other distances suited to the stage of development.

Team events: Club Skaters (6-10) race skill-based relays (development). Youth skaters (11-13) race relay or mixed relay of 1200 m to 2000 m.

For comparison, skaters aged 14 and 15 (Neo-Junior) race 500 m, 777 m, 1000 m and 1500 m, and Junior (16-18) and older age categories race 500 m, 1000 m, 1500 m and 3000 m.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, B2-200.

SSC wants children to race on tracks proportionate to their size, and notes that a greater distance from the track to the boards can reduce injury risk in a fall.

• 100 m track: recommended for skaters in Youth competitions aged 13 or younger. It can be laid out on any size ice surface that meets the ISU Rule 280 provisions it refers to.
• 111.12 m track: recommended for skaters aged 14 (Neo-Junior C2) and older, or those who have reached an appropriate stage of development. It needs an ice surface of at least 30 m x 60 m; on smaller surfaces the tracks are offset by 0.75 m instead of 1 m.
• Smaller tracks: competitions may be held on tracks smaller than 100 m (official diagrams exist for 4 m and 6 m radius) if they are in symmetrical proportion to the 100 m or 111.12 m tracks.
• Skills events and festivals do not need an official track, as long as skaters have a safe, welcoming environment.
• At Age Class events, if the facility cannot fit larger tracks, the smaller track is used for all participants.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, C2-203, C2-204 and B7-500.

For Club Skaters (6-10) and Youth skaters (11-13), the maximum number of skaters at the start is:

The maximum reporting to the start includes skaters who are directly seeded and skaters who have advanced. The number at the start and on the first start line can be lowered depending on the racing format in the Youth Competitions Bulletin, or for safety reasons due to rink size at the absolute discretion of the Chief Referee.

Starting positions in the first round are randomly assigned by the Competitors' Steward using competition software (or by lot if the software cannot be used) unless seeding criteria were set in advance. The skater with the lowest number takes the inner starting position.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, C6-200 and C6-300.

A helmet must be worn for all on-ice activities and be securely fastened under the chin at all times. A skate blade should not be able to penetrate any ventilation holes in the helmet.

• Learn to Skate and Learn to Speed Skate programs, and training for Club Skaters (ages 6 to 10): the helmet must be ASTM F 1849 certified or CSA approved. For the CSA option, only hockey, snowboard/ski or skateboarding helmets qualify.
• All other competitions and activities: the helmet must be ASTM F 1849 certified.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, D3-100 (Head Protection).

• Body: all skin below the top of the neck must not be bare. Skaters must wear cut-resistant clothing meeting or exceeding the minimum standards established by the ISU. Protection can be in a one-piece suit or a full undergarment worn under the racing suit. Where the suit does not cover everything, extra equipment must close the gaps at the ankle (skates to suit), wrist (gloves to suit) and neck, with no skin showing at any transition.
• Neck: protection must fully cover the neck and all soft tissue in a line from the lower jaw on either side of the face to just below the chin, and extend below a line joining the armpits at the front of the body. Large gaps are not permitted. It must be made of Kevlar, Dyneema, ballistic nylon or similar material, and, if separate from the suit, fastened securely.
• Ankles: if the cut-resistant suit does not cover the transition to the boots, a cut- and puncture-resistant anklet (Kevlar, Dyneema or similar) must be worn on both legs, from the tops of the boots to 10 cm above them. No skin may be visible in the ankle area at any time, and everything must stay securely in place throughout the race.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, D3-100.

• Knees: full frontal knee coverage that completely covers the kneecap (patella), made of puncture-resistant material (such as Kevlar or Dyneema) and impact-absorbing material (such as high-density foam). It can be worn over the skin suit or built into the suit.
• Shins: when wearing long blades, hard plastic or built-in cut- and puncture-resistant material with some impact absorption. Frontal coverage must run from within 2.5 cm of the top of the boot to within 2.5 cm of the bottom of the knee protection. It can be worn over or under the suit, or built in.
• Eyes: shatter-resistant glasses held in place by a strap. Dark or mirrored lenses are prohibited; a lightly tinted lens is allowed if the pupil is still visible.
• Hands: gloves or mitts for Learn to Skate programs. For any long blade activity, full leather gloves, or synthetic gloves with equal or better cut and puncture resistance than leather.

For Learn to Skate activities (Levels 1 to 4 of First Strides) held during an Ability or Age Class event, only head, hand and knee protection are required, and neck protection is strongly recommended.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, D3-100.

The Red Book sets safety requirements for the blades rather than a brand or boot type:

• All skates must have the tubes closed.
• The rear and front tips of the blades must be rounded to a minimum radius of 1 cm. The rounder the tips, the better.
• To check, the tips should be rounded to about the radius of a Canadian nickel.

These apply to short track training and competition at SSC Championship, National, International, Ability and Age Class sanctioned events. Skaters also need the protective gear listed in the other answers (helmet, cut-resistant clothing, neck, ankle, shin and knee protection, eye protection and gloves).

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, D3-100 (Skate Blades).

Crash protection levels are set by a Kinetic Energy Factor (KEF): the skater's weight in kilograms divided by the square of their fastest forecast lap time in seconds (for example 70 kg / (9.0 x 9.0) = 0.86). At practices and at SSC sanctioned competitions, the skater with the highest forecast KEF taking part decides the level for everyone.

• Learn to skate programs are excluded from the practice requirement: crash protection is recommended but not required.
• National and International events on boarded rinks need at least Level 4. The Canadian Youth Short Track Championships (East and West) require Level 4 or Adapted Level 4.
• Level 5 (boardless) systems must be submitted to SSC for review by qualified experts.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, D2-100 to D2-104.

Each competitor wears an assigned number on both sides of the helmet. The number must differ from every other competitor's number in that race and be clearly visible to the Referee at all times while the skater is on the ice (before the start, during the race, and until the skater leaves the ice after the race).

• The number must be at least 6 cm high, with lines at least 1.5 cm wide, on a contrasting background.
• Either each skater keeps an individually unique number for the whole competition, or eight different helmet cover colours are used and skaters are assigned a number from 1 to 8 matching their position on the line.
• Skaters must report to the start line promptly for each race without being notified, with all required equipment in working order, including identification devices.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, C4-100 and C6-100.

SSC recognizes each competition through a sanction. The ones most relevant to club and youth skaters are:

• Age Class: skaters are grouped within their age category and race events considered developmentally appropriate for that stage. At a coach's request and the organizer's discretion, a skater may be placed in a younger or older category if the events remain developmentally appropriate for that skater.
• Ability: skaters are grouped by time or other measures of performance, not by age or gender. Skaters of different ages and genders can be grouped together, but each must race the activities and distances recognized for their own age category.
• Festival: an event built around a shared interest in skating, which may or may not include traditional racing. Skaters not yet registered with SSC may take part, as long as they register as Try Speed Skating members after the event. Any traditional racing at a festival follows the rules of the appropriate sanction.

Skaters in Ability and Age Class competitions need an active SSC membership (or one with another recognized national speed skating federation). In a competition where age categories are used, a skater is limited to the events of a single age category; this does not apply to ability formats.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, B1-300, B4-300, B6, B7 and B9.

For short track, SSC follows the ISU short track rules on yellow and red cards, unless a competition bulletin says otherwise.

• A yellow card during a race gives the skater a penalty in that race. The skater forfeits any points or results already earned over that distance (a set of seeded races from the first round to the final round of that distance). Results from other distances are not affected.
• A single yellow card can be a YC-2 (two racing rule infractions in the same race) or a YC-B (a behavioural offence unrelated to racing rules).
• Two yellow cards in the same competition automatically become a red card: the skater is excluded from the competition immediately and is not ranked in the final classification.
• At national-level competitions in Canada, cards are reported to SSC. A skater with two red cards or four yellow cards within 12 months is automatically suspended from all SSC sanctioned competitions for 60 days. Days between the last sanctioned event of one season and the first of the next do not count.
• At SSC Championship, National or International events, a behavioural red card counts in both short track and long track.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, C11 and C11-200.

The Canadian Youth Short Track Championships are run as East and West events. Three Youth age categories can compete: ages 11, 12 and 13.

• East: Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Ontario, Nunavut.
• West: Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Northwest Territories, Yukon.
• Each province or territory is allowed a minimum number (quota) of skaters in the boys and girls categories for each Youth age category.
• After quotas are filled, extra skaters gain entry under set criteria until the maximum number of entrants is reached. A maximum number of entrants per age category and a minimum time standard may be imposed.
• Skaters registered as Provincial/Territorial Athletes are eligible. Every entrant must provide a seed time.
• All criteria are published in the Youth Competitions Bulletin at least three months before the first qualifying competition.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, B5-400, B5-405 and B5-501.

At Speed Skating Canada (SSC) Championships, one coach per participating skater per race is permitted in the designated coaching area. Where space allows, up to two coaches per skater per race are permitted, including mentor coaches and coaches in training.

Coaches at SSC Championships must hold an active SSC membership and be NCCP certified in speed skating (Introduction to Competition, Competition Development, Competition Development Advanced Gradation or Competition High Performance), unless they are a designated coach in training or have an approved exemption. A coach without the required certification is not allowed in the field of play, the Coaches Box or on the ice surface, and cannot talk to the Referee.

Source: SSC Procedures and Regulations (Red Book), updated July 16, 2026, B5-1000 to B5-1006.