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Back platter lift: See reverse platter lift.

Back press lift: See hand-to-hand loop lift.

Backflip: A forbidden move in which the skater, gliding backwards, executed a back somersault and lands on two feet.

Background music: Music which has no distinct choreographic relation to the skater's movements.

Backward edge: An edge on which the skater is moving in a backwards (heel first) direction).

Base Value:  The point value for an element under the International Judging System that specifies the point value of an element when it is executed in accordance with the rules and meets minimum standards for acceptable execution (receiving a Grade of Execution of 0).  Abbreviated BV.

The Base Values are tabulated in a table of values known as the Scale of Values (SoV) for all elements that may earn points under the International Judging system.  The points earned for an element is the sum of its Base Value points and the panel's Grade of Execution points for the element.  See Grade of Execution for additional details.

Basic spin position:  There are three basic spin positions: upright, sit and camel.

Bauer: A connecting move in which the skater glides on two feet with toes pointed in opposite directions. One leg is fully extended to the back and the other is bent at the knee and extended forwards. The back is arched and the arms are extended gracefully in a variety of positions.  Named after its inverntor, German skater Ina Bauer.

Beat: The regular recurring, periodic, pulse or throb that constitutes the unit of time measurement in music.

Biellmann spin: A spin in which the free leg extends backwards and upwards at, or above, head level, the arms reach back over the shoulders, and the blade of the free foot is held by one or both hands.  Biomechanically, the Biellmann position is a camel position since the hip joint is rotated 90 degrees and the free leg is held above hip level; however, under the International Judging System it is classified as an upright position.  Named after its inventor, Swiss skater Denise Biellmann.

Block: A formation in synchronized skating consisting of two or more lines of skaters one behind the next.

Broken leg sit spin: A sit spin in which the free leg is bent at the knee and held out to the side.

Bracket: 1. A turn on one foot in which the skater changes direction and edge, producing a trace in which the cusp of the turn points outwards from the center of the circle. 2. Any compulsory figure consisting of two circles with one bracket turn half way around each circle.

Bye: Permission to bypass a lower level of qualifying competition and compete in the next higher level of competition.

Butt spin:  A spin in which the skater is bent at the waist with the free leg extended downward and upper body extending downward towards the ice, in the form of an inverted "V".  Biomechanically, the butt spin does not fall into any of the three traditional spin types, since the skating knee is straight and the free leg is held as in an upright spin, but the hip joint is bent past 90 degrees as in a camel spin.  Under the International Judging System the butt spin position is nevertheless considered an upright spin position.

Butterfly: See Arabian.

BV:  Abbreviation for Base Value