My daughter is scared to try her Axel — how do I help her?

The Axel fear is so real, and honestly, it's one of the most common walls parents help their skaters through. That forward-facing takeoff feels unnatural at first, and the rotation requirement makes it mentally different from back jumps she might already be landing.

Here's what actually helps: separate the physical from the mental. Make sure her coach has broken the Axel into smaller pieces—the approach, the entry edge, the takeoff position—so she's not trying to solve everything at once. When she practices parts of it, her body builds the muscle memory without the psychological pressure of "landing the whole thing."

At home, your role is normalizing the fear without minimizing it. Instead of "you've got this, it's easy," try "lots of skaters felt nervous about this before they landed it, and that's completely normal." Let her talk through what specifically scares her—is it the forward entry? The landing? The speed? Once you know, you can ask her coach for specific drills that address that piece.

Also, timing matters. Don't push the Axel conversation when she's tired or discouraged from practice. Pick a moment when she's feeling good about skating.

Your next step: Ask her coach what one pre-Axel drill she could practice this week that builds confidence without the full jump.

Want to see this in your child's skating? SkateMarks analyzes every jump with per-second AI coaching notes.