“I was informed that I am no longer permitted to use this program due to copyright clearance issues,” Sabate explained Monday, four days before the opening ceremony. “I will face this challenge head-on and do everything I can to make the best of the situation.”
Sabate is not considered a medal contender, but he had won over crowds with his Minions program, where he dresses in a yellow T-shirt and blue overalls to invoke those cheeky characters. But now, the 26-year-old will have to turn to one of his old programs when he takes the ice at the Milano Ice Skating Arena for the men's short program next Tuesday.
Even that is not so simple: Sabate's short program last season was set to music by the Bee Gees, and he used the same music for this year's free skate. That means he would be in the unenviable position of skating twice to the same music.
Music with lyrics was first permitted in 2014
For years, skaters never had copyright issues because music with lyrics was verboten. And most standard fare, such as classical music, was considered to be public domain, meaning it could be used or modified freely and without permission.
In 2014, the International Skating Union relaxed its rules to allow words in music, part of a push toward bringing the sport into the modern era. But most modern music is not part of the public domain, and that led to issues during the 2022 Beijing Games.
U.S. pairs skaters Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier had been using a cover of “House of the Rising Sun" by Heavy Young Heathens for their short program. Afterward, the indie pop band said the skaters did not receive permission, ultimately filing copyright lawsuits against the skaters, U.S. Figure Skating and broadcaster NBC.
The ISU and national governing bodies have spent the past four years trying to develop systems to help skaters obtain permission to use music. But the process remains confusing and nebulous. Sabate, for example, said he followed the prescribed procedure for getting his music approved through a system called ClicknClear in August, before the figure skating season began.
A spokesperson for the ISU said it was aware of Sabate's problem and would provide more details when appropriate.
“While the ISU does not have a contractual relationship with ClicknClear,” the organization said, "we continue to work collaboratively with rights clearance stakeholders to ensure that thrilling performances can be accompanied by stirring music.”
“It’s very complicated, especially when it comes to social media,” ISU president Jae Youl Kim told The Associated Press in a recent interview. “We are still engaging with the music companies. They understand the issue and they also want to find a solution."
Skaters are responsible for clearing their music
U.S. Figure Skating has been working with ASCAP, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, along with BMI, or Broadcast Music Inc., to help ensure that its skaters have no problems with their music choices.
Still, it remains up to the skaters themselves to ensure their music is cleared.
One of the ways to do that is by checking Songview, a database developed by ASCAP and BMI to provide detailed information about copyright ownership. If music is not recorded there, skaters might have to go directly to the artist or publisher.
World champion Alysa Liu has developed such a good relationship with one of her favorite artists, Icelandic-Chinese singer Laufey Lín Bing Jónsdóttir, that the American essentially has carte blanche to use her music in any programs.
“We are such an artistic spot and we really rely on our music," Liu said told AP. “Without music, we're not really our sport.”
Liu's teammate, three-time U.S. champion Amber Glenn, called her own experience in getting music approved “pure chaos.”
“First we get a website or some sort of application to track things. And then once we're like, ‘OK, yeah, it’s cleared. It's good,' then it's not a reliable source anymore,” Glenn told the AP. "OK, then what do we do? And especially as an athlete, this is not something that we should be worrying about. That's not my job. My job is to train and perform.
“The legal rights, the broadcast rights?" Glenn said. "All this different stuff, that's not my problem.”
Until it becomes her problem. Just like it did for Sabate on the eve of the Olympics, the biggest competition of his life.
“It's not like we’re a TV show and we’re playing music in the background for an emotional scene,” Glenn said. "We’re going out there and performing as athletes. It just feels like a cash grab for different companies, and it’s really upsetting that they can’t just appreciate that their music has inspired something creative.”
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics