Coisotropic variational problems

In this paper we study constrained variationalproblems in one independent variable defined on the space of integral curves of a Frenet system in a homogeneous space G/H. We prove that if the Lagrangian is G-invariant and coisotropic then the extremal curves can be found by quadratures. Our proof is constructive and relies on the reduction theory for coisotropic optimal control problems. This gives a unified explanation of the integrability of several classical variationalproblems such as the total squared curvature functional, the projective, conformal and pseudo-conformal arc-length functionals, the Delaunay and the Poincaré variationalproblems.