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Pluschenko’s Olympic comeback ends with silver
Published: 19 February, 2010, 08:34
Edited: 13 July, 2010, 19:11
TAGS: Sport, Figure Skating, Vancouver-2010
Evan Lysacek of the US has deprived Russian hopeful Evgeny Pluschenko of an Olympic gold medal in men’s figure skating, with Japanese Daisuke Takahashi claiming bronze.
Pluschenko was ahead after the short program, having 90.85 points, with his American rival 55 hundredths of a point behind.
The Russian was the last to appear on the ice in free skating, already knowing he has to beat Lysacek’s 257.67 result in order to get his second Olympic career gold.
The crowd at Vancouver’s Pacific Coliseum gave a standing ovation after Pluschenko’s near-perfect performance, but the referees had another opinion, putting the Turin Games champion in second place with 256.36 points after two events.
27-year-old Russian had a more difficult program than Lysacek, which included a quadruple jump, and he criticized the new scoring system saying that, unlike other sports, figure skating is moving backwards instead of forward.
"They are turning men’s figure skating into some kind of ice dancing," he added.
And talking to Russia’s First Channel, he hinted that Russia may see him competing at home in the Sochi 2014 Olympics if some improvements will be made in the way Russian figure skaters prepare for the Games.
Meanwhile, Olympic champion Lysacek told Reuters new agency that he believes his performance was a complicated one.
“I think my program had a lot of difficult parts in it, and I worked really hard to make it look as easy as possible. I'm doing my job if I make it look easy… My focus was getting every point out of that program I could and that's what was important to me,” he said.
Pluschenko had retired from the rink after claiming the Olympic gold in 2006, but made an impressive comeback ahead of the Vancouver Games. He won the 2010 European championship, but has failed to fulfill his dream in Canada.
18.02.2010, 01:50
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19.02.2010, 08:43
1 comment
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Well, What can I say. Perhaps it would be better to send a Bolshoi dancer to please the judges. A new system? based on what? This is a sports competition, not just a pretty performance competition. The spirit of the Olympic Games is about sports, endurance, record braking. It is not just jumps, it is technique, it is going beyond past performance marks. But, what to expect from the bunch of judges who find pleasure in sack a Russian champions? They are experts at it; as long as it is Russian.... and this is not a cry for the results, it is just the facts about judges with subtle but effective bias. The fact is that Plushenko is out of their league, both judges and competitors.
For all the rubbish about jumping competitions, well it isn't a moves in the field competition either! There is no Jeopardy to a simple step sequence or a spin. To have a scoring system that rewards the mediocre, rewards not reaching for the sky in the Olympics is rediculous. Just changing the scoring system to refocus the SPORT away from the spectacular, away from the height of human exertion and challenge is pathetic. You could change the scoring system in any sport, to give advantage to a facet that brings nothing to the SPORT - why not give an extra 2 seconds advantage on the downhill for great technical use of the ski edges. We would never, because it would have the rediculous consequences of the slower skier possibly winning. The embarassement is when the one who is not up to the highest level, is the Olympic champion, that is the travesty which cheats the SPORT of its very development. People want to see the SPORT progress to new heights, not turn into a dance competion with more jumps! When the SPORT loses, all the skaters lose - wow I must go and see that new triple combination, oh wait a minute I just need get my old VHS recordings out, and I can see it anyway, oh I will keep my money in my pocket. You can lie to yourselves all you like, but in the end you are only lying to the SPORT, when you do that, it won't be long before, no one has any respect for it!
In the real world of facts, Lysacek unfairly won with the exact SAME jump layout that Mao Asada has been LOSING to Yu Na Kim with all season. That is just pathetic ... and not just with regard to Plushenko, but Takahashi as well Takahashi also actually beat Lysacek if you live in the real word. Also, to make a skater like Lysacek the posterboy for edging and transitions is an abomination! Its Lysacek who skates like a robot and ALSO cannot jump. I honestly did not care who won, I don't love any of them (I loved Yagudin, Kulik, even Todd Eldredge) but what this has done to skating is the same thing that Barack Obama did to the Nobel Peace Prize. I see a pattern here ... the meritocrisy is being destroyed, and we are all supposed to look up to the vacuous "accomplsihments" of a decadent, preening, narcissistic nobility! Um, been there, done that.