Jump for Gold, Part 2

Figure skating is, before everything else, an unpredictable sport. Although more often than not, a Short Program can win a medal, sometimes the odds change in the last minute, as this final proved.

  • Romain Ponsart did his best to express the tragedy of Swan Lake and in terms of presentation skills, he has a bright future ahead of him. The only problem with this routine is that it was a bit too ambitious: he planned two quads, but touched the ice on the first and fell on the second. That single Axel didn't help his score either. He got 208.20 points. Overall: 165.59. P.S.: Quirky ballet dance happening in team France's camp.
  • If Yi Wang is a fan of Metallica or not is anyone's guess. Despite skating on their music, the Chinese didn't seem to put a lot of heart into his program. Technically, he failed the quad, but his best jump was the triple Salchow. His score: 125.27. Overall: 183.57.
  • Han Yan's routine was about a masquerade, which is why his costume should have been more elaborate than a shirt, a cardigan and a pair of pants. Technically, his biggest mistake was jumping a single Axel, but he immediately recovered with a combination of quad Toeloop-triple Toeloop. He got 143.27 points. Overall: 207.81. P.S.: Oh my God, the fluffy panda hats come in large sizes too!
  • Kevin Reynolds' program was full of elements worthy of the standing ovation he received: combinations of quads, triples and doubles, original spins and a poetical interpretation. "Really nice job, you did," said his coach while the rest of the Canadian team were screaming excited in the background. His score: 164.13. Overall: 237.65. P.S.: Come on judges, why did you make team Canada fall asleep?
  • Brian Joubert just made me realize that I'm going to really miss him after Sochi. He started the program with a beautiful quad and continued with what could possibly be his best presentation skills so far. He got 151.40 points. Overall: 227.95. P.S.: There's lots of love going around in team France's camp.
  • Maxim Kovtun is one of the highest jumpers out there, but his fall on the second quad dragged his performance down. His score: 142.12. Overall: 221.79.
  • It was all about romance for Max Aaron today. Although he fell on the second triple Axel and did only a single Loop in the last combination, his program was very solid. He got 159.24 points. Overall: 236.62. P.S.: The saga of learning each other's choreography continues as team USA learns how to snap their fingers the Max Aaron way.
  • Takahito Mura's expressive rendition of Shogun was unfortunately overshadowed by his small, but numerous technical mistakes such as over-rotated jumps or hands touching the ice. His score: 156.03. Overall: 233.68
  • Jeremy Abbott paints a sad story on Les Miserables's Bring Him Home and proves that he's become one of the most expressive skaters out there. Unfortunately, he jumped a single Toeloop instead of a quad and fell on the triple Flip. He got 151.60 points. Overall: 231.84.
  • Ouch! Konstantin Menshov's fall on the Triple Axel was one of the nastiest we've seen in a while. Unfortunately, due to dislocating his shoulder, he had to withdraw from competition. We wish him the best!
  • Daisuke Takahashi has had better performances in the past, but his LP was clean and beautifully presented. His fans almost covered the entire ice rink with flowers and gifts, proof that no matter what, he is Japan's no. one skater. His score: 168.65. Overall: 249.52.
  • The first half of Patrick Chan's program had 'gold' written all over it. Then, gradually things got worse. It started with a fall on the triple Axel, then he jumped a single Loop and over-rotated the triple Salchow, then he fell again on the triple Lutz, and the worst of the worst, instead of a final spin, we saw a major silly fall. It's a black day for team Canada. He got 153.54 points. Overall: 240.21.

Figure skating and unpredictability go hand in hand. Congratulations to Daisuke Takahashi for holding his ground and winning the gold medal, congratulations to Patrick Chan for finishing second (don't worry, we know you're still one of the best), and especially, congratulations to Kevin Reynolds for winning that bronze medal we were all waiting for.

To see the full results go to: http://www.isuresults.com/results/wtt2013/
To watch the competition go to: http://livemanager.eurovision.edgesuite.net/isu/site/index.html

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