Leaders tumble, and Arakawa wins Gold (AP) Updated: 2006-02-24 08:49
TURIN, Italy - She was elegance on ice, her spirals superb, her skating
sublime. That she was standing in the end didn't hurt, either.
(L-R) Silver
medallist Sasha Cohen from the U.S., gold medal winner Shizuka Arakawa (C)
from Japan and bronze medallist Irina Slutskaya of Russia pose during a
medal ceremony for the women's Figure Skating competition at the Torino
2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy, February 23, 2006.
[Reuters] | Shizuka Arakawa made this one look easy. Her brilliant performance Thursday
night gave Japan its first medal of these Olympics — a gold in the showcase
event. What a way to end a shutout!
"I'm just surprised right now," Arakawa said. "I can't find the words for
it."
Try mesmerizing, even spellbinding.
Everything American champion Sasha Cohen and Russian star Irina Slutskaya
were not. They gave Arakawa plenty of help by tumbling to the ice often enough
to make it a rout.
After the three were separated by a mere .71 points in the short program,
Arakawa won the first figure skating gold ever for Japan by nearly eight points.
The 2004 world champion did it with a beauty and technical excellence that
even had two-time Olympic winner Katarina Witt standing and applauding before
she finished. Cohen fell twice and finished with a silver; Slutskaya fell once
and took bronze.
"I think it was a gift," Cohen said. "I'm very pleased."
The Japanese team has struggled in the mountains and on the ice in Turin. But
Arakawa, third after the short program behind Cohen and Slutskaya, was
magnificent. Her spectacular spirals thrilled the crowd and, more importantly,
impressed the judges.
"I didn't feel so much pressure about that," Arakawa said, referring to
Japan's disappointing games. "I am very happy that I am the one who won it."
Emotionless for most of her four-minute routine, Arakawa broke into a smile
that only got bigger when the scores were flashed. When her personal best of
125.32 points for the free skate were displayed, she flashed a "V" for victory
sign then pumped her fist when she moved into first place with 191.34 points.
Cohen already flubbed her first two jumps — and her shot at gold.
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