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S.Korean Kim wins figure skating gold with record score
(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-02-26 14:43
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 Gold medallist South Korea's Kim Yu-Na poses during the medals ceremony for the women's figure skating event at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics February 25, 2010. [Agencies]
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But what really makes her transcendent is her performance skills. Kim breathed life into Gershwin's "Concerto in F," moving across the ice like notes on a score. As the music lifted the first time, she put one hand on the small of her back and gave a flirty little smile that set shutters clicking throughout the building.
When she finished, you could almost see the pressure fall away as Kim bent over and covered her mouth. So many stuffed toys and flowers littered the ice the full complement of sweepers had to be deployed - not once, but twice.
It almost wasn't fair that Asada, skating next, had to try and better that. She couldn't. It wasn't even close.
Asada, who has swapped titles with Kim since their junior days, is one of the few women who even tries a points-packing triple axel, and she did two Thursday. But she melted down later, stumbling on the footwork into her triple toe and forcing her to cut it to a single.
"The triple axel I landed I'm happy with," Asada said, "but I'm not satisfied with the rest of my performance today."
Asada looked stone-faced as she waited for her marks, and she didn't even crack a smile when she got her silver medal.
For Rochette, the medal is a culmination of "a lifelong project with my mom." Therese Rochette, 55, had a massive heart attack just hours after arriving in Vancouver to watch her daughter skate, and Rochette has been the picture of courage this week.
Supported by her father, Normand, and longtime coach Manon Perron, Rochette decided to go ahead and compete. Her performance Thursday wasn't perfect; she two-footed and stepped out of a triple flip, and had shaky landings on a couple of other jumps. But she made up for those errors with an emotional and expressive portrayal of "Samson and Delilah."
Unlike Tuesday, when Rochette broke down and sobbed when she finished her short program, she managed to contain her emotions. Her eyes were wet, but her smile seemed genuine, not forced.
"I feel proud and the result didn't matter," Rochette said. "I'm happy to be on the podium."
