Photo copyright J. Barry Mittan |
After skating her short program on Tuesday night, Michelle Kwan was in the lead by a narrow margin of 5-4 over Irina Slutskaya of Russia. Sasha Cohen, in her first Olympic appearance, was confident and took command of the ice during her short program. The competition was tough, as judges were closely watching for errors and taking each required deduction. Hughes, who seemed a little tense during the competition Tuesday night, made an error during a triple lutz jump and placed fourth behind Cohen. The tenseness, at least on Hughes' part, disappeared on Thursday night. In a stunning turn of events, Sarah Hughes came from behind to grab the gold, following mistakes by Cohen, Slutskaya, and Kwan in their long programs. Sarah was the second skater in the final group of six. She completed two triple-triple jump combos, the first American woman to do so in competition. After a standing ovation, Sarah skated off the ice and waited for her scores, then headed backstage to wait the results of the other skaters. Teammate Sasha Cohen fell on a triple-triple combo and slipped to fourth. Kwan skated next and after missing her triple-triple combo, the stakes were high. She fell on a triple flip jump, opening the doors for both Hughes and Irina. It seemed like a long shot, in order for Hughes to win gold, Irina would have to beat Kwan and Hughes would have win the free skate. Sarah could only wait backstage as the drama played out on the ice. Irina skated last. Her program was not as artistically strong as Michelle's and Sarah's, but she skated well enough to place ahead of Kwan. Commenting on her disappointing performance, Kwan said, "The crowd tried to uplift my spirits after the fall, and I hung in there, but it just wasn't meant to be tonight." When the winner was announced, cameras panned backstage to Sarah and her coach Robin Wagner who were screaming shouts of joy and disbelief. "I didn't think it was possible after [placing fourth] in the short program," Hughes said. With an inspired and technically brilliant program, Hughes skated the best performance of the evening. "I didn't skate for the gold medal; I just wanted to have fun," Hughes said. "Heck with it. I was fourth after the short. I did all I could. I was in shock." For Sarah Hughes, Olympic dreams really do come true. Copyright © Kristen Koester. All Rights Reserved. This article and any accompanying pictures, photographs, or line art, may not be resold, reprinted, or redistributed for compensation of any kind without prior written permission from the author. Kristen Koester is a writer, webmaster, musician, and small business owner. To learn more about Kristen, please visit the Editor's Bio. |
Photo copyright © Andrea "Hoo" Chempinski |
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Photo copyright © Andrea "Hoo" Chempinski |
Hughes Goes for Gold by Kristen Koester |
After skating her short program on Tuesday night, Michelle Kwan was in the lead by a narrow margin of 5-4 over Irina Slutskaya of Russia. Sasha Cohen, in her first Olympic appearance, was confident and took command of the ice during her short program. The competition was tough, as judges were closely watching for errors and taking each required deduction. Hughes, who seemed a little tense during the competition Tuesday night, made an error during a triple lutz jump and placed fourth behind Cohen. The tenseness, at least on Hughes' part, disappeared on Thursday night. In a stunning turn of events, Sarah Hughes came from behind to grab the gold, following mistakes by Cohen, Slutskaya, and Kwan in their long programs. Sarah was the second skater in the final group of six. She completed two triple-triple jump combos, the first American woman to do so in competition. After a standing ovation, Sarah skated off the ice and waited for her scores, then headed backstage to wait the results of the other skaters. Teammate Sasha Cohen fell on a triple-triple combo and slipped to fourth. Kwan skated next and after missing her triple-triple combo, the stakes were high. She fell on a triple flip jump, opening the doors for both Hughes and Irina. It seemed like a long shot, in order for Hughes to win gold, Irina would have to beat Kwan and Hughes would have win the free skate. Sarah could only wait backstage as the drama played out on the ice. Irina skated last. Her program was not as artistically strong as Michelle's and Sarah's, but she skated well enough to place ahead of Kwan. Commenting on her disappointing performance, Kwan said, "The crowd tried to uplift my spirits after the fall, and I hung in there, but it just wasn't meant to be tonight." When the winner was announced, cameras panned backstage to Sarah and her coach Robin Wagner who were screaming shouts of joy and disbelief. "I didn't think it was possible after [placing fourth] in the short program," Hughes said. With an inspired and technically brilliant program, Hughes skated the best performance of the evening. "I didn't skate for the gold medal; I just wanted to have fun," Hughes said. "Heck with it. I was fourth after the short. I did all I could. I was in shock." For Sarah Hughes, Olympic dreams really do come true. Copyright © Kristen Koester. All Rights Reserved. This article and any accompanying pictures, photographs, or line art, may not be resold, reprinted, or redistributed for compensation of any kind without prior written permission from the author. Kristen Koester is a writer, webmaster, musician, and small business owner. To learn more about Kristen, please visit the Editor's Bio. |
Photo copyright J. Barry Mittan |
In a stunning turn of events, Sarah Hughes came from fourth place to win the gold medal on Thursday. |
