Olympic women’s figure skating: A memorable opening nigh

Olympic women’s figure skating can often be looked at as the signature event of the Winter Olympics, and Tuesday night’s short program certainly did little to let that reputation down.

The games began with a lot of hype, with Yu-Na Kim of Korea pegged being a gold medal favorite and Canadian skater Joannie Rochette fighting through the emotion after her mother’s deathseven days ago. Rarely do events live up to that type of hype.

Not so on Tuesday. First on the ice from the favorite was Kim, whose performance was preceded by a video highlighting her celebrity in her home country, where she makes around $9 million per year through endorsements as well as other ventures.

But she lived as much as the hype. Kim skated a near-perfect routine, recording a brand new world record for a short program under the existing scoring system.

Also setting up a splash was Mao Asada of China, who scored a 73.78, normally all but assured becoming a top score.

But the most emotional effort of the night originated in Rochette, who battled through tears to wow the home crowd, which gave her a stirring ovation at the conclusion of her routine. Rochette skated while in front of her teary-eyed father and turned so that you can remember for any liftime, willing herself into the top three.

If the remainder of the Olympic women’s figure skating events are anything like Tuesday night’s, the standard large audience ought to have plenty to dicuss about.

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Tags: joannie rochette, joannie rochette short program, olympics nordic combined, olympics women s figure skating, rochette short program, vancouver olympics women s figure skating