Shcherbakova wins as Valieva collapses
Dave Skretta |
A Russian woman stood on top of the figure skating podium at the Beijing Olympics on Thursday night – just not who anyone expected.
Even the fact that there was a podium was a surprise.
Anna Shcherbakova, the overlooked world champion, delivered a clean performance in her free skate at Capital Indoor Stadium to win a stunning gold medal.
Team Kamila Valieva, at the centre of the latest Russian doping controversy, tumbled out of the medals altogether with a mistake-filled end to her Olympic dream.
“I still haven’t realised that my Olympic Games have ended. I just know that I skated clean,” said Shcherbakova, who was second behind Valieva after the short program.
“I am so happy that I still haven’t realised the result.”
Shcherbakova landed both of her quads to finish with 255.95 points, edging out another teammate, Alexandra Trusova, who landed five somewhat shaky quads of her own.
Trusova finished four points back in second place but wasn’t pleased with the judges, especially given the overwhelming difficulty of her program.
In tears, the 17-year-old Trusova cried out rink-side after learning of her silver medal: “I hate this sport. I won’t go onto the ice again.”
Trusova then shouted invectives at her controversial coach, Eteri Tutberidze, with whom she split before returning to last May.
And then the same figure skater who performed to “Cruella” from the movie soundtrack finished her tirade by extending her middle finger while holding her plush Bing Dwen Dwen mascot on the awards podium.
It wasn’t clear whether Trusova was flipping off her coach, the judges or the entire world.
“I am not happy with the result,” she said. “There is no happiness.”
Kaori Sakamoto of Japan was happy. She took bronze to break up an expected Russian sweep of the Olympic podium.
“I don’t have the big jumps as others would have, which is a big handicap,” said Sakamoto, who may not have the four-rotation quad in her arsenal but whose artistry was virtually unmatched. “That means I had to have perfect elements.”
Shcherbakova is the third-straight Russian figure skating gold medallist at the Olympics, after Adelina Sotnikova and Alina Zagitova.
Meanwhile, Valieva was inconsolable in the kiss-and-cry area. The 15-year-old star was heavily favoured to win gold, but is headed home with nothing from the women’s program and a looming investigation into her positive drug test.
She did not speak to reporters after a below-par performance that made Shcherbakova’s look all the better.
“Of course, I was very nervous for her during the skate,” Shcherbakova said, “because from the very first jump it was clear that the skate is going very hard and I understand perfectly what an athlete feels at those moments.”
Moments after Valieva departed the arena, workers began setting up for a flower ceremony the International Olympic Committee said wouldn’t take place if she was in the top three.
Medals were to be handed out on Friday in a ceremony that also would not have occurred had Valieva reached the podium.
“I’m happy that there will be a ceremony, that we are going to get our medals,” said Trusova, who refused to answer any questions about Valieva. “Of course, it will be extremely pleasant for me to receive my medal.”
Valieva had tested positive for a banned heart medication at the Russian championships in December, but the result was not revealed until last week, shortly after she helped to win a team gold medal that is now also in doubt.
She was cleared to compete earlier this week by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled that she had protected status as a minor and would suffer “irreparable harm” if she was not allowed to perform.
The court’s decision cast a polarising shadow over one of the marquee events of the Winter Games.
“Do I feel sorry for her? I don’t think so,” Sakamoto said after her short program. “I wouldn’t say so.”
AP
