China's Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo Take Gold in Olympic Pairs Skating

After 18 years of skating together, China's husband and wife team of Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo achieved their dream of Olympic gold with an emotional and dramatic free skate program. The crowd was with them as they landed all their jumps, with just a slight bobble by Zhao on one. Their throws were huge and they nailed all their landings. Their side-by-sides and triple toe loops were perfect and their spirals and lifts were beautiful to see. There was one scary moment when Shen seemed to fall out of a lift and slide down Zhao, but the rest of their emotional and dramatic, if not perfect, performance scored them a 139.91. Added to their record-breaking score in the short program of 76.66, Shen and Zhao took home the gold with a score of 216.57.

Shen and Zhao's teammates, China's Qing Pang and Jian Tong, came into the finals in fourth place, and managed to skate to a higher score than the gold medal winners! Their determination was personified by their choice of music, "The Impossible Dream." Their performance was exquisite, nailing their jumps, side-by-sides and dramatic double axles early on with ease. Their twists and throws were perfect, and their spirals and spins were in perfect unison. Their gleeful expressions toward the end of the program showed they were aware they had indeed achieved their impossible dream. Added to their short program score of 71.50, their free skate score of 141.81 gave them the silver, with a score of 213.31.

The performance of German pair Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy mirrored their struggle through a rough season. Their first twist was awkward, she doubled what should have been a triple side-by-side and he barely hung onto his landing. They executed and landed their throws well, but he fell on their second side-by-side. Their unison was poor, and they just didn't seem to have the confidence they had in their short program. Added to their short program score of 75.96, their free skate score of 134.64, high in my opinion, gave them the bronze medal with a score of 210.60.

Russians Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov also had an unfortunate night. While they landed a quad in practice, they didn't use it in free skate, and good thing. Their twists, spirals and spins were intricate, attractive and in unison, and probably garnered them extra points, and their second side-by-side triple was well executed. But their first triple side-by-side was barely landed, and later in the program she fell on a throw and he fell on an axle jump. It showed on their faces at the end that they knew their shaky, disappointing performance had knocked them out of medal contention and ended the Russian run. Added to their short program score of 74.16, their free skate score of 129.61, also high in my opinion, totalled 194.77, to put them in fourth place.

Americans Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig entered the finals in tenth place, and finished in tenth place. Their free skate performance was not as solid as their short program. He doubled what should have been a triple, she fell out of landing on a side-by-side triple and had another wobbly landing. They tried to make up for it with nailing the landings on amazing huge throws, and a one-handed lift, with him on one foot, was breathtaking. Their unison in their spirals and spins was good. Their free skate earned them a 114.06, for a final score of 171.92.

Americans Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett, who have only skated together for 18 months, came into the competition in 14th place after the short program with a score of 53.26. I thought they bested teammates Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig, but the judges thought otherwise. They skated an almost flawless and clean program, the only error when he faltered, but hung onto, a landing in a side-by-side triple. Their beautiful triple side-by-sides, graceful lifts and spirals exuded artistry, and their energy and delight was contagious. Added to their short program score of 53.26, their free skate earned score of 105.7 totalled, putting them in 13th place.

The Canadians had a bad night. Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison were sixth after the shorts and finished sixth in the finals. Formerly a couple, they decided that "The Way We Were," was the only piece they could skate to. Their opening side-by-side triple was beautifully executed and landed, but Dube fell on a triple salchow, the same move she fell on in the short. She also fell on a throw, and barely hung onto a landing on another throw. Their unison was a little off, and their artistry on their spirals and spins was not enough to take them out of sixth place. Added to their short program score of 65.36, their free skate score of 121.75 gave them a total of 187.11.

The Men's Short Program begins tomorrow. On to the men in tight pants!

More Olympic Stories from this author:
2010 Olympic Figure Skating Schedule and List of American Skaters
China's Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo in First Place After Olympic Skating Pairs Short Program
U.S. Olympic Ice Skaters Tanith Belbin and Johnny Weir Sharing Olympic Village Quarters
The 2010 Winter Olympic Medals Design
Winter Olympians from Philadelphia Area
Philadelphia Area Olympic Ice Skaters
100,000 Condoms to be Distributed at 2010 Olympics in Vancouver
Source: Source: Viewed competition on NBC-TV; Pairs Skating Results: