http://web.icenetwork.com/news/article. ... y=ice_newsBy Amy Rosewater, special to icenetwork.comMen's event shaping up to be a nailbiter in Vancouver
Experts say field is wide open for Olympic gold
While Evgeni Plushenko is a heavy favorite to win the men's gold, the elite, highly capable field is wide open heading into Vancouver. (Getty Images)(02/05/2010) - Brian Orser has two words to say about his prediction for the men's figure skating event in Vancouver: Wide open.
"I wouldn't put anyone on the podium guaranteed for sure,'' Orser said. "There's no real shoo-in.''
The last time the Winter Games were held in Canada, back in 1988 in Calgary, there were two clear-cut contenders for the gold medal: Orser and Brian Boitano. Indeed the "Battle of the Brians'' lived up to the hype and Boitano edged Orser for the Olympic title.
But that was 22 years ago, and plenty has changed in figure skating. Back then, the 6.0 judging system was in place and favorites frequently would hold their positions in the standings even with stumbles. Now, with the advent of a much more complex and unforgiving system, positions change as fast as hosts of late-night television.
Just last week at the Four Continents Championships in Korea, Adam Rippon vaulted from seventh place in the short program to first.
And at the Olympics, and no one knows this better than Orser, anything can happen.
That said, there are a number of frontrunners in this medal race. The most intriguing is Russia's
Evgeni Plushenko, who returned to competitive skating this season after a three-year hiatus. He won the gold medal at the Olympic Winter Games in Torino and when he returned to competition at the Cup of Russia in October, it didn't look as if he took a day off let alone a few years.
His first jump at that event? A quad toe-triple toe combination. He won the long program as well and then cruised to a record eighth Russian national title in late December. Then last month in Estonia, he claimed his sixth European title. The layoff and a bothersome knee haven't seemed to cause him much problem.
"Things have gone according to plan but the most important thing is the Olympics," Plushenko told reporters in Estonia.
American champion Jeremy Abbott admitted he wasn't too excited when he heard Plushenko was back on the competitive ice.
"When I first heard he was coming back, I wasn't elated,'' Abbott said. "He's always a little intimidating.''
After Plushenko's 2009-10 debut at Cup of Russia, the 'oohing' and 'aahing' has calmed down a bit.
"Now he's kind of become another competitor,'' Abbott said. "I don't hold him out on a pedestal.''
Plushenko's scores have been high, some argue too high, yet he hasn't escaped criticism from those who say he needs to improve his spins, step sequences and overall choreography. All of those elements are much more scrutinized than they ever were in the past.
"I am impressed he's been able to come back and I'm sure it was not easy for him,'' Orser said. "But the further he gets away from Russia, the closer the scores get to where they should be.''
Plushenko might not get much farther from Russia after these Games. In a news conference late last month he told reporters he was mulling over the decision on whether he would continue competing through the 2014 Winter Games, which, conveniently, will be held in Sochi.
Also in the medal mix in Vancouver is another comeback kid from Torino, Stéphane Lambiel, the two-time world champion from Switzerland and France's Brian Joubert, who earned a bronze medal at Europeans despite undergoing foot surgery in December.
Lambiel captured world crowns in 2005 and 2006 but fell to third place in 2007. He decided to make an Olympic-year comeback but couldn't compete until the European Championships last month with an injured abductor muscle. Lambiel proved he could still compete with the best by producing a silver-medal performance at Europeans. However, he finished 16.85 points behind Plushenko.
"There are about six guys who can all contend for a medal,'' Orser said. "But,
if I had to pick a favorite, I would say it's Lambiel. I've seen him skate closely this summer because he did a lot of training in Toronto and I think he's the poster child for this system.
He has great spins and transitions and, he has a quad.''Joubert, meanwhile, has been erratic. He was fourth at the Grand Prix in Paris and then won the NHK Trophy.
Then, of course, is
Patrick Chan, who enters these Games with the hopes of the host nation of Canada riding on his skates. Chan has struggled this season, missing Cup of Russia with a calf injury, placing sixth at Skate Canada and then splitting with his coach of the past few years, Don Laws, in the days leading up to Canadian nationals.
Yet last month, Chan had little problem placing first at nationals and securing a spot on the Olympic team.
Jeffrey Buttle, a Canadian world champion who earned a bronze medal in Torino, had an opportunity to talk to Chan the day after Canadian nationals. Buttle is aware of the huge pressures weighing on Chan and said he even notices kids at the rink using Patrick Chan water bottles they've picked up at a nearby McDonald's.
"His face is everywhere in Canada and it's great exposure,'' Buttle said. "He just needs to make sure he finds a balance. He should be selfish.''
A Toronto-based choreographer these days, Buttle enjoys watching Chan's smoothness on the ice. Chan, who lands quads in practices, said he sticking with triple Axels for the Olympics. Buttle was able to win a world title without attempting a quad in 2008. American Evan Lysacek followed that lead in 2009. So, there's no reason for Buttle to believe his compatriot can't win without a quad.
"If it becomes a close call and Patrick skates well, I think Patrick has enough quality to his skating to win,'' Buttle said. "His in-between skating and connecting steps are just so difficult. There is substance between his jumps.''
But wait.
We haven't even delved into the American contingent or Japan's dynamic duo of Daisuke Takahashi and Nobunari Oda. And, oh yeah, there's Tomas Verner, of the Czech Republic, who is on the outside looking in (with a quad).
The United States has three viable medal contenders with Lysacek entering as the reigning world champion, Abbott coming off two commanding performances at the recent U.S. Championships in Spokane, Wash., and Johnny Weir, the 2008 world bronze medalist.
Of the three,
Abbott by far looked the strongest at nationals. He left his decade-long training base and coach in Colorado Springs, Colo., to work with Yuka Sato and Jason Dungjen in Detroit, and some wondered how the change would impact his skating. His programs at the U.S. Championships answered those questions.
"I think I started my season too early last year,'' Abbott said. "There was too much to handle at the end of the season.''
Last season, he made quite an impression by winning the Grand Prix Final. He followed up that performance by winning his first national title but it wasn't exactly his strongest showing. Then he placed 11th at worlds.
This season, he was fifth at the NHK Trophy but followed up with a victory at Skate Canada. He was fourth at the Grand Prix Final and then was masterful at nationals. He plans on attempting a quad, saying the risky element "puts me in the top echelon of skaters.''
As the reigning world champion,
Lysacek comes in with a No. 1 on his back but history has not been too kind to world champs at the Olympics. The last reigning men's world champion to win the Olympic figure skating gold medal was Scott Hamilton, who was a three-time world champion entering the 1984 Winter Games in Sarajevo.
Lysacek is looking for the gold medal, of course, but a spot on the podium would literally be a step up for him. He placed fourth at the Olympics in Torino. After a disappointing 10th-place showing in the short program there, he can only wonder what might have been.
Weir, too, competed in Torino and placed fifth. After winning three consecutive national titles from 2004 through 2006, he has not placed better than second at nationals since. Still, he was strong enough to earn a bronze at the Grand Prix Final. Lately, however, there has been more media attention focused on the fox fur on his costume and his reality TV show than there has been on his skating.
Japan should also field a strong Olympic team with national champion Takahashi, Oda and Takahiko Kozuka.
Takahashi tore ligaments in his right knee in 2008 but returned to the ice in April 2009. He was strong enough to qualify for the Grand Prix Final and even won the short program, but he fell to fifth overall after the free skate.
Oda, meanwhile, won both Grand Prix events he entered (in China and France) and was runner-up at the Grand Prix Final. Yet he was second to Takahashi at nationals. Kozuka, whose father, Tsuguhiko, competed in the 1968 Olympic Games, also will represent Japan in Vancouver.
Verner, meanwhile, was fourth at the world championships but has pretty much dropped out of the medal podium since. He was sixth at the Grand Prix Final and was 10th at the European Championships.
Still, in this era of this sport, no one can ever truly be ruled out.
"I think it's going to be one of the most exciting events with all the guys coming back,'' said Scott Davis, who competed for the U.S. at the 1994 Olympics when many top skaters returned to the Olympic ice after time off from competition.
The Olympics is a different beast,'' added Davis, who will be in Vancouver coaching Canada's Vaughn Chipeur. "It's not always who's expected to win, wins.''
This year, more than ever, that is probably the safest bet.
by masha » 06 Feb 2010, 00:43 
, так что будем полагаться на Женю и на Алексея Николаевича 
, у темно у нас сейчас как морозы спали и так практически круглые сутки 
Надеюсь,что справится 
да,учитывая опыт ОИ-2002(когда приехал слишком рано,"перегорел")не хочет.Будем надеяться,что ему с Мишиным виднее,и что всё будет хорошо 
про еду просто забывает... Вспомните себя очень хочется есть когда влюблен или перед экзаменом... Но Женина диета мне понравилась я тоже по ней немного похудела ... Спасибо 
