That Night -- 1998 Olympic Ladies FS | Golden Skate

That Night -- 1998 Olympic Ladies FS

blue dog

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Verne Lundquist of CBS called this (at the time) the greatest night in ladies' figure skating. Some might say that it was probably an exciting final, while others were disappointed with the outcome. What do you think?

Laetitia Hubert of France had high hopes after beating Tara Lipinski in Trophee Lalique earlier that year, but with a disasterous short, she was in the 2nd group. She managed to land the opening triple lutz in her program (2foot), but doubled and stepped out of the loop that immediately followed the lutz. The salchow that followed after was also doubled. Although her spins and footwork had very unique positions (sometimes the uniqueness took away from the aesthetics, in my opinion), she had pretty good edging. It seems that the air positions were off for her, since she singled the axel and just doubled everything. After the triple toe loop attempt, the commentator (Australian) said--I think she just wants to go home. Her layback would've made Dick Button cringe. She didn't even hold her ending pose.

Shizuka Arakawa was the only entry for Japan that year. Skating to the Red Poppy by Reinhold Gliere, many of her jumps were doubled, and her spins were very slow. Scott Hamilton stated that she still skates like a junior, but one day she will be a great skater. Eight years later...

Julia Lautowa of Austria, who finished 7th at the world championships the year before found herself in the bottom half of the standings after the SP. The LP was her strength when she skated, and it was no different here. She landed most of her jumps, except for the triple loop and the doubled triple salchow near the end of her routine. This would pull her up from 18th to 14th place in the final standings.

Nicole Bobek of the US--she found herself in a deficit after the SP after missing most of her jumps (17th). Even when she began the program, you could tell that usual spark that Nicole had was not there. Her program layout was - 2Z, 3F (stepout), 3R (beautifully landed) into a camel/layback/camel/change foot sit combination. After the triple loop a bit of life came back into Nicole's performance, then a step out on a 2A before the music change (Liebestraum). Layback (beautiful), 3Z (fall; underrotated), 3S (fall), Spiral (spectacular), split into 2T, 2A, scratch spin. She would stay in 17th place.

Lenka Kulovana of the Czech Republic was skating in her fourth Olympics. I think she was the only Carmen in Nagano in ladies that year. Her program had a nice tension, and she landed one of the few clean triple triples (3toe/3toe) that night, which she needed, because she didn't have either lutz or flip planned in her program. Other jumps, like the salchow and the loop would be doubled as well. Back then, since skaters were allowed to throw in jumps to make up for previous attempts, she re-attempted the triple salchow and nearly had to put her hand down. Like another Carmen (Katarina), spinning wasn't her forte. Her layback was slow, and had an OK position. She almost came to a dead stop in her half biellmann. However, her Carmen was actually enjoyable! It was one of the few Carmens that focused more on the Spanish aspect of the story, rather than portraying the story of Carmen. But, she ran out of steam in the end...

Anna Rechnio, who would go on to finish 5th at worlds later that year (a career high for her), had a difficult night in Nagano. SHe missed her opening triple lutz to her La Cumparsita program, and doubled most of everything else. She was a very powerful stroker with very high jumps and well-centered spins. However, with the lessened jump content (she nearly fell out of her single salchow), she finished in 19th. She attempted the triple loop again near the end of the program, made the rotations, but had to put her hand down. I wish she had continued on till 2002...

Tatiana Malinina of Uzbekistan had a good skate, landing perhaps the biggest triple lutz in the competition, and only missing the triple toe. Though she had a rather weakly-choreographed FS to Aladdin, she managed to pull up into 8th place. This was the beginning of her ascent into the top group.

Yelena Sokolova of Russia skated to Happy Feet in a really unusual dress. She also performed one of the clean triple triples (3R/3T) of the competition right off the bat, then doubled the following lutz and flip. She had very cute presentation, but you could tell she was right off the junior ranks. She practically stopped the choreography and stalked the jump so she could land a (2footed) 3Z/2T combination in the middle of her program. She seemed to gain confidence after that, since she landed a triple salchow and a triple loop in sequence. Though her spinning was slow, she hit some cute positions, and the audience was definitely with her. There wasn't much difficult footwork in the program, but she did seem to pick up steam after the lutz. She hit a triple toe/double toe with a minute to go, then two double axels with thirty seconds left.

World Bronze Medalist Vanessa Gusmeroli of France entered the night in 8th place. Although she missed just one jump, her performance (with really strange music cuts) was good enough to pull her into 6th place.

The Final Group--

Michelle Kwan was the first to take the ice after the warmup. Sitting in first place after the SP, she seemed confident and relaxed through the whole program. She landed her opening triple lutz/double toe combination, which she followed up with a triple loop/double toe combination (she took out the 3toe/3toe which hurt her injured foot). This was followed by a triple flip with a slight save on the landing (barely noticeable), and a double axel. Many (including me) found Michelle's spinning to be the weakest aspect of her skating, but her positions (save the layback) were pretty good. She attempts (and beautifully landed) another triple loop--which is rare for her. This was years before her trademark spiral--so her spirals were broken up throughout the program. She borrowed from John Curry's book of spinning in opposite directions, which increased her difficulty. Every other jump was confidently landed, including a triple lutz that was bigger than the one in the beginning. I can see why many thought she had given the winning performance.

Irina Slutskaya of Russia followed Michelle Kwan with a program to a Russian folk song. She managed to fully rotate and save the triple lutz which gave her problems in the short. She attempted her trademark 3S/3R, but only managed a 3R on the end of the combination. Her program had really cute presentation (it fits her style, rather than the dramatic programs she tried), but had a forward landing on the flip. As usual, her spins (even though they sometimes traveled) and her gigantic triple loop were the highlights of the program. She also landed a clean 3toe/3toe towards the end of her program.

Chen Lu of China stood in 4th place after the SP. She lands the opening triple lutz/double toe, but follows that up with a stumble on the triple flip. Lovely choreography. Most of her jumps had slight saves (according to Scott Hamilton she starts her rotations late), but the quality of the program was much higher than most of the girls that skated that night. It was, as some of the commentators said, mesmerizing. Towards the end she attempted (the only time in her career) a triple toe/triple toe. Though the second toe only came around 2.5 times around, it was a great comeback for her. She is the only skater I have seen who changes her jump layout with the program, rather than fitting the music and choreography to the jump layout she is used to.

Surya Bonaly of France entered the night in 6th place. Unlike Lillehammer when she was a contender, this night was not the case. She still had her trademark double axel from the standstill, but without a triple lutz, and falling on the triple salchow, the only thing she could to to make sure people remembered her trip to the Olympics that year was land the backflip towards the end of the program. She did land it on one foot =) She finished in 10th place.

Tara Lipinski of the US just had "I'm happy to be here" written on her face as she took her opening position. She opened her program with what I think is her worst jump--the double axel, which for this competition, seemed bigger than usual. Her triple flip (the one she missed at US nationals) followed. She seemed to be skating with more speed than Michelle, but Michelle's music was slowed, and Tara's was faster. She had a semi-circular footwork in the middle of her program before her trademark triple loop/triple loop. She actually came close to fully-rotating the second loop at this competition (I think the only time she came close to fully rotating the second loop, which is nearly impossible for most skaters due to the jump's mechanics). Though her second lutz wasn't as big as Michelle's, her final jump pass (triple toe/half loop/triple salchow) was more difficult. The triple salchow, though many people do not seem to notice, was saved. Another good performance for the US--the judges had a tough job.

Maria Butyrskaya of Russia would close out the night. She had the bronze medal in her hands, but she seemed to come unglued as soon as she stiffly landed (on 2 feet) her first triple lutz. She fully rotated the triple flip that would follow, but it lacked flow, and was on two feet. Like most Russians, she seemed to do well with edge jumps, but not so much with the toe jumps (flip being a nemesis for her). Her program was beautifully constructed, but it lacked a jump combination. After the straightline footwork, she had planned a triple toe/double toe combination, which was reduced to a double toe.

(Videos available on youtube; I didn't post them here because youtube has been rather touchy when people link their vids)
 

tae04

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Oct 27, 2005
Yes it was a wonderful nite of skating. Chen Lu remains my highlight. I do believe Chen Lu landed a triple toe triple toe in 1991 or 1992 btw.

I remember also being heartbroken over Bobek. She was my favorite American. Kwan and Lipinski did great.

I loved Gusmeroli's free skate, also.
 

Fossi

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Aug 23, 2003
Was 1998 the last time that the top 2 women skated clean in both the SP and LP? It must've been a tough decision for the judges.
 

lcd

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Mar 11, 2007
Couldn't help but think that ordinal system was not helpful to Michele (as the "gap" lead she established based upon judge's marks in the short program over the other skaters) was neutralized to a tie amongst the top 3 heading into the long. And... couldn't help but think that skate order actually had an impact (something I considered only given how razor thin the margin was)... with the judges obviously 'leaving' room in the technical marks for Tara (who they all knew could pull off triple loop/triple loop etc..) That said, Tara certanily did pull it off that night. Both made the US proud.
 

Tinymavy15

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wow. thanks for the review. Nice reading.

I do think it was a great night in ladies skating, but unlike today there just were not that many contenders. Everybody knew it was between tara and michelle and in the end in came right down to the wire between them. Lu Chen skated a lovely program, but she could never have won. It will still be debated decades from now who should have won, because in reality it could have gone either way.
 

blue dog

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Some have even said that had Tanja Szewczenko not been stricken by the flu, she might have threatened for the gold that night.
 

Jaana

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Couldn't help but think that ordinal system was not helpful to Michele (as the "gap" lead she established based upon judge's marks in the short program over the other skaters) was neutralized to a tie amongst the top 3 heading into the long. And... couldn't help but think that skate order actually had an impact (something I considered only given how razor thin the margin was)... with the judges obviously 'leaving' room in the technical marks for Tara (who they all knew could pull off triple loop/triple loop etc..) That said, Tara certanily did pull it off that night. Both made the US proud.

I really hoped that Kwan would win, but I was not that impressed with her freeskate. In my opinion she looked slow and hesitant, very much lacked the spark she showed at US Nationals. IF she had skated the way she did there, the Nangano result would have been different, in my opinion.

I don´t think that the skate order had an impact on Kwan´s loss to Lipinski, Kwan lost because of the way she skated. The nerves got to her. As the first skater Kwan would have had an excellent opportunity to put a very strong performance and to scare the rest of skaters in the final group. I mean the way Ilia Kulik did there as he was the first to skate in the men´s final group.
 
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blue dog

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I don´t think that the skate order had an impact on Kwan´s loss to Lipinski, Kwan lost because of the way she skated. The nerves got to her. As the first skater Kwan would have had an excellent opportunity to put a very strong performance and to scare the rest of skaters in the final group. I mean the way Ilia Kulik did there as he was the first to skate in the men´s final group.

Jaana, I do agree with you that Michelle was in an advantageous position by skating first. Many people say it is "the kiss of death" but she could have gone out and said, "beat that." I think if she had skated that way (the way she did countless times before and after), she might have won, 3/3 or no 3/3 from Tara. Irina wasn't a contender at that Olympics, and Surya was on her way out. Lu Chen was having problems, and Maria had the worst position for her (skating last gave Maria too much time to think, in my opinion), so all she had to do was skate like she had nothing left to lose--the same way Tara did.
 

fairly4

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the only thing she did was skate a bit hesitant, but so did, shizuka, sarah and they won gold.
tara ur her jumps, michelle skated almost perfect. tara didn't . they only thing she did was skate fast. she jumped low, spins not that good. artistry was good not great. but they already had tara picked --being the youngest since sonya henje. they was looking for any little mistake from michelle. tara could do no wrong at the olympics-by the press. tara skated more like a little girl trying to skate like a woman. i wasn't impressed with michelle's outfit though.
michelle jumped higher than tara did. but alas skating fast overlooks mistakes see tara, irina, . tara had wrong edge takeoffs also. you wanted to rehash it.
 

Jaana

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the only thing she did was skate a bit hesitant, but so did, shizuka, sarah and they won gold.
tara ur her jumps, michelle skated almost perfect. tara didn't . they only thing she did was skate fast. she jumped low, spins not that good. artistry was good not great. but they already had tara picked --being the youngest since sonya henje.

I think the judges had Kwan picked, but she did not perform in the expected way in Nagano freeskate, the way she could do. And she definetely left the door rather open for Tara. As I have read elsewhere and agree with, Tara was not an artistic skater, so to speak, but she had spark and joy in her Nagano freeskate. Besides, almost any skater would look artistic if she performs after Bonaly, hmm. Anyway, the impression I got was, that Michelle was nervous and Tara was really enjoying herself to skate at the Olympics.
 
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kittyjake5

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Dec 7, 2005
Thanks for the great read. I sure did not see any hesitancy in Kwan's skate that night. After all these years and various discussions on skating boards of what ifs, I am still scratching my head on how Michelle's masterpiece did not win gold that night, but that is just me. SLC was a different story.
 

attyfan

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IMO, there are two nice things about the '98 Ladies FS. One is that all three medalists skated well -- and IMO the question of "who should get gold" is more of a "reasonable minds can differ" rather than a "wuzrobbed".

The second, IIRC, is MK always said that she wanted to be a legend. If so, then all three medalists got what they really wanted.
 

ManyCairns

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I've watched my tape of that night so many times! I really think it was justifiable either way. Tara's performance really was spectacular in its own right, but seems even more incredible given the pressure she was under, imho.

But, having said that, I thought Michelle's program should have won. I don't see that it was lacking in attack or was hesitant or whatever, though that's of course very subjective. It may not have been the program she skated at Nats, but Michelle was really attacking at '98 Nats after what happened at '97 Nats (I think I've got my years right, but correct me if I'm wrong) -- and Nats were usually Michelle's comp. Anyway, I actually don't remember any vast difference in the program from Nats '98 to Olys.

Bottom line, excellent programs from both Michelle and Tara. I suppose it was the tech edge from the supposed jump content (not looking at UR or wrong edges as we would today) that gave the nod to Tara.

One thing, I will say Tara reacted AFTER her program like SHE had no doubt she was the winner. Michelle was never prone to that kind of jumping up and down and screaming sort of reaction, of course, and she skated early in the group, so it might've seemed premature to react as Tara did. But Tara really seemed to have no doubts!
 

blue dog

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IMO, there are two nice things about the '98 Ladies FS. One is that all three medalists skated well -- and IMO the question of "who should get gold" is more of a "reasonable minds can differ" rather than a "wuzrobbed".

The second, IIRC, is MK always said that she wanted to be a legend. If so, then all three medalists got what they really wanted.

In hindsight, yes--all three got what they wanted. Tara got her gold, Michelle achieved a legacy, and Chen Lu left the amateur ranks with a bang. It was like we crowned three queens that night. In SLC, we had a bride with two sad bridesmaids.

I also agree--Tara reacted as if she had already won it. But then again, I think part of that was also the fact that she realized she had the skate of her life.
 

moviechick

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May 7, 2008
I also agree--Tara reacted as if she had already won it. But then again, I think part of that was also the fact that she realized she had the skate of her life.

I don't think she actually started jumping and screaming until after she saw her marks. Obviously she looked happy after her performance, but she didn't freak out until she saw that she was placed above Michelle.
 

heyang

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Jul 26, 2003
I think Tara did have the skate of her life that night. She was definitely thrilled. She really didn't start jumping up and down until her scores were announced.

For me, as an MK fan, the difference came down to Michelle's skating being restrained. At that time, she was known for the joy in her skating and that night she was skating to win, not for fun. If you have watched her performances at Nationals in 1998, you can see the difference.
 

gocaroline

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Nov 10, 2007
MK should have won

:scowl: I have watched winter Olympic 5 times (on TV thought;), I remember the 98 one got me really confused. IMHO there is no way that TL could have won the gold over MK with her tiny jumping bean performanance:scratch: Maybe it's just my opinion though, I do enjoy TL's joyful program, however I just don't think it has the "it" factor as the Olympic gold permance.
 

blue dog

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I think Tara did have the skate of her life that night. She was definitely thrilled. She really didn't start jumping up and down until her scores were announced.

For me, as an MK fan, the difference came down to Michelle's skating being restrained. At that time, she was known for the joy in her skating and that night she was skating to win, not for fun. If you have watched her performances at Nationals in 1998, you can see the difference.

I took your suggestion--I actually watched the two side by side, and those who've said that her nationals performance was better are right. Michelle was so tentative in Nagano that she was even slightly behind her music. It's like being a great comedian, but your timing being just a hair off...
 

TtonyV7

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Jan 11, 2007
What a night it was. I was more interested in the bronze medal battle. Slutskaya was the best she was all season....1 ordinal away from the bronze...(the fight for bronze was closer than the fight for gold actually!)

Malinina! What a cutie! Triple Lutz queen.

To bad for the SP slopfest. If rooting for Gusmeroli to be clean in the SP, to pull off a similar 97 World upset. Hubert...oh well, atleast she redeem herself at World.

And only if Tanja Swez. was healthy, and skated the way she had all season! That would have been a real interesting night!
 

bethissoawesome

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Dec 12, 2005
I agree with the above poster who said that there was a definite difference in Michelle's skating (to win rather than for the sheer joy of skating), and it always seems like when she is in that position, her skates lack the "wow" factor that they normally have. Although Tara won, and as they say "it's tough to top an Olympic gold medal", I would have loved to have seen her stay on the circuit longer... not for more medals, but so that the rest of her skating (save the jumps) could have developed and been more mature. The 1998 Oly LP was like watching a Novice skater with difficult jumps, I think something we have become even more used to seeing now with the little jumping beans. Mao Asada had beyond Tara's jumping ability at the same age and she has matured so much in the last few years that, in my opinion, she has become a real artist with maturity. I would have liked to see Tara have gone through the same transformation before retiring her skates.
 
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