I am not an ice skater and certainly not a qualified judge but I know what I enjoy watching. I compared the programs of US skater Evan Lysacek and Russian Plushenko and the NY Daily News article noted some striking differences. Plushenko boasted the higher degree of difficulty with his amazing quadruple jumps. He finessed each jump, even if his positioning was a bit crooked as noted by the commentators. If sheer athleticism was the only important measure for the free skate, he would have won hands down.
By contrast, Lysacek’s routine lacked the degree of difficulty as he could only muster triple jumps due to a previous ankle injury. Still, those jumps were executed nearly flawlessly. The free skate also contains a technical component, and this is where Lysacek clearly shined. His footwork was intricate and measured. His spins simply dazzled. Comparatively, Plushenko’s technical work seemed less mastered. Lysacek won the gold by maintaining athleticism and artistry throughout the lengthy program.
At the end of his program, Plushenko preened as he skated from the ice seemingly assured of Olympic glory. At the conclusion of his performance Lysacek looked thrilled, yet somehow humble while he waited for his scores alongside his coach. Both skaters reacted predictably as the scores were announced. Yet on the medal stand, Lysacek stood with grace while Plushenko appeared livid and shamed.
The reactions in the press the next day became newsworthy, and not for the right reasons. Plushenko showed no dignity, expressing outrage at a system that would award gold to a less difficult program and declaring to a Russian news organization, this was supposed to be “men’s figure skating, not ice dancing.” Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin added to the indignity, saying in a telegram to Plushenko that his silver was “worth a gold medal.”
Lysacek shouldn’t need to defend his gold medal, for he earned it based on executing a stronger program within a complicated judging system. That night, he was up to the task. He was the better skater. Perhaps the next night, Plushenko’s skating would have reigned superior. Skating, like the floor routine in gymnastics, requires a balance of athletic brawn and technical dance or footwork. In both sports, the tendency today is to forget the beauty and concentrate on the athletics – the more difficult the maneuver, the better. But that’s not supposed to be the sole focus of the sport though it clearly captures the applause. Indeed, if athleticism was the only measure, we’d watch nothing but jumps and flips in both sports – more like watching extreme games than art forms.
The Olympic Games highlight the best in competition and sportsmanship. Plushenko and Putin showed neither last week. It’s certainly not the first time judging decisions commanded international media attention. But Olympic athletes should demonstrate the best in athletics, both on the ice and on the world stage. For all of the joy and triumph captured on the cameras over the two week event, here we were treated to a spectacle of anger and poor sportsmanship in a highly subjective athletic contest.
