Lysacek topples Plushenko for skating gold

Canada's Patrick Chan 5th

Last Updated: Friday, February 19, 2010 | 1:59 AM ET

By Chris Iorfida, CBC Sports

Evan Lysacek became the first American man to win figure skating gold in 22 years, showing Russia's Evgeny Plushenko a quad isn't needed to take the Olympic title in 2010.

Lysacek, 24, finished with 257.67 points at Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum late Thursday night to become the first Olympic champ from the U.S. since Brian Boitano, who achieved the feat in Calgary in 1988. He also ended the streak of Russian gold medallists since the Boitano win.

"It was the best performance of my life, my personal best, in the best moment of my life," Lysacek said.

Evan Lysacek is the first Olympic men's figure skating champion from the United States since Brian Boitano. (Mark Baker/Associated Press)

Plushenko, who came out of retirement last year, was looking to became the first man since American Dick Button in 1952 to repeat as Olympic champ. He now has three Olympic medals, having also won silver in 2002.

Plushenko, 27, finished with 256.36 points. The judges ultimately chose Lysacek's more complete program over Plushenko's athletic prowess.

Daisuke Takahashi, 23, became the first Japanese man to win a medal in the event, taking bronze with 247.23 points.

The three medallists had been separated by less than a point after the short program, with Plushenko in the lead.

Canada's Patrick Chan led before the final flight of strong skaters and finished fifth. The 19-year-old Toronto native had a better free skate than short program, but some mistakes kept him out of the medals.

"I wish I had one more Olympics under my belt before I came here, this is kind of an overwhelming first Olympics," Chan said. "In the end, that's why I'm looking at Sochi (Russia in 2014) and see how that goes, but it's a long way.

"But I overcame this, this is like Mount Everest. I can overcome this, I can overcome anything else."

Edmonton's Vaughn Chipeur was 23rd.

Until last year's win at the world championships, Lysacek had a reputation for missteps on the big stage.

Skating to Sheherazade by Nikolai Rimski-Korsakov, Lysacek fought his second triple Axel, but he combined artistry and clean jumps in a program choreographed by Canadian Lori Nichol.

In contrast to the end of the short program, where he was overcome with emotion, Lysacek pumped his fists four times before the appreciative crowd.

The final skater of the night, Plushenko had a quad-triple combination to open the program but then held on for a triple Axel shortly thereafter.

It was a recurring theme for the program. The jumps were landed, though sometimes tilted and a little less pristine than his usual excellent standard.

The Russian had opined in recent weeks that the quad was the future of men's figure skating, and that the future was now.

Lysacek can land the quad, though not as consistently as Plushenko.

Skating to a selection from Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Chan started with a strong triple Axel-double toe loop combination and fought hard on his next jump — a triple flip.

A slight stumble on a triple Lutz led into his step sequence and sit spin, but Chan then landed hard on the next triple Axel.

Canada's Patrick Chan performs during the free program. (Vincenzo Pinto/AFP'Getty Images)

Unbowed, he finished the program strongly to earn a free skate score of 160.30 to push past Takahiko Kozuka of Japan into first with 241.42 points before the final flight of skaters.

Takahashi fell on his opening quad but was otherwise clean on his jumps, and was arguably the most charismatic of the skaters.

He is the third figure skating medallist from Japan, after Shizuka Arakawa (gold, 2006) and Midori Ito (silver, 1992).

Lysacek ends world championship 'curse'

Torino Games silver medallist Stephane Lambiel touched down on his opening quad toe loop, but landed another. He never fell, but fought several jumps en route to fourth place.

Weir of the United States skated the night's most artistic program without a hitch, but was evidently docked on degree of difficulty of his technical elements. He finished sixth.

The hard-luck skater of the night was Nobunari Oda of Japan.

Skating to a routine inspired by Charlie Chaplin, he seemed headed for possible podium contention but then fell on a triple loop.

Oda revealed to the judges that it was partly the result of torn laces on his skate, allowing him to relace and pick up the last minute of his program.

Nevertheless, he dropped from fifth to seventh.

But the night belonged to Lysacek, who ended one more long-running streak in men's figure skating.

The men's world championship winner the year before an Olympics had failed to win gold at the Games the last six times. Included in that list were Canadians Brian Orser, Kurt Browning and Elvis Stojko.

American Scott Hamilton was the last to do it, winning in 1983 in Helsinki before taking Olympic gold at Sarajevo the next year.

For his part, Chipeur landed a pair of triple flips and a triple toe loop, but that sequence was sandwiched by bailouts on planned triple Axels.

The 25-year-old put forth a spirited end to the program with a triple-double combination and a strong combination spin. He achieved a score of 113.70 to put his overall total at 170.92.

As for Chan, he will look to future competitions for better results.

Chan won silver behind Lysacek at the 2009 world championships in Los Angeles, but began this season with a calf injury and then changed coaches, replacing Don Laws with Nichol.

Those world championships did not include Plushenko and Lambiel — both retired at the time — or Takahashi, who was out after knee surgery.

Chan was far from the only skater whose Olympics was, to put it mildly, a learning experience.

Abbott, Joubert disappoint

Tomas Verner of the Czech Republic, fourth at the worlds last year, fell on a triple Axel, popped out of another attempt, and then fell on his stomach during his footwork sequence.

Verner was 19th.

The greatest disappointment came down to either two-time American champion Jeremy Abbott or 2007 world champion Brian Joubert of France.

Both attempted quads unsuccessfully, though Joubert was much closer to the goal.

Abbott then got tentative in his free skate after the missed quad, opting out of a triple flip before pulling it together over the final two minutes of his program. He finished in ninth.

The outspoken Joubert was 16th. Joubert has blamed his poor recent results on unspecified problems in his personal life.

The men's competition included four former world champions and eight world championship medallists.