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He opened his program with a quad toe loop - triple toe loop combination followed by a triple Axel. He also included his Biellmann spin as part of his final combination spin, despite his coach Alexei Mishen previously telling the press that he wouldn’t be including that spin here to avoid pulling a muscle. "This was an important program and I had less pain in my back and knee and sometimes I can be lazy so I didn’t put in qualifying or at practice but I did today," said Plushenko. Plushenko apologized to the press for avoiding the mixed zone and thanked them for their understanding during the men’s short program press conference. "I am not sure if we will have an operation on my knee or not," said Plushenko. Plushenko will be the final skater in the twenty-four-man field for the men’s free skating final on Thursday evening. France’s Brian Joubert oozed self-confidence during and after his clean short program to Pink Floyd’s "Time." He opened with a quad toe loop – triple toe loop combination. He fought and held on to his triple Axel. There were no problems with his spins or footwork and he also included a triple flip. His marks ranged from 5.6-5.8 for technical merit and from 5.7 – 5.9 for presentation. Plushenko had already skated and Joubert’s ordinals immediately after his program were one-third-place ordinal and the rest second place ordinals for second place. "I think my short program was better at European championships but being in the last group is never easy. I watched Evgeni skate and he did really well. Being in the top three I am going to do everything to win a medal here," said Joubert. Germany’s Stefan Lindeman put together a second strong performance before his home crowd and was visibly emotional at the program’s conclusion as the audience cheered for him and gave him a standing ovation for his performance. He opened with a lovely quad toe loop – triple toe loop. He then successfully fought for his triple Axel and saved his triple Lutz. His marks ranged from 5.5 to 5.7 for technical merit and from 5.5 to 5.8 for presentation and he finished third. "It was simply the greatest feeling to skate tonight. I didn’t hear anything more after my clean combination because the crowd went crazy and so did I," said Lindemann. Switzerland’s Stephane Lambiel skated to Vanessa Mae’s "Liberty" fighting for his jumps and including his impressive spins with multiple unique positions. He fought for and landed his triple Axel and his triple flip but he fell on his quad toe loop. "I had to wait thirty minutes which is a long wait and I don’t like skating last but I tried to keep fighting and flying," he said. When asked about skating in the final group of men, Lambiel said, "I didn’t expect this and maybe it is too much but I will keep fighting." He currently sits in fourth place and will skate twentieth for the free skate. The USA’s Michael Weiss gave a dynamic performance to "Henry V" to move up in the standings to 5th place in the short program and overall. He opened with a two-footed quad toe – triple toe loop combination. He did a huge triple Axel and a strong triple Lutz. His change foot sit spin was particularly effective with his music selection and the audience was clapping along during his straight-line footwork sequence. He received technical marks ranging from 4.8 to 5.5 and from 5.2 to 5.8 for presentation. "I am disappointed that I two-footed the quad since I have been doing clean ones in practice," he said. His teammate Johnny Weir was also "on" and in his zone for his vibrant performance to "Valse Triste" by Sibelius. Weir opened with a triple Lutz – triple toe loop combination followed by a triple Axel. His footwork sections were particularly strong and balladic and his final jump was a triple flip. "For my first worlds, I am very satisfied with my placement; I thought some of my marks at U.S. Nationals (Atlanta) were a little over inflated. Skating later in the day is much better for me," said Weir. The third American Matt Savoie could have been rewarded more for his very good performance tonight but he skated early (12th in the skating order). That may have hampered his placement as he finished behind some skaters with more mistakes. He opened with a strong triple Axel followed by a triple flip – triple toe combination. Savoie had a step out of his final triple Lutz jump in the last 25 seconds of his program, his only error. He is doing quads in his Peoria practices but elected not to attempt one here as he is still rehabilitating his left knee after surgery the beginning of May. The lack of a quad affected his base mark. "Landing that triple Axel tonight was very important to me. I am satisfied because this is only my second world championship. "I just stepped out of the triple Lutz (landing). I should have stayed into it a little longer. I got somewhat excited but I got over that quickly," said Savoie. Savoie’s knee improved substantially on Tuesday. "I am in a lot less pain with it. Today all we did to treat the knee was ice after running through the options. We are now treating it less intensely," he explained. Canada’s Emanuel Sandhu had a partial meltdown but fought back for a successful triple Lutz. He opened with a single toe and then fell on his triple Axel. He did keep the rest of the program together for spins and footwork. "Things were a little rushed and that affected my timing tonight and I was over thinking. At least this time I am 11th and not 18th," said Sandhu. |
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Free Skating
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In Dortmund, Evgeni Plushenko of Russia won his third world title, overcoming his injured knees to pull off two quad toe loops and all his triples except the triple loop. "I am upset about my triple loop. It was because of a sequin off somebody’s costume. I found it when I was on the ice. It was red," said Plushenko. He opened with a quad toe loop – triple toe combination but elected not to include his planned additional double loop. He followed that with a second quad toe loop. He completed his solo triple axel. He next did a triple Axel – half loop – triple Flip combination. "Every body else did two quads so I did two quads. I then did more with this combination," said Plushenko. His technical marks ranged from 5.8 – 5.9 and from 5.9 to 6.0. He received three 6.0’s for this performance. "While I was waiting for my marks, that is what I was thinking about. Would they be 5.9’s or 6.0’s he said with a smile. He doesn’t know yet if he will need knee surgery. "After the world championships, I have 18 shows on the Champions On Ice tour and then I will go home to Russia and see my doctors and ask again," said Plushenko. Plushenko hopes to add a quad Salchow and maybe a new combination if his knees are healthy next season. "I like skating at home so I think I will like skating in Moscow next year better than here, a little bit," he said with a grin. The silver medalist Brian Joubert successfully interpreted his program to the "Matrix soundtrack" with strong elements. He opened with a quad toe loop followed by triple flip and then a triple Axel. His second quad toe was in combination but he had a turn hop out of the triple toe loop. The rest of his program was clean and included triple loop, triple Salchow, and triple Lutz. He was very excited when he finished, waving his arms in the air and acknowledging the enthusiastic crowd. His costume utilized the famous green Matrix symbol very effectively. Already thinking ahead, Joubert plans to include the quad Salchow next season. "I have a very good team behind me. As team leader Gwendal Peizerat was wonderful. I will work again next season with Alexei Yagudin and Laurent Doupouilly and I hope to do a good job again next season and in 2006," he said. He also took the time to thank the press for their interest in him and expressed hope he would be back at the press conferences next season. He’s smart as well as talented. The last time there was a German medalist on the Men’s world championship podium was 1983, a silver medal by Norbert Schramm. Stefan Lindemann had one of those magic moments in skating where nearly everything went just right for him before his home crowd, which went just crazy throughout his performance and after. He said, "It felt so comfortable out on the ice, and everything felt so easy. The audience carried me through the program. I thought when I came here I would be maybe 10th to 14th so now to be third is a sensation." "I did have a mistake on my quad combination (where he put a hand down but stayed up) but once I landed the triple Axel – triple toe loop combination next I was sure I would do it tonight (hang on to his position of third place)," said Lindemann who landed two quads and eight triples.
Switzerland’s Stephane Lambiel gave an incredible electric performance that any other night would have assured him a place on the medal stand. He completed two quads and six clean triples. His spins were outstanding with many unique positions and he flew into the jumps with great speed. "Last week I tried two quads (in my program) for the first time in practice. We never even discussed trying two quads, but when I stepped on the ice, I just wanted to do them. After the second quad I lost all my fear," he said. He opened with a huge triple Axel followed by a quad toe loop with a step out on the triple toe loop. He also included a triple flip – triple toe loop combination, a solo quad toe loop and then saved his triple loop. His final two jumps were a triple Lutz and a triple Salchow. He skated a new program from the qualifying round, "Buddha Bar IV" and was the best of the night in interpreting his program. Lambiel said, "The atmosphere in the arena was incredible. I fed from the energy of the crowds. It felt like home." The audience loved him back with a standing ovation that was well deserved. American Johnny Weir finished fifth in the free skating program, the first man in the standings not attempting a quad jump tonight. He gave a impassioned performance with eight triples and was congratulated on it by new World Hall of Fame inductee Toller Cranston. He completed his triple Axel – triple toe combination, followed by a triple toe instead of the quad, then a triple Axel. He next included a triple Lutz – triple toe loop combination followed by a triple flip and triple loop. He skipped a planned triple Salchow. Teammate Michael Weiss slightly two-footed his quad toe loop in his combination with a triple toe loop but gave a strong and dynamic performance to his "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" free skate. He then tripled his second quad attempt but rallied later to land a triple Axel – double toe combination and four additional triples (loop – Salchow – Lutz – and flip). "The last group was so tough that it was an honor for me to be with them. I was a bit nervous today. My big mistake was my first triple axel was a double. After it I really fought and now I am glad the season is finished," said Weiss. The third American Matt Savoie finished 15th in the free skate but 16th overall. Savoie said, "I am really excited to be on the world team, especially after this season but the knee did dampen some of my excitement. Also practices were not going that well but they did get better through the week once my knee calmed down." He added, "It is a little disappointing to fall on the flip as that is my easiest jump but I was really tired at that point. I think it is more I rushed it on the takeoff but mostly attributable to fatigue." |
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2004 World Championships Men's Medalists
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