The Associated Press
Gold medalist Sarah Hughes of the United States waves during the awards ceremony Thursday for women's figure skating at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

The Associated Press
Michelle Kwan watches her scores after competing in the women's free skating program Thursday. Kwan finished third.

Olympics crowns new queen of the ice

16-year-old newcomer shocks veterans

JOHN JEANSONNE, NEWSDAY

Originally published Friday, February 22, 2002

SALT LAKE CITY -- Sarah Hughes on Thursday night won the precious women's figure skating gold medal amid a stunning Olympic twist, shocking co-favorites Michelle Kwan and Irina Slutskaya with an exquisite long program.

Hours after the Russian delegation made a blustering threat to pull out of the Salt Lake City Games, Hughes took nationalism out of the women's competition. Performing second of the final six, she won it with a difficult and strenuous program.

With the approval of the crowd of 16,000-plus, Hughes knocked both Kwan and Slutskaya to lower rungs on the medal podium and, at 16, was Olympic champion.

The Kings Point, N.Y., teen vaulted from a fourth-place finish after the short program. The scoring was so close, there were heavy minutes of confusion after Slutskaya, the last competitor, finished her long program.

Hughes becomes the seventh U.S. women's figure skating champion in Olympic history.

"I didn't think it was possible coming in fourth," Hughes said of Tuesday's short program.

The feat Thursday night was a combination of her own flawless skating and the mistakes by her competitors. Sasha Cohen took a harsh tumble off a jump, as did Kwan, while Slutskaya kept from falling by putting her hand to the ice.

"I made a few mistakes," Kwan said. "It just wasn't meant to be."

The figure skating finals come with pre-set story lines, featuring a cast of major and minor players.

Here we had the question of whether Kwan was worthy of becoming ruler of her sport at age 21 or whether the little hoi polloi of jumping beans out there was ready to rule. In 1998, Kwan was thrown into the moat by pint-sized Tara Lipinski, and this time there was the nifty Slutskaya and whippet-like Cohen demanding respect.

In the end, it was Hughes coming from the back of the pack to write an improbable ending to this Olympic story.

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- The Olympian: Salt Lake 2002

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