It was minutes after the women's Olympic figure skating competitors and Stojko had reveal lead piece at hand. He began to tick down, aspect by factor, precisely why the guy sensed Adelina Sotnikova of Russia deserved to beat defending champ Yuna Kim of Southern Korea and Carolina Kostner of Italy.

a�?Adelina emerged crammed,a�? Stojko mentioned. a�?Did the other two do have more gorgeous skating? Positively. But it's a sport, and this also had been totally reasonable.a�?

S. women went without a medal in straight Olympics for very first time since 1948

It was no real surprise that Stojko, a two-time OIympic silver medalist from Canada known for their athleticism, may have this type of a viewpoint about a results certain to end up being being among the most questionable and debated in figure skating's checkered judging background.

His feelings that Sotnikova had made their wonder victory Thursday according to the mathematics for the scoring program got discussed by a number of more previous skaters, like Olympic medalists Philippe Candeloro of France and Paul Wylie on the usa.

But actually they'd questions about the judging, which smelled of house cooking to sate a roaring Russian group within Iceberg Skating Palace.

a�?I don't have a problem with the result, apart from the [margin] of it,a�? Wylie said. a�?The expectations had been these were planning crown king Yuna one last time, as soon as they failed to come to pass, it really is like, a�?just how performed that arise?'a�?

Sotnikova, 17, ninth in just last year's industry titles, turned into the lady state's earliest Olympic women's singles champion by 5.48 factors over Kim. The Russian's mixture off huge leaps, speeds and power generated the actual situation for building that margin in the technical scars, also it directed the judges attain overly enthusiastic so she did not lose they in the ingredient score.

a�?The scores are offered because of the judges,a�? Kim stated. a�?I am not saying inside correct place to touch upon it. You'll find nothing that changes with my words.a�?

Sotnikova done with points to for Kim. Kostner ended up being next at . The 3 choose to go into the complimentary skate separated by below a time.

a�?Maybe Yuna don't bring sufficient information from inside the brief system since they don't should duplicate just what had occurred in Vancouver, in which we understood prior to the free skate who was attending winnings,a�? Candeloro mentioned.

Gracie Gold associated with the U.S. is last, with teammates Ashley Wagner and Polina Edmunds 7th and ninth. It intended the U.

Russia's Yulia Lipnitskaya, 15, that has being a global experience on her brilliant skating for the employees celebration, decrease both in singles applications and finished fifth.

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The Overseas Skating Union has created a scoring system so mathematically complex it is incomprehensible. On top of that, permits judging and technical panels to have massive conflicts interesting (one judge on Thursday's board, Alla Shekhovtseva, try partnered with the former Russian Skating Federation president) and include cheaters (another hot or not mobile on the judges, Yuri Balkov of Ukraine, was in fact dangling for their part in prejudging a conference.)

a�?I becamen't positive we recognized because we discover really quality in Yuna, and that I read a woman in Adelina with unrefined times,a�? Browning mentioned. a�?But i do believe I was wise sufficient to operate and check out the scars before we stated nothing.a�?

Browning spotted obvious details for precisely why Sotnikova's technical markings are 5.85 details much better than Kim's, including the South Korean getting lowered base beliefs on a twist and a footwork sequence. What perplexed him was how Sotnikova's component scores Thursday maybe nearly nine points higher than her average component results in four past contests this season.

Sotnikova made one tiny technical blunder, a two-footed getting in the third jump in a mixture, for which she is penalized.

a�?I found myself waiting for the issues she often can make, and she never generated them,a�? mentioned 1984 Olympic champ Scott Hamilton, commentating for NBC.

a�?we considered the way the element get (guidelines) were created, and Adelina checks off every container. It isn't really as great looking as Yuna or Carolina, but she really does everything the judges are searching for.a�?

Sotnikova's free of charge skate confirmed so much more sophistication than the lady helter-skelter quick regimen, even if she hammed it towards the end with a trend from the judges. They recognized that with the second greatest cost-free skate rating ever sold.