Blog

Nathan Chen redeems himself

One of the things that has always fascinated me as an arts writer and singer is performance anxiety. Why do some people rise to an occasion when others, perhaps more talented, shrink?

Nerves have a lot to do with it and, as with most challenges, only you yourself can overcome them. No one can do it for you. Indeed, others, however well-meaning, may only make it worse.

In the men’s figure skating free program, Nathan Chen – who had turned in disastrous performances in the team competition and short program – put on a skating clinic, executing six quad jumps and earning the fifth highest score in Olympic history. What made the difference? ...

Read more

 

Read More

Goodbye, Evgeni; Hello, Yuzuru

Is there any sport with more drama than figure skating? The men’s short program Thursday may not have been Tonya and Nancy – What is? – but it was emotion-packed. First, Evgeni Plushenko withdrew and then retired. You could see the pain etched on his face as he tried his jumps. I haven’t been his biggest fan, because of the arrogance and defiance he brought to his silver-medal finish at Vancouver, but you’ve got to give the guy credit for leading the Russians to gold in the team competition. He’s a gamer. Still, at 31 and with two back surgeries behind him, Evgeni represents the past.

Right after Plushenko withdrew, the unsteady American Jeremy Abbott crashed on a quadruple jump, but had the presence to get up and finish, the crowd supporting him all the way.

But then came a group of young men with charm, personality and the technical goods… Read more

 

Read More