World champion Alysa Liu won the gold medal in a high-class figure skating final. The American, who came third in the free skate, overtook two Japanese women and crowned her comeback with an Olympic victory.
After the short program, a three-way battle for the gold medal in women’s figure skating emerged: the two Japanese Ami Nakai and Kaori Sakamoto and the world champion Alysa Liu from the USA were within 2.2 points before the final free skate. And an exciting evening of figure skating developed, in which Alysa Liu overtook the two Japanese women at the end and became Olympic champion (226.79 points). Silver went to Sakamoto (224.90), who will end her career after the season. 17-year-old Nakai (219.16) celebrated bronze in her Olympic debut.
US runner Glenn puts pressure on the top group
The standard of running was already very high in the first starter groups, and over the course of the evening numerous runners improved their season or personal best performances. Among them was US ice skating star Amber Glenn. The 26-year-old was a favorite for a medal, but made a mistake in the short program with a jump that she only managed to get onto the ice twice instead of three times. In tears, she only finished the short program in 13th place.
Glenn was almost ten points behind a medal before she entered the four minutes of her free skate. There she put everything into it, had a sparkling clean triple axel right at the start and was on track with the exception of one mistake at the Rittberger. She was rewarded with a total of 214.91 points, also the season’s best. In doing so, she put pressure on the runners who were still to come – they couldn’t afford to make any big mistakes.
Liu makes the hall dance
Many of the following runners showed good to very good performances – but the clean triple axel alone brought Glenn so many points that she moved up place after place. Until the Japanese Mone Chiba, who finished the short program in fourth place and displaced Glenn. In the end, Amber Glenn improved to fifth place.
Glenn’s compatriot Liu went one better, conjuring up a funky, even rousing performance on the ice to the disco sounds of Donna Summers. The audience in the Milano Ice Skating Arena cheered on the 20-year-old, who had already ended her career and celebrated her comeback just two years ago.
Nakai can’t counter Liu
With her flawless freestyle, Liu overtook Sakamoto, the Japanese woman who followed her, because the 25-year-old didn’t show enough of a jump combination and her lead over Liu wasn’t big enough. The American had already secured silver, the decision rested with 17-year-old Nakai. To the song “What a wonderful world” she glided across the ice as smoothly as butter, did a triple axel and made it exciting. The judges gave her a score of 140.45 for her performance – only the ninth best routine of the evening, which was not enough for Liu or Sakamoto. Liu was an Olympic champion – she is the first American women’s figure skating Olympic champion since Sarah Hughes in Salt Lake City in 2002.
Sauter, who starts for Romania, is 17th.
A German starter did not take part in the women’s individual decision – at least not for Germany. Julia Sauter from Ravensburg, who competes for Romania, also qualified for the free program in 16th place at her Olympic premiere. As a teenager, Sauter saw few career opportunities at the German Ice Skating Union (DEU) and changed associations on the advice of a coach. Last year, Sauter received the Romanian citizenship necessary for the Olympics and carried the Romanian flag at the opening ceremony in Italy.
And the 28-year-old also showed a very clean program in the free skate. She performed the jumping elements flawlessly on the ice in the Milan Arena, and her expression and choreography fit together so well that she received 127.8 points for the free skate from the judges. That made a total of 190.93 points – a personal best and ultimately 17th place for the Romanian, as she was displaced by one place by the Italian Lara Naki Gutmann. Nevertheless, a really satisfactory result for Sauter at her premiere.