So I have no time to post tonight…but
CONGRATULATIONS TO TESSA VIRTUE AND SCOTT MOIR FOR WINNING AN OLYMPIC GOLD MEDAL IN ICE DANCE TONIGHT!!!!!
London and Ilderton, Ontario, as well as the whole of Canada are so proud and happy for you!
=)
I promise I will post on them later. 
Okay so I don’t have much time to blog tonight, but I just want to say… TESSA AND SCOTT ARE SO HOT! (lol that rhymed!)
Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir’s original dance tonight was a fiery Flamenco. They were not the last to dance, but their powerful performance was one of those that kept everyone captivated with every free leg extension and turn of their gorgeous faces, until the intense ending to their perfect dance brought everyone to their feet. Even me, at home, I was jumping up and down and squealing like a pig on drugs after their dance was over. (I felt a bit bad for Belbin & Agosto for having to skate after them.) Their score, like their dance, did not disappoint: 68.41, bringing their running total score to 111.15…putting them into first place!
(Photo by Getty Images, from ctvolympics.ca)
USA’s Meryl Davis & Charlie White performed an amazing Indian folk dance, earning them 67.08 to put them into second place with a score of 108.55.
The Russians Domnina and Shabalin landed in 3rd spot after an Australian aboriginal dance with absurd costumes…and not quality dancing either. Their running total is 106.60.
USA’s Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto are in 4th position with 103.33.
Canada’s Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier are now in 17th spot with 79.31. Not bad, kids!
Tomorrow night…Pacific Coliseum…Canada will be watching the most talented Canadian ice dance pair that we have seen in a long time : Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. I am NOT going to jinx it by asking if they will win a certain colour of medal, but there is no doubt that Canada is hoping for it along with Tessa and Scott. Best of luck to them, and I can’t wait to be emotionally moved by their free dance again. no matter what results come out of it! =)
Oh and I should have mentioned this earlier, but you can rewatch everything on ctvolympics.ca! Without the commentary though…I think.
The mother of Canadian figure skating champion and Olympic medal hopeful Joannie Rochette died suddenly in Vancouver Sunday morning, shortly after arriving to watch her daughter compete.
Canadian team officials said Therese Rochette passed away after being rushed to Vancouver General Hospital.
Rochette died of a heart attack. She was 55.
Joannie Rochette was given the news by her father Normand and her coach Manon Perron at the Olympic Village Sunday morning around 6 a.m.
Officials said Rochette intends to compete at the Olympics, despite the shock of her mother’s death. The short program for women’s figure skating begins Tuesday night at Pacific Coliseum. The free skate, after which medals are awarded, is scheduled for Thursday. Rochette, 24, will skate 26th of 30 skaters Tuesday night. (click here to read more…)
Tonight I couldn’t wait to turn on the TV because it was the start of the Ice Dance competition! This compulsory dance was Tango Romantica.
Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin are currently in 1st spot with a score of 43.76. Their score, however, raised questions over the judging panel…some international judges thought that they should not have scored so high because of some lack of quality and did not have the level of expression of Canada’s Virtue & Moir (!!!!) or USA’s Davis & White. There is fear that a Russia-favouring jury could benefit these Russians. Well, this problem isn’t mine to discuss. I only hope that there will not be another scandal like the one that happened two Olympics ago in Salt Lake City that almost costed Jamie Sale & David Pelletier their Gold. I hope that the Gold will be awarded to the most deserving ice dance pair, whoever it will be.
(visit CTVolympics.ca for more on the current controversy.)
Canada’s Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir skated last and came in a very close second at 42.74. (More on them later!) USA’s Meryl Davis and Charlie White, who share coaches with Virtue & Moir, came in third at 41.47. USA’s Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto are 4th with 40.83.
(Picture from ctvolympics.ca)
Canada’s surprise team of Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier came in 15th after a great skate with 31.14. (I say surprise because they won the second Olympics Canadian ice dance spot from the anticipated Kaitlyn Weaver & Andrew Poje at Nationals in January!)
Now…for the main subject of this post: Tessa and Scott.I can’t even begin to express how much I love them! I love them to bits! Okay, enough with the craziness. But seriously, who wouldn’t like watching them? Their tango tonight (last dance of the night) was sizzling hot! Rumour has it that they may have also danced the last tango in ice dance history, because the ISU(International Skating Union) will be voting soon to shorten the Ice Dance competition…and there won’t be a compulsory dance.
(Picture by Getty Images, from ctvolympics.ca)
Tessa and Scott are such a beautiful and talented pairing with undeniable chemistry that draws me in with each and every dance that they dance. They have been skating together since Tessa was 7 and Scott was 9, and now they are 20 and 22, respectively. On ice, off ice, they have so much respect for one another…they are so cute! I can’t help but wonder if they are a couple off ice…so far with every interview, Tessa has either skillfully deflected the question or warped her answer to seem like she is answering the question but really is not.
Click on this picture to watch a super cute interview of them on CTV!
Here, Tessa says maybe…teehee!
Their cuteness aside, they really are a very talented pair of ice dancers. Commentators have said many many times: they have the potential to take ice dance to a whole new level. That said, they really are Canada’s hope for an Olympic Gold medal! Every dance that I have watched them skate has been flawless, if not almost perfect, and I hope they continue to ride this wave all through to their free dance and knock down any judging biases.
My favourite Tessa & Scott dance, of all time, will have to be their free dance to Mahler’s 5th Symphony. I first fell in love with this dance at Skate Canada in November 2009 when they performed a spell-binding version of it.
Unfortunately, the good version of it got deleted on Youtube, so here is their free dance at 2010 Nationals (just as good!) Just click on the picture to go to the link.
Their lifts are so amazing, and my favourite move is what they call “Goose,” where Tessa balances on Scott’s right thigh, then jumps up and Scott catches her. So beautiful!
I absolutely cannot wait to watch it at the Olympics free dance on Monday! (Apparently Tessa has another new dress for it!) But up next – Original Dance on Sunday. =)
Congratulations to Evan Lysacek for winning Gold in Mens Figure Skating at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games (score 257.67)! Also I must thank him for winning, because by doing so he has proved to Evgeni Plushenko that quality can be worth more than the quad. Evan’s skate was clean, perfect, and enthralling – definitely an Olympic Gold medal performance and he certainly deserves this glory.
Plushenko settles for Silver (256.36), and Daisuke Takahashi takes the Bronze (247.23), finally winning a medal in mens figure skating for Japan.
(Picture from Paul Chiasson, The Canadian Press)
Also, Congratulations to Patrick Chan for finishing in 5th place at his first Olympic games ever (score of 241.42). This is already an amazing accomplishment and Canada is so proud of him. In our hopes of winning the gold medal for mens figure skating, we may have forgotten that Patrick is only 19 and it is only his first Olympics…well, he is, and it is! This Olympics has been a great experience for him, and from here on he can only continue to improve and work 
towards achieving better results in competitions of the future. Like he said last night, he’s climbed the Mt. Everest of athletes once, the Olympics, and every other competition will seem so much easier to cope with. He’s so talented and I can’t wait to see him skate more…the nearest is the Exhibition Gala on Feb 27th! =D
(Pictures by Getty Images, from ctvolympics.ca)
I must also send my regards to Stephane Lambiel(4th at 246.72) and Nobunari Oda (7th at 238.54). Lambiel seems to have it all – both quad and quality. Unfortunately, he hadn’t delivered as well as he could this Olympics, and he just missed the podium by a little less than 1 point. And Oda…he would’ve pulled up in front of Patrick Chan if not for his skate mishap near the end of his performance, which caused him to lose 2.00+ points. It was so unfortunate, but I suppose the good thing is that it didn’t make him lose a spot on the podium.
And skating tomorrow night : Ice Dance – Compulsory! Canada’s Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier are skating in the 4th flight, while Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir are skating very last, in the 6th flight. Hopefully the kids at Canuck Place tomorrow night will let me watch some figure skating on TV – so I can follow along!
Tonight’s Mens Short program at the Pacific Coliseum was an exciting yet tense event for contending male figure skaters – it was the chance to prove themselves worthy.
Russia’s Evgeni Plushenko came out of retirement to compete once more in the Olympics, and he has come back as proud as ever. Tonight he brought a quad in combination and now has the top score entering the free skate on Thursday(see below for score list). To my understanding, it is his belief that he is the best, and that a male figure skater without a quad is not worthy to compete.
Plushenko probably entered the Olympics thinking that no other skater would even come close to him in score – well if that’s what he thought, then he certainly thought wrong…very wrong. Tonight, second and third places were very closely held by Evan Lysacek of USA and Daisuke Takahashi of Japan, both of whose SUPERB programs did NOT include a quad.
(Picture taken from ctvolympics.ca)
Canada’s Patrick Chan is the one Canada was watching tonight, and I believe he made an admirable effort. He is one who believes that the quad is not everything, and rightfully so – nobody can match the grace and delicate details he puts into every move he makes, and if anybody can rack up points from that second artistic score, it’s Patrick Chan. Although his performance tonight was not his best (stepped out on the triple axle, small mistakes, and 1.00 deduction from not ending in time with the music), he still came out 7th and may still be considered in contention for a medal placing. His spot now is probably better for him mentally than of he were placed higher, since he doesn’t have so much pressure going into the free skate and has a better chance to show everything he’s got…and help prove Plushenko wrong!
~~~~~~~~~
Dear Patrick,
you made a really great effort tonight, and Canada is so proud of you! Take a break tomorrow and embrace the Olympic atmosphere of Vancouver, then come back on Thursday and give it your all. You are so talented and we love you so much. GO PATRICK GO!
Love, Joan from Vancouver – your fan!!!!
~~~~~~~~~
Some major disappointments tonight include the performances of Brian Joubert of France, Vaughn Chipeur of Canada, and Tomas Verner of Czech Republic, and Jeremy Abbott of USA. These men unfortunately did not deliver tonight, and are well out of contention for the podium. Next time, boys!
Top 10 Results and other mentions after Mens Short Program
1 | Evgeni Plushenko 90.85
2 | Evan Lysacek 90.30
3 | Daisuke Takahashi 90.25
4 | Nobunari Oda 84.85
5 | Stephane Lambiel 84.63
6 | Johnny Weir 82.10
7 | Patrick Chan 81.12
8 | Takahiko Kozuka 79.59
9 | Michal Brezina 78.80
10| Denis Ten 76.24
…
15| Jeremy Abbott 69.40
18| Brian Joubert 68.00
19| Tomas Verner 65.32
24| Vaughn Chipeur 57.22
(results reported from ctvolympics.ca)
Mens Free Skate will be happening on Thursday…til then! Keep your head up, Patrick!
(On another note, I just saw on TV that the lovely Mary Murphy from SYTYCD is in town…and she screamed her way across the zipline in downtown Vancouver.)
Hey everyone!
I don’t have much time to post tonight, but here’s brief little thing.
What an exciting night it has been.
First – the medal ceremony for Alex Bilodeau for his Canadian Gold in moguls. What a well deserved gold – not only is he talented, but he is such an amazing person too.
Second – China wins Gold and Silver in the Pairs Figure Skating event!
Xue Shen & Hong Bo Zhao finally win Gold at their 3rd Olympics at ages 31 and 36!! Although their free skate was not perfect, their short program score was high enough to overtake the 2nd place Chinese team of Qing Pang & Jian Tong by a little over 3 points. Shen & Zhao’s overall winning score was 216.57. Pang & Tong’s free skate was the best of the night, and allowed them to procure the Silver medal very deservedly with a score of 213.31.
Germany’s Savchenko & Szolkowy were unable to deliver as they had hoped, but still earned a prestigious Bronze with a score of 210.60.
Canada’s Jessica Dube & Bryce Davison were also among the teams who were unable to deliver tonight, and they finished 6th overall with the final score of 187.11. They are only 22 and 24, and it is already their 2nd Olympics – lots of time to improve and already so much experience under their belt – can’t wait to see them in 2014!
Anabelle Langlois & Cody Hay finished 9th with a score of 179.97! Although their free skate had a few mistakes, they still carried out the rest of the routine with drive and passion, and they should be very happy with their standing.
With both Canadian pairs teams in top 10, we have everything to be proud of! After all, some would say that the experience is what matters, and the medals are just a bonus.
On another note, congratulations to Team China for winning their FIRST Olympic Gold medal in Pairs Figure Skating!
Stay tuned….for PATRICK CHAN TOMORROW!
(All scores reported from ctvolympics.ca)
(Picture from Reuters Pictures)
新年快樂, 身體建康, 學業進步…利是逗來!
Happy Chinese New Year, everyone!
I spent some time with my grandparents and family at lunch today, and in the afternoon I went shopping with my cousin at Richmond Centre! My buys were a Muk Muk plushie for $9.70 (usual price is $16.00!!!!!!!), The Time Traveller’s Wife on sale (!!!), and a nice hummingbird graphic tee from Jacob Connexion.
After shopping, my family and I return home to catch the figure skating pairs short program on TV! Guess what we saw in our backyard as we step out of the garage?
Yup. A pair of raccoons were humping in our backyard. I couldn’t help but exclaim, “Holy crap!” but that didn’t scare them away at all. They just kept on working, obviously too preoccupied to mind us humans. They didn’t even do anything (except for continue what they were doing) when I crept a bit closer to take this picture. They were there for at least a good 20 minutes after we left them (we kept peeking at them through the window). I hope we don’t have raccoon babies running around our house soon…
So back to skating. After immediately turning on the TV upon arrival back home, we found out that we had missed the short program of Xue Shen & Hong Bo Zhao! It turns out they had randomly picked to perform first, so unfortunately they were already done by the time we got home. =( Fortunately, ctvolympics.ca has the whole 3.5 hours online, so I have just watched their program. They are simply amazing – perfect unison, huge triple twist, amazing lift, and such passion that could touch even viewers separated by a screen and kilometers away. Their world best score of 76.66 was well deserved, and they currently rank 1st after the short program.
(Picture from Associated Press.)
Germany’s Aliona Savchenko & Robin Szolkowy finished at a close 2nd of 75.96 with their breathtaking program, “Send in the Clowns.” This program of theirs is always so entertaining and beautiful, but tonight’s was not as perfect as usual – a bit of unison problem in the side-by-side element. Still, very highly scored and they are easily within reach of Gold. (Or are they?)
Currently in 3rd place is the Russian team of Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov with 74.16.
4th and 5th place are currently held by the other two Chinese pairs teams: Qing Pang & Jian Tong at 71.50 and Dan Zhang & Hao Zhang following closely at 71.28.
Canada’s own Jessica Dube & Bryce Davison are currently in 6th place, following a good performance that was flawed only with Jessica’s fall on the triple Salchow and slight unison problems. Their score was 65.36. They will need to perform their best to fight for a spot on the podium!
(Picture from Paul Chiasson, The Canadian Press)
Anabelle Langlois & Cody Hay are behind their teammates and in 7th place, following a very strong performance of their program, “Fascination,” that was awarded with a standing ovation. Even I was touched while watching it from my telly. Their score was 64.20. This was pretty amazing, following their difficult warm-up practice earlier today. I have high hopes for them for their free skate tomorrow!
(Picture from Getty Images)
And there you have it, the Pairs Figure Skating short program results.
(All scores reported from ctvolympics.ca/figure-skating/results-and-schedules).
Now for the questions:
Will Shen & Zhao win their coveted Gold medal?
Will Canada have a spot on the podium?
Will China have a clean sweep of the podium?
We’ll just have to wait and see – Pairs Free Skate is coming up tomorrow, February 15th @ 5pm.
GOOD LUCK TO ALL THE SKATERS!!!!
First of all…祝大家新年快樂, 恭喜發射!
Tomorrow, February 14th, is the start of the figure skating events at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and coincidentally, it is also Valentine’s Day and Chinese New Year!
Figure Skating Pairs Short Program is scheduled to begin at 4:30pm, and for those who didn’t get tickets to see it (like myself), it will be broadcasted live from various channels:
CTV (9) – figure skating will be covered live as a part of their Olympic Prime Time.
TSN (30) – there will also be live coverage of figure skating during their Olympic Prime Time.
SportsNet – from 4:30 – 8:00pm, there will be complete dedication to the pairs short.
To be safe, always check with CTV Olympics for the most updated listings.
So…who’s being featured tomorrow?
From Team Canada: Jessica Dube & Bryce Davison, and Anabelle Langlois & Cody Hay!
Above photo from ctvolympics.ca
GO TEAM GO! I think we’ve got a pretty strong team this year…we have a chance at a medal!
Also featured are crowd favourites and two-time Olympic Bronze medallists Xue Zhen & Hongbo Zhao from China, who are back for their 3rd Olympics in contention for a Gold medal. I can’t wait to see them skate!
Obviously, many other skaters will be competing, but since I can’t list them all, we’ll just have to wait and see tomorrow!
Tonight was the official acknowledgement that the world is watching Vancouver. The whole world is AT Vancouver, and such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and experience is much to be proud of. I am proud of being a Vancouverite.
In celebration of the 2010 Olympics Opening Ceremony at BC Place, I wore red to my volunteer shift at Canuck Place, and spent the night in front of the TV with the kids, family members, and fellow volunteers. The show started promptly at 6:00pm. It was quite amazing to watch it, knowing that what we saw on the TV screen had happened just a few seconds ago, so nearby.
Overall, the ceremony had highlights and downfalls, to say the least.
Some highlights included:
1) The sight of a sea of white from the white-poncho-wearing-audience and snowy stage – this was very very amazing.
2) the sight of 66000 little lights waving in the dark.
3) The minute of silence for Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili. It was breathtaking to see the silence in the stadium on TV, and I can only imagine how powerful it must have been live.
4) KD Lang’s performance of Hallelujah.
5) The parade of the athletes.
As proud of Vancouver and Team Canada as I am, I couldn’t help but remember the downfalls of the ceremony even more:
1) Variety of performances – it is true that the aboriginal peoples are a big part of Canadian heritage, but the multicultural mosaic is arguably even more important today; in my opinion, multiculturalism defines current day Canada. To my great disappointment, there was no performance that highlighted Canadian multiculturalism. There was only a slight mention of ‘multiculturalism being part of our tapestry’ in the slam poem. I think the program planners were missing something.
2) Length of performances – as amazing as the moving screens 
and glowing images are, it started getting quite repetitive and some of the performances carried on way too long. One such example was the twirling skiers/snowboarders on the screen mountain.
3) The lighting of the internal cauldron – it was such an embarrassment as a Vancouverite to see the malfunction of the pillars of the cauldron. While the cauldron itself is quite stunning, the missing pillar will be the thing that engraves itself in the world’s minds when recalling the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.
Despite the ceremony’s many ups and downs, it was so beautiful to see the sportsmanship and respect the athletes have for each other, and I think that is the most important thing to remember. Good luck to all athletes at the 21st Winter Olympic Games, here in Vancouver!
(Above picture courtesy of media.nola.com & sports.yahoo.com, respectively.)
joan's bowl of noodles 