Pair Long Program

Two Chinese pair teams set new World and Olympic records last night in the Pairs Free Skate. Shen and Zhao beat out their team mates Pang and Tong for the gold, but Pang and Tong put out the best long program of the evening. The gold was won in a ‘gray area’. A gray area is an element or a feature in which the call could of gone in their favor or against the skaters. In the case of 2010 Olympic Champions, Shen and Zhao, they did an axel lasso lift that was in the gray area. The lift was not completed and fortunate for them they managed to avoid a Level 0. In the lift the rotation in the air by the girl was exactly at the minimum requirement of 2 revs. However, it is possible that the call could have been a Level 0 which would of cost Shen and Zhao at least 4.5 points and the gold medal. In my opinion the call was correct, but a difficult decision for the technical panel. I think when a skater or team is in a gray area, the technical panel should always go in favor of the skaters. It was very reassuring for me to see that basic principle decide a Gold Medal at the Olympic Games. Both American teams should feel very proud this morning for the way the handled the Olympic pressure and represented our country. However, the Chinese and Germans dominated the pairs event (side note, this is first Olympics since 1964 that a Russian team did not win Gold). The US needs to get back into the hunt for a world or Olympic medal. We have a long way to go, but it can be done.