China's star figure skaters Shen/Zhao save the best for the last
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After 12 years waiting for the most coveted trophy, the Chinese figure skating couple Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo saved the best for the last to make their golden dream come true at the 21st Olympic Winter Games here Monday evening.
The two-time Olympic bronze medalists, coming back from retirement nine months ago, scored a world record 216.57 points to beat compatriots Pang Qing and Tong Jian for the pairs figure skating gold medal of the Vancouver Winter Olympics.
It has been China's first ever Olympic title in figure skating since the most populous sports powerhouse made its Winter Olympic debut 30 years ago.
And Shen and Zhao also become the first ever non-European couple to top the Olympic pairs podium in history, snapping a 12-Games winning streak of Russia who had dominated the Olympic figure skating pairs events for 46 years.
"We've been waiting for the Olympic gold medal for too long, and it's so sweet when the victory finally comes," said an emotional Zhao stepping off the podium with his now wife Shen.
The duo have been crowned as the world champions for three times before they gave up the national team training in March, 2007 following their victorious worlds in Tokyo and picking up world tour exhibitions instead.
They have also lifted six trophies of the ISU figure skating Grand Prix Finals, but had been eluded by the Olympic gold medals for three times before their Vancouver voyage across the Pacific Ocean.
Having teamed up for 18 years, Zhao and Shen, now husband and wife, become a golden combination in China.
The duo won the first world pairs title for China in 2002 and then retained it in 2003 before incurring a string of injuries.
Zhao suffered from a torn Achilles' tendon which affected them at the Turin Olympics and forced them to pull out of the 2006 worlds.
In the following year, the pair overcame a dismay 2006 to sweep all in front of them during the season, winning the Cup of China, the NHK Trophy, the Grand Prix final and the Four Continents event.
After lifting the 2007 world championships title in Tokyo, Shen and Zhao left the national team. In their words, it's a temporary leave.
The pair started to ponder retirement after finishing third in the Turin Winter Olympics in 2006 but the Olympic victorious aura is always appealing to them.
Their previous collection of a double bronze medals from both the Salt Lake City and Turin Olympic Games can never remedy the regret of the elusive Olympic crowns for their nearly two decades' skating career.
Announcing in last May to skate for the 2010 Winter Games, Shen and Zhao had only competed in three events before hitting the Olympic ice in Vancouver. They won all of the three, however, including the 2009 Grand Prix Finale.
"Two years away from the arena did not find us less competitively," said the 37-year-old Zhao in a pre-tournament interview with Xinhua.
"For most of the time, we were quite strict with our routines even when we shuttled between China and the world for Tour Exhibitions. Sometimes, it's even harder than training. So we have never stayed away from the ice."
It was the most talked topic for Shen and Zhao before ending their retirement that the Vancouver Olympics could be their perfect time to come back considering their own excellence and rivals' performance.
"In tour exhibitions, we had had interactive exchanges with spectators which enable us to skate freely and openly without considering too much on rules, which helped us a lot for our body expression, and opinions from other performers also lightened us for some current routines," added Zhao.
"We are just so happy to be back on the ice for the Olympics and it feels so good to skate without painful injuries," he added.
After Monday's free skating program, Shen and Zhao's winning 216.57 points eclipsed the previous 214.25 mark of their own set in December's Grand Prix Finale.
Fellow Chinese Pang/Tong won the free skating with a record 141.81 points, but failed to bridge the gap inherited from the short program to overtake for the crown.
Pre-Games favorites Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany, the twice reigning world champions, finished a disappointing third and Russia's Yuko Kavaguti/Alexander Smirnov, the new European champions, had to pack up empty-handed on the fourth place.
The third pair of Zhang Dan and Zhang Hao completed China's strong run, keeping their fifth position as they did after the short program as one of Zhang Hao's most adept moves, a triple toeloop, turned to his nightmare right in the beginning of their free skating performance.
