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Posted on 02/11/2006 3:57:42 PM PST by Howlin
Complete Olympic Schedule (Presumably updated with Results)
TURIN, ITALY - Michelle Kwan marched Friday night with her U.S. teammates in the athletes' parade that opened the 2006 Winter Olympics. She waved flags and screamed and did "all sorts of fun things."
Saturday morning, she paid for it.
Kwan, 25, who was granted an injury petition by U.S. Figure Skating to compete in her third Winter Olympics, cut her initial practice session short by about 15 minutes after failing to complete several jumps and left the ice without doing a run-through of her short program.
"I was a little stiff," she said at an afternoon news conference. "Sitting outside for four hours wasn't good for my body. When I woke up this morning, I didn't feel too good."
She added, "It was kind of frustrating, making mistakes at the first practice. You want to get out there and have your legs under you and do programs, but today I chose not to do programs."
Kwan's coach, Rafael Artunian, was not at the rink, and Kwan neglected to bring the CD that included her performance music. She has performed the routine without music in the past but chose Saturday to "just skate around and not put pressure on rushing into it."
Kwan drops out of Torino Olympics
Posted: Feb.12, 2006, 2:24 am CST; Updated: Feb.12, 2006, 2:32 am CST
TORINO, Italy (AP) -- Michelle Kwan dropped out of the Torino Games on Sunday morning because of a groin injury, bringing her quest for that elusive Olympic gold to its most disappointing end yet.
Kwan cut short her first practice at the games Saturday after aggravating the groin injury. Though she said she didn't want to drop out, the injury worsened as the day went on. After being evaluated early Sunday by Dr. Jim Moeller, she decided to withdraw.
"Taking myself off the team is the most difficult decision I've ever had to make,'' Kwan said in a release, "but it's the right decision. This injury prevents me from skating my best, and I've said all along that if I couldn't skate to the level that I expected from myself I'd withdraw from the team.
"The Olympics is the greatest sporting event in the world and what's most important is that the United States fields the strongest team possible. As much as I'd love to represent the United States in Torino, I would never stand in the way of that.''
The U.S. Olympic Committee has asked to replace Kwan with Emily Hughes, the third-place finisher at last month's national championships. A response was expected later this week, and Hughes was to travel to Torino on Sunday.
Kwan missed last month's U.S. nationals with a groin injury, and needed a medical bye onto the Torino team. Moeller said Sunday he does not believe the current injury is related to the groin problem Kwan had during the national championships.
This was to be the last chance at the elusive Olympic gold for Kwan, the face of figure skating for the last decade. Though she won five world championships and nine U.S. titles, she always came up short at the Olympics, winning a silver medal in 1998 and a bronze in 2002.
Kwan was expected to appear at a news conference later Sunday morning in Torino.
Are you planning to watch it? :)
FReepMail me if you want some tips on restaurants/hotels/etc.
(Ping me here, though. I'm not good about checking my mail)
I figured that would happen
She was looking pretty bad at practice
From another article:"The 17-year-old, younger sister of 2002 Olympic champion Sarah Hughes, was third at last month's national championships.
She said in a Saturday interview with WNBC-TV in New York that she would be ready to travel to Torino if needed.
"Just point me in the direction and I'm there," Hughes said.
But that could be a challenge: Blizzard warnings were posted for the New York City area, where she lives, and dozens of flights were canceled at the city's three major airports."
Can you believe they didn't already have essentially the "first alternate" over there?I was sure she was until I read that.
I'm sorry Michelle Kwan had to drop out, she's such a lovely skater, and has represented American skating so well for so long. Replacement Hughes is not pretty on the ice, not graceful nor elegant. While she can't help being unattractive, you'd think her coach would tell her to cool it with the arm pumping, and to shut her wide, gaping mouth everytime she lands a jump. Or at least do something with her hair....like wash it.
Other than that, it doesn't matter who the US fields. Even if the beautiful, talented Sasha Cohen doesn't follow precedent and choke, the Russsian Irina Slutskaya will win.
I think she is a good athelete, but maybe just a touch of drama queen there.
She has had a great career.
Thanks for the offer. My hotel (France Louvre) is already booked and paid for. It was recommended to me by my travel agent who stays there when she is in France. It is not far from The Louvre, and is close to the site where I will be picking up the Normandy tour. You can give me the names of some places to eat though. I don't eat fish or seafood. I like beef, chicken and pork dishes, along with Chinese food. I figure if my oldest son, who is one of the pickiest eaters in the world can find food to eat in Europe, so can I.
I won't really be in Paris that long to worry much about sightseeing. I'll be getting to Paris around 4 p.m. on a Wednesday. My son and I will hang together until he has to catch his overnight train to Berlin. My tour leaves at 7:15 a.m. the next morning, so I won't be out too late the night before. It's an all-day tour and gets back to Paris around 9 p.m. or so. I doubt I'll want to do much walking around by that time. The next day I figured I'd spend at The Louvre. There will be plenty there to keep me busy. My train to London leaves about 1:30 p.m., so I can spend Saturday morning shopping. I've got 5-6 free days in London before leaving on my bus tour of the UK. I've pretty much got plans for each day I'm there.
Oh, I agree they were very nice...
Hughes still will have plenty of time to get there. I heard yesterday that the first event does not take place for 10 days. The US had a week to decide if Kwan would skate. The US is allowed to announce a alternate- but only if they do it 3 days before the event. Now that Hughes has been named, she has until the day before the event to get to Italy. Hughes has plenty of time to get to Italy. Hughes actually earned this spot to skate, but she was bumped to give the spot to Kwan. I am glad she will be able to go.
Kwan has skated her heart out for the US and come up a little short in two Olympics. She has had a great career and I have enjoyed watching her.
Oh, I agree they were very nice...
The US has won two more medals!
Are we allowed to post the results in this thread?
Thanks Howlin! Saw it on Fox News. Go Emily!
KCRW, Please don't post it here. I think they have a "Spoiler" thread you can post it to...:-)
I couldn't find today's spoiler thread. I made sure that I did not report the results. I did not want to be the spoiler.
I really don't know much about her skating, but she's Michelle's replacement, so I'll root for, and the rest of the USA team...:-)
They had one yesterday. I don't know if they started one today. Thanks for not posting the results...:-)
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