BEIJING: China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong made sure the Beijing Games’ controversial figure skating competition ended in celebration on Saturday by winning the pairs title for the sport’s final gold medal to the rapture of local fans.

Fevered cheers and thunderous applause filled the Beijing Capital Indoor Stadium as the pair’s free skate score was announced in Mandarin, giving China its first figure skating trophy since pairs Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo in 2010.

Sui and Han won silver four years ago in Pyeongchang.

Partners for 15 years — their entire career since they were children — the pair were clearly in their element on home ice as they executed a series of high-scoring elements.

Their opening quadruple twist lift in their free skate to “Bridge Over Troubled Water” sent spectators into a frenzy.

Sui lost composure as soon as she wrapped her arm around Han’s neck for the final pose of their routine and started crying - perhaps fearing that her botched landing on the side-by-side triple Salchows would rob them of gold.

Their final tally of 239.88 beat the previous world record of 239.82 held by Russians Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov, who took bronze with 237.71.

Russians Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov took silver with 239.25 points — just 0.63 point shy of Sui and Han.

Also on Saturday, nine American figure skaters lost their appeal for a ceremony at the Beijing Olympics to receive their silver medals in the team event after Russian teen Kamila Valieva’s doping case forced a postponement.

Evan Bates, Karen Chen, Nathan Chen, Madison Chock, Zachary Donohue, Brandon Frazier, Madison Hubbell, Alexa Knierim and Vincent Zhou finished second behind the Russian Olympic Committee team in the competition on Feb 7.

In bobsleigh, Germany’s Laura Nolte and Deborah Levi made it clear they were not to be caught this Olympics as the pair extended their lead over the several pursuing medallists behind them and soared to another gold.

Rivals needed Nolte, 23, and Levi, 24, to make mistakes for a way back into the race after the Olympic first-timers took a commanding lead on Friday, but they kept their nerve for a total time of 4:03.96 over four runs.

Germany’s Jamanka Mariama and Alexandra Burghardt were their closest contenders, finishing 0.77 seconds behind.

US duo Elana Meyers Taylor and Sylvia Hoffman came 1.52 seconds behind the leaders for bronze. Niklas Edin led Sweden to an extra-end victory over Britain in the men’s final to finally add Olympic gold to his collection of titles.

Sweden clinched their first men’s Olympic curling gold medal after outplaying Britain 5-4 at the National Aquatics Centre in a tensely-fought tactical battle, with Edin reading the ice to near-perfection to maintain the upper hand.

Irene Schouten of the Netherlands won gold in the women’s mass start, clinching her third title at the Beijing Olympics.

In the men’s mass start, Belgian Bart Swings won his country’s first Winter Games gold medal in 74 years. Chung Jae Won of South Korea claimed the silver while compatriot Lee Seung Hoon won the bronze.

BOLSHUNOV BRAVES COLD TO CLINCH GOLD

Alexander Bolshunov brushed off fears of frostbite to take gold for the Russian Olympic Committee in the men’s 50km freestyle race, saying the harder the conditions, the easier it was for him and his team.

Conditions improved as the afternoon wore on, making for a brilliant spectacle as the Russians battled it out with their Norwegian rivals as Simen Hegstad Krueger took the bronze medal. Ivan Yakimushkin, also of ROC, took the silver.

Meanwhile, Nico Porteous won in the freeski halfpipe final, as members of New Zealand’s team broke into a traditional haka to celebrate the country’s first ever men’s gold at the Winter Games.

Chasing Wise’s lead in the first run Porteous landed massive back-to-back 1620s to earn his best score of 93 in his opening run, making four-and-a-half revolutions in the air.Defending champion David Wise of the US took silver with 90.75 after he was unable to beat the New Zealander in his final run while Alex Ferreira of the US took the bronze with his best run score of 86.75.

Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2022