Kwan’s Short Program Brings Long Applause

Michelle Kwan wanted to let loose and give the audience something to remember. Did she ever.

Skating with the flair she was missing at the Olympics, Kwan received one perfect 6.0 for artistry to win Friday’s short program at the World Figure Skating Championships. The audience roared as the mark flashed, and Kwan gasped and grabbed coach Frank Carroll’s knee.

“When I stepped on the ice, I saw the American flags and banners and I wanted to give to the audience the joy and freedom I have on the ice,” she said. “I felt like they were carrying me through and that was really nice.”

A second world title would be nice too. And about the only way anyone is going to steal it from her is if Kwan doesn’t show up for today’s free skate.

Anna Rechnio of Poland, whose best finish in a major international event was ninth in the 1995 European champions, was second. Laetitia Hubert of France, another longshot, was third.

With Olympic champion Tara Lipinski taking a pass and the other skaters bumbling, stumbling and fumbling around her, it seemed all Kwan had to do was stand up to win the short program.

Instead, she flew around the rink, landing every jump. She gave Rachmaninoff’s piano concerto extra life and the audience demonstrably appreciated it.

When she landed her triple-toe loop, a jump that has given her problems because of a stress fracture in her foot, a huge smile crossed her face. As she spiraled across the length of the rink, skating with her leg extended gracefully behind her, the crowd went wild and gave her a standing ovation as she finished.

Kwan looked happier than she has been since her transcendent performance in the national championships in January, where she received 15 6.0s.

“When I went home after the Olympics, I was working on my speed and flow and my spins, and to attack,” she said.

As expected, in ice dancing, Anjelika Krylova and Oleg Ovsyannikov of Russia won the championship, France’s Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat were second and Canada’s Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz finished third.

Figure Skating Notes

The International Skating Union recognizes the problems in ice dancing and plans to do something about them at its congress in June. ISU president Ottavio Cinquanta said Friday “it is mandatory that we give more specific guidelines to judge the event.” Ice dancing was sharply criticized at the Olympics, where the results seemed predetermined. In most dance events, not only the Olympics, there is almost no movement in the standings from compulsories to the free dance. Two-time Olympic champions Pasha Grishuk and Yevgeny Platov won 22 consecutive competitions, unlikely in any other discipline.