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PyeongChang 2018: Top 10 moments from Olympic figure skating

By Veronica Elizabeth Bruno

USA's Nathan Chen competes in the men's single skating free skating of the figure skating event during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Gangneung Ice Arena in Gangneung on February 17, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / Roberto SCHMIDT (Photo credit should read ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP/Getty Images)
USA's Nathan Chen competes in the men's single skating free skating of the figure skating event during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Gangneung Ice Arena in Gangneung on February 17, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / Roberto SCHMIDT (Photo credit should read ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP/Getty Images) /
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GANGNEUNG, SOUTH KOREA – FEBRUARY 23: Silver medal winner Evgenia Medvedeva of Olympic Athlete from Russia celebrates during the victory ceremony for the Ladies Single Skating Free Skating on day fourteen of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Gangneung Ice Arena on February 23, 2018 in Gangneung, South Korea. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
GANGNEUNG, SOUTH KOREA – FEBRUARY 23: Silver medal winner Evgenia Medvedeva of Olympic Athlete from Russia celebrates during the victory ceremony for the Ladies Single Skating Free Skating on day fourteen of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Gangneung Ice Arena on February 23, 2018 in Gangneung, South Korea. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images) /

5. Evgenia Mevedeva wins Silver, coming so close to Gold

The rivalry between Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova proved as fascinating in the free skate as the build-up to the final event had proved. Friends, rivals, and competitors who train at the same rink and coaches, the Russian women brought their A game to the final figure skating event of the Olympics.

Medvedeva skated a sublime performance to Chopin in the short program, finishing just over a point behind her 15 year-old rival, Zagitova. Her long program was a hypnotic, perfect skate to Anna Karenina. Gold could have gone to the Russian favorite, and in fact, both great rivals earned the exact same score in the free skate. But Zagitova’s bold short program was just a hair’s breadth more brilliant than her older rival’s.

Although the favorite for gold, Medvedeva just barely missed it, winning Silver for Russia and making no mistakes while artistically dominating over almost everyone else.

In fact, there are several who felt that Zagitova peppered her program with jumps at the end to give herself the most points, and that Medvedeva was “robbed” of the gold. It’s figure skating, so there will always be drama.

I think it’s amazing that such a skate that Evgenia Medvedeva gave resulted in a silver, and it demonstrates the impressive depth of ladies figure skating at the moment.

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