Further scandal blights Games
ICE HOCKEY STAR SENT HOME IN DISGRACE Canadians Virtue, Moir deliver magic in ice dance.
The Winter Olympics was hit by a third doping scandal yesterday, casting a shadow over the magic on ice served up by peerless Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir.
On a day when the first unified Korean Olympic team took an emotional bow, the Games suffered a new doping blow with the suspension of Slovenian ice hockey star Ziga Jeglic.
A day earlier, a Russian bronze medallist in curling was suspended over suspected doping and a Japanese short-track speed skater was kicked out of the Games in South Korea last week.
Jeglic, 29, who plays professional ice hockey in Russia, tested positive for fenoterol, a banned substance used to treat breathing difficulties, and was given 24 hours to quit the Olympic Village.
The latest drugs scandal hit just after the gold-medal-winning performance of Virtue and Moir to clinch victory in the ice dance.
They skated last after watching French rivals Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron break their own free dance record and top the standings with the best combined total of their careers.
The pressure was unbearable but Virtue and Moir showed no signs of buckling, skating out a flawless routine to Roxanne from Moulin Rouge in what may well be their last hurrah on the world stage.
“Amazing. It was a special moment to come out last,” said Virtue.
“It was a strong last group, there was a lot of pressure, but I’m so happy with how we performed.”
Away from the grace and elegance of the skating rink, another Canadian, Cassie Sharpe, produced some jaw-dropping aerobatics to storm to freestyle skiing’s halfpipe gold.
French rival Marie Martinod wiped out on her final run and finished second after Sharpe produced a top score of 95.80 on her second effort, celebrated by raising her hands behind her head in a bunny-ear sign as she crossed the line backwards. – AFP