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...After warming up amid the roaring of the crowd at Kim's scores, Asada landed two triple Axels, making history herself as the first woman to complete two of those jumps - the most difficult that any female competitor performs - in a single program at any competition. (She also landed a triple Axel in the short program on Tuesday.) Close to the end of her program, however, she caught her heel on the ice and couldn't launch into her second-to-last jump, a triple toe loop, losing precious points...
...testament to her skating skills that Kim, the first South Korean skater to win gold, with her score of 150.06 in the free program, surpassed Asada's score of 131.72 for the night, which included the two high-scoring triple Axel jumps. The difference came in Kim's delivery. The South Korean earned only positive points for her execution of jumps, spins, spirals and transitions, while Asada was downgraded and lost points for underrotating a jump. "It was toward the end of my performance, and I think my legs were a little tired," said Asada after her program. "I wish...
...process of building an infrastructure for the sport, with élite-level coaches and comprehensive training from the novice level up. The country with the most advanced program is China, thanks primarily to the efforts of one man, Yao Bin, who in 1980 was part of China's first pairs team to compete in a world championship. After a 15th-place showing there that he considered disastrous, Bin built a pairs-skating program in Harbin from the ground up, recruiting skaters and pairing them based on who he thought were best matched in skill, size and technique...
...Orser agrees. "She was a 15-year-old girl when she first came. She was a bit gangly, and she didn't have the confidence that she has now. But there was raw talent, speed and awesome jumps. She was a blank canvas...
...allowed elections to return a civilian to power after a little over one year of rule, but they still wield considerable power. Although Thaksin has been banned from politics for five years for violating election laws, he remains popular with the rural poor, who feel he was the first Thai leader to address their needs by implementing social welfare programs, such as universal health care. His supporters believe he is being selectively targeted by his political enemies, while his opponents feel he is paying the price for blatant conflicts of interest and abuse of power...