Beijing, February 14 (Xinhua) -- The French duo of Papadagis/Xi Zelong finally realized their dream on the 14th, winning the gold medal in the figure skating ice dance event at the Beijing Winter Olympics with an overwhelming advantage, and China's Wang Shiyue/Liu Xinyu won the 12th place, setting a new record for the Chinese team's Winter Olympics.
France's Gabriela Papadaggis (left) and Guillaume Caesaron compete on Feb. 14. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Jianli
Since Papadagis/Nishizawa Dragon finished first in the rhythmic dance competition on the 12th, they made their final appearance in the free dance competition. Accompanied by the tear-jerking music of "Lamentations", Papadagis and Caesaron danced on the ice, offering a series of flawless lifts, synchronized rotations in unison and dizzying footwork, which completely brought the audience into their performances.
As four-time Figure Skating World Championships winners, Papadaggis/Nishizawa Ryu scored 76.75 technical action points and 59.40 program content points, both of which were the highest of the 20 pairs of players on the day. In the end, they also won the championship with a record-best free dance score of 136.15 points and a total score of 226.98 points, more than 6 points ahead of the second place. Their score also surpassed the highest overall ice dance score previously maintained by themselves.
At the PyeongChang Winter Olympics four years ago, Papadaggis and Caesaron lost to canadian duo Voltu/Moyle by less than one point to win a silver medal. In several previous interviews, they have made it clear that the Goal of the Beijing Winter Olympics is only one, and that is to win. Before the game, Peschara, the head of the French delegation, also regarded the ice dance medal as a bag.
France's Gabriela Papadaggis (left) and Guillaume Caesaron after the match on Feb. 14. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Yuwei
After the game, the new Winter Olympic champions said: "In our entire career, we have never been so eager to win a gold medal, except for this one, today is to win. As for setting a world record, that's just an added bonus. ”
The Chinese duo Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu appeared for the ninth time of the day, and their free dance was a perfect interpretation of "Chinese style". The free dance track "Kung Fu Magic Qin: The Rise of the Cello" is adapted from the theme song of the cartoon "Kung Fu Panda", with delicate, exciting and smooth music, which makes people involuntarily appear in the mind of the Great Wall, Chinese landscapes and other pictures. The two men's competition clothes of the day were also taken from the famous Chinese landscape painting "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains", Liu Xinyu's costumes symbolized qingshan, and Wang Shiyue's costumes symbolized green water. After the performance, the two knelt on the ice and hugged each other tightly, and Wang Shiyue shed tears of excitement, which could be seen that Liu Xinyu was also trying to control her emotions.
China's Wang Shiyue (left) and Liu Xinyu compete in a competition on Feb. 14. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Cao Can
After the game, Liu Xinyu expressed great satisfaction with today's performance, saying: "Slipping out of the best level of both of us at the doorstep, I feel that these four years of hard work and all the efforts are worth it, and I have seen the rewards." ”
Wang Shiyue said: "Our goal is actually more than 12th, we hope to reach the world's top ten, which we have been talking about for several years." Liu Xinyu said: "If we can continue to participate in the next Winter Olympics, I think we will both break through the top ten." ”
Previously, the best result of Chinese ice dance at the Winter Olympics was 18th, won by Han Bing/Yang Hui at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville.
The Russian Olympic Committee's Sinizina/Kacharapov won the silver medal with an overall score of 220.51 points, and the American Habel/Donohoe won the bronze medal with a total score of 218.02 points.