I am getting quite accustomed to this run up to Whistler. It is definitely a much nicer drive done during daylight (only because it is not as tiring on the eyes) and it's really quite a nice highway to drive when the skies are clear and you get the fantastic views.This time at Whistler, I visited Whistler Olympic Park and was able to watch some of the ski jumping. This is really amazing, another example of getting a real sense of perspective. You just don't realize how high and far these jumpers are going when you see them on tv! I only watched a few of the jump before the event was over.
I did get a good picture of Black Tusk, a nearby mountain that has been covered in cloud the other times that I have been here.
I got back to the Sutton Place Hotel in the afternoon and met Debbie. We made our way to the Pacific Coliseum and watched on pins and needles as the skaters performed. It was a fantastic evening as pair after pair posted their season's best marks. Everyone seemed to have peaked at just the right time.
Finally it was time for Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir.
We were totally entranced by their performance but knew that they had to post a great score to beat the Americans, Meryl Davis and Charlie White. We watched as they waited in the Kiss and Cry area and we had our fingers crossed that the judges liked the performance as much as we did.
And they did!
Now we only had to sit through two more performances before finding out how Virtue and Moir would finish. We were a bit concerned after the second American team of Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto ended because they did skate a nice program but they were placed in third. Then the Russians, Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin, skated and we really didn't think they had what it took to beat Virtue and Moir. Sure enough, they were placed in third, bumping Belbin and Agosoto down to fourth. I think that the results were exactly what they should have been although the Russian team was clearly not very happy with the results.
For some reason, the figure skating medals are handed out right away, on the figure skating ice, rather than at the Victory Ceremonies at BC Place or Whistler Medal Plaza. That suited Debbie and I just fine because it meant that we were able to sing our national anthem and see the Canadian Flag raised. We watched while the carpets were rolled out and the podium was assembled. And then the medalists skated out on to the ice and took their bows.
The medals were handed out, the flags were raised, and the audience sang their hearts out!
What a night!!!
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