The four hour wait for the 2010 Olympic Games opening ceremony had turned the U.S. athlete delegation into a red, white and blue mosh pit and figure skaters
“”Basically, it was a fight,”” Nagasu said laughing as she recalled the battle for position in the U.S. parade line. “”A lot of pushing and shoving, because we all wanted to be at the front.””
Flatt, 17, and Nagasu, 16, take a similar mindset into Tuesday night’s Olympic women’s skating competition, determined to push their way onto the medal podium after Thursday night’s free skate.
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“”Bring it one, it’s all or nothing,”” Nagasu said. “”It’s just Rachael and me, and we’re going to blow them away.””
Despite Nagasu and Flatt’s youth exuberance these are the first Olympic Games in five decades that the U.S. women’s roster doesn’t include a top medal contender and the teenage duo will find working their way through a field that includes
“”Being the heavy favorite is not always a good thing because the amount of pressure and it is the Olympics so the whole world is watching,”” Nagasu said. “”So I’ll just stand next to Yu-Na and while she’s carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, I’ll just be holding it up with a finger.””
Nagasu and Flatt will, however, bear the burden of keeping alive the U.S. streak of 11 consecutive Olympic Games with a women’s skating medal, a string that most in the American skating community at best are cautiously optimistic about extending in
“”There’s always a chance,”” said
“”We don’t have a
Flatt and Nagasu have pursued those dreams with different approaches from different places, contrasts that mirror their backgrounds and skating styles.
“”One is a great athlete, one is an artist,”” said
Flatt, Hamilton said, is a skater who “”punched her time clock every moment. She’s consistent and solid. You can depend on her.””
Flatt’s athleticism and consistency were both evident in her record-setting at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in
“”I got caught up in the performance,”” Hamilton admitted.
Flatt is the daughter of a molecular biologist and biochemistry engineer. The family, formerly of
“”Hopefully, (college admissions offices) will take this into account,”” Flatt said laughing referring to her Olympic experience.
On skating matters Flatt confides in mentor
“”I think she was more nervous than I was,”” Flatt said.
While Flatt’s climb to the Olympics has been steady, Nagasu has taken a more adventurous path to Vancouver.
After winning the 2008 U.S. title at just 14 she was immediately anointed the heir apparent to her idols,
“”There are always moments that I think about leaving skating,”” Nagasu said. “”But I’m not very smart and I’m not very pretty and there’s nothing else that stands out about me besides my skating. It’s like loving someone. You want to break up sometimes but if you get past those hardships, everything will come together.””
In the spring of 2009, she left longtime coach
Carroll repaired both Nagasu’s skating and her psyche, training partner Lysacek also helping rebuild her confidence. While Hamill was riding shot gun with Flatt in
“”You have to believe,”” read one.
Nagasu’s parents own Kiyosuza, a Japanese restaurant in
“”The
The combination of salmon, tuna, yellow tale, spicy fish eggs, shrimp tempura, various sauces, rice and seaweed, is not, however, at the top of Nagasu’s post-Olympic menu.
“”First of all,”” she said, “”I’m going to go to the grocery store, and go to the sections with refrigerators and get ice cream. And then I’m going to be sitting in front of a TV and eating my heart out. And hopefully it will be because I’m happy and not because I’m sad.””