VANCOUVER, Feb 21 (Reuters) – Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir wowed the fans and judges with their sultry Flamenco moves on Sunday to upstage Russian favourites Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin in the Olympics ice dance event on Sunday.

Domnina and Shabalin were expected to steal the show with their infamous aboriginal dance and costume that had caused an uproar at the European championships last month but they were deemed only third best on the night in the original dance.

The Canadians, who are renowned for their inventive lifts and imaginative choreography, sent the crowd into a frenzy after scoring a mighty 68.41 for their original dance. They lead the field with a combined total of 111.15 points.

Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White also impressed with their hip-shaking Bollywood moves to slot into second place with 108.55 while world champions Domnina and Shabalin dropped from first to third with 106.60.

Virtue and Moir’s seductive performance raised hopes of Canada winning their first ever ice dance gold medal on Monday.

“We’re not going to start thinking about the gold medal now, it’s not about that. It’s so much more fun just to go out there and nail it like we have been,” Moir told reporters.

“When you’re in this rink that’s a moment we’ll never forget for the rest of our lives. I don’t think a piece of metal around my neck is going to make it any better.”

VANCOUVER, Feb 21 (Reuters) – Canadian champion Joannie Rochette’s mother has died just days before the start of the women’s Olympic figure skating competition, Skate Canada said on Sunday.

Officials said Therese Rochette had been taken to hospital on Sunday morning but could not confirm the cause of death. Earlier they had said the 55-year-old died of a heart attack.

“Her mother arrived yesterday and died early this morning,” Skate Canada spokeswoman Barb MacDonald said. “She was informed of the news by her dad and coach at 6 a.m. this morning. Joannie is understandably in shock but she plans to compete here.”

Rochette had been tipped as the only athlete likely to stop an Asian sweep of the medals in the women’s event following her silver-medal performance at last year’s world championships.

The 24-year-old Rochette did not attend Sunday’s draw at 9.45am local time at the Pacific Coliseum but did show up three hours later for her 40-minute practice session. She was drawn to skate 26th out of 30 competitors in Tuesday’s short programme.

“It’s been an emotional rollercoaster for her. She made the decision she wants to compete and maintain her training schedule. It is providing her with stability in a very uncertain time in her life,” Skate Canada CEO William Thompson told reporters.

RALLIED ROUND

VANCOUVER (Reuters) – A grieving Joannie Rochette looked remarkably composed on Sunday when she turned up for a training session just seven hours after being informed that her mother had died suddenly.

The 24-year-old Canadian champion, who is sharing a room in the Athletes’ Village with ice dancer Tessa Virtue, was woken up at 6am on Sunday by her father who delivered the tragic news.

But the 2009 world silver medalist put on a brave face, and startled her rivals, by showing up at the Pacific Coliseum as scheduled just after 1pm local time.

“I was surprised to see her but I think she’s doing the right thing… she’s not going to feel better staying in her room. Joannie is a very courageous person and hats off that she is competing,” team mate Cynthia Phaneuf told reporters.

Rochette stepped on to the ice three minutes after the rest of the skaters in her group with her blonde hair tied back in a ponytail and sporting an all-black outfit. She soon peeled away two layers to reveal a sleeveless orange top.

Rochette, who was closely watched by her longtime coach Manon Perron from the sidelines, fell on her opening triple jump attempt but went on to perform several triples during the rest of the 40-minute session.

When the music for her short program was played, she chose to concentrate on her spins and step sequences — opting not to soar into the air during the two minute 40 second routine — and even managed to crack a few smiles.

VANCOUVER (Reuters) – Canadian champion Joannie Rochette’s mother has died just days before the start of the women’s Olympic figure skating competition, Skate Canada’s spokeswoman said on Sunday.

According to Skate Canada officials, Therese Rochette was taken to hospital on Sunday morning and had died of a heart attack. She was 55.

“Her mother arrived yesterday and died early this morning,” Barb MacDonald said. “She was informed of the news by her dad and coach at 6 a.m. this morning. Joannie is understandably in shock but she plans to compete here.”

Rochette had already been tipped as the only athlete likely to stop an Asian sweep of the medals in the women’s competition following her silver-medal performance at last year’s world championships.

The 24-year-old Rochette did not attend Sunday’s draw at the Pacific Coliseum but did arrive later for her 40 minute practice session. She was drawn to skate 26th out of 30 competitors in Tuesday’s short program.

Her fellow competitors rallied around her after hearing about the tragedy.

“I heard about it just before I went to practice and I felt really sorry about it and hope she gets through it and back into competition,” South Korean gold medal favorite Kim Yuna said.

VANCOUVER (Reuters) – Where Yevgeny Plushenko failed to convince Winter Olympic judges that performing a quad should deliver gold, Japan’s Mao Asada is hoping a spectacular jump of her own can unseat figure skating favorite Kim Yuna.

Asada is one of the few women who attempt the triple Axel, a challenging 3-1/2-revolution jump, and was pinning her hopes on the maneuver upstaging South Korea’s world champion Yuna when the women’s competition gets under way on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday just hours after stepping off her plane, 2008 world champion Asada was convinced she could offset Yuna’s technical and artistic superiority by pulling off the move in the short program and two in her free skate.

“Today I practiced (the jumps) and the success rate of the Axel wasn’t too bad, I really hope to challenge myself by performing these,” Asada, who is expected to be the only woman to attempt the soaring jumps in Vancouver, said through a translator.

“So I’m really going to go all out in the short program.”

Born 20 days apart, 19-year-olds Yuna and Asada have been rivals from almost the moment they first strapped on their skates and are expected to provide the ultimate showdown in Vancouver after the athletic Japanese skater rediscovered her jumping prowess at last month’s Four Continents competition.

Since then Asada has spent hours training with such gusto that she is confident her hard work will pay off.

VANCOUVER, Feb 20 (Reuters) – Where Yevgeny Plushenko failed to convince Winter Olympic judges that performing a quad should deliver gold, Japan’s Mao Asada is hoping a spectacular jump of her own can unseat figure skating favourite Kim Yuna.

Asada is one of the few women who attempt the triple Axel, a challenging 3-1/2-revolution jump, and was pinning her hopes on the maneouvre upstaging South Korea’s world champion Yuna when the women’s competition gets under way on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday just hours after stepping off her plane, 2008 world champion Asada was convinced she could offset Yuna’s technical and artistic superiority by pulling off the move in the short programme and two in her free skate.

“Today I practised (the jumps) and the success rate of the Axel wasn’t too bad, I really hope to challenge myself by performing these,” Asada, who is expected to be the only woman to attempt the soaring jumps in Vancouver, said through a translator.

“So I’m really going to go all out in the short programme.”

Born 20 days apart, 19-year-olds Yuna and Asada have been rivals from almost the moment they first strapped on their skates and are expected to provide the ultimate showdown in Vancouver after the athletic Japanese skater rediscovered her jumping prowess at last month’s Four Continents competition.

Since then Asada has spent hours training with such gusto that she is confident her hard work will pay off.

VANCOUVER, Feb 20 (Reuters) – Chinese teenager Zhou Yang’s heart skipped a beat when compatriot Wang Meng was disqualified but she held her nerve in a crowded final to win the women’s Olympic short track 1,500 metres gold on Saturday.

South Korea’s Lee Eun-byul took the silver and compatriot Park Seung-hi picked up the bronze in a race featuring eight skaters instead of six because of advancements.

The final was thrown wide open after Wang was disqualified in the semi-finals for impeding in a crash near the end of the race.

Wang, the 2006 bronze medallist, had been seeking a second gold of these Games after winning the 500 metres earlier this week.

“When I saw she fell, I thought ‘oh no’ and when I heard she had been disqualified, my heartbeat went faint again and I thought ‘oh no’ again,” said the 18-year-old Zhou, whose own semi-final was due to take place just moments later.

“At that point I was affected and I really didn’t know what I was going to do to continue my race. I don’t think I did a very good job in the semi-finals as my mood was affected.”

Zhou’s bad mood did not last too long and the 2009 world silver medallist waited for the right moment in the final to rip through the field and take a commanding lead over the line.

VANCOUVER (Reuters) – Kim Yuna, the top earning female athlete at the Olympics, smiled sweetly and nodded her head politely but was tight lipped about her gold medal hopes after stepping on the rink for the first time on Saturday.

While the South Korean gold medal favorite has built a wall of silence around her ahead of Tuesday’s short programme, her practice at the Pacific Coliseum spoke volumes as she gracefully marked her territory on the ice.

The 19-year-old, wearing a sleeveless black bodysuit, nailed several triple-triple combinations during a 40-minute training session that drew enthusiastic cheers from a sizeable crowd that came to see the $8 million girl in action.

Yuna fever has gripped South Korea, where the country’s 50 million strong population are backing her to win its first Winter Olympics gold medal outside speed skating.

The world champion has managed to block out the attention by training several thousand miles away in Toronto with her coach Brian Orser, himself a two-time silver medalist for Canada.

Yuna, who led a Forbes list of top earning Winter Olympians last year that excluded all salaried professional athletes like those from the National Hockey League, was the only Asian frontrunner who turned up for practice.

“It’s her time to focus and I want her to be comfortable in her space as this will be her space for the next five days,” Orser said referring to her decision not to speak to reporters.

VANCOUVER, Feb 20 (Reuters) – Kim Yuna, the top earning female athlete at the Olympics, smiled sweetly and nodded her head politely but was tight lipped about her gold medal hopes after stepping on the rink for the first time on Saturday.

While the South Korean gold medal favourite has built a wall of silence around her ahead of Tuesday’s short programme, her practise at the Pacific Coliseum spoke volumes as she gracefully marked her territory on the ice.

The 19-year-old, wearing a sleeveless black bodysuit, nailed several triple-triple combinations during a 40-minute training session that drew enthusiastic cheers from a sizeable crowd that came to see the $8 million girl in action.

Yuna fever has gripped South Korea, where the country’s 50 million strong population are backing her to win its first Winter Olympics gold medal outside speed skating.

The world champion has managed to block out the attention by training several thousand miles away in Toronto with her coach Brian Orser, himself a two-time silver medallist for Canada.

Yuna, who led a Forbes list of top earning Winter Olympians last year that excluded all salaried professional athletes like those from the National Hockey League, was the only Asian frontrunner who turned up for practise.

“It’s her time to focus and I want her to be comfortable in her space as this will be her space for the next five days,” Orser said referring to her decision not to speak to reporters.

VANCOUVER (Reuters) – Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin passionately swayed to the beats of Tango Romantica on Friday to take the lead in possibly the last compulsory dance at the Olympics.

While skaters were divided about the merits of the snooze-inducing compulsory dance, which faces the axe as it is the least popular of all figure skating events, no one could grumble about the way the Russian world champions performed with their deft footwork and precise holds to score 43.76 points.

Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir raised temperatures, and decibel levels, at the Pacific Coliseum with their seductive hip action to lie second with 42.74, while Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White finished third with 41.47.

With only 6.74 points separating the top eight couples in the three-part competition, the rankings could easily change under the accumulative-points scoring system following Sunday’s original dance.

While officials plan to ditch the compulsory dance as it has always been deemed as the one figure skating event which sends fans to sleep, since it does not contain any wow factor elements such as lifts, competitors were divided on the dance’s merit.

“I’m a big fan of cutting it out,” Moir said.

Shabalin disagreed.