Arctic Edge-based ice dancers
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir earned a gold medal Monday night. (photo by
Dimitar Dilkoff/Getty Images)
prove they're the best in the world
BY ED WRIGHT
Feb. 23, 2010, 1:30 a.m.
Is there any doubt where the
epicenter of world-class ice dancing is located following Monday
night's Olympic free dance competition at the XXI Winter Games in
Vancouver, B.C.?
Canton's Arctic Edge can
emphatically stake that claim after Canada's Tessa Virtue and Scott
Moir won gold medals; and the USA's Meryl Davis and Charlie White won
silver following extraordinary, pressure-packed performances at
Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum.
Both teams have trained side by side at the Arctic Edge for the
past six years under the guidance of renowned coaches Igor Shpilband
and Marina Zoueva.
On Monday night, they stood side by side on the medal stand as
"Oh, Canada" was piped through the arena's sound system.
Virtue and Moir became the first North American team to win
ice-dancing gold since the sport was added to the Olympics in 1976.
Virtue and Moir held a slim lead over Davis and White following
Sunday's original dance competition. However, the Americans put the
pressure on their good friends Monday night when they registered a
personal-best free dance score of 107.19.
Inspired by a partisan Canadian crowd, Virtue and Moir pulled
off a near-flawless performance to earn the gold with a score of 110.42.
The final point for Virtue and Moir was 221.57, almost six
points higher than Davis and White's 215.74.
PlymouthCantonSports.com will have more on the Arctic Edge ice
dancers' incredible performances throughout the week.
