Everyone stood up, including the judges, coaches from various countries, and athletes. They all applauded in unison. The applause was not only for the two classic performances but also for the athletes who delivered them.
Their mutual admiration and respect had a deeply moving power, and it was hard not to be touched by it while in the arena.
Hayato Teraoka and Ilya were both watching, their eyes filled with the same longing.
If one day they could also perform like this with a rival they truly respected on such a grand stage, it would undoubtedly be one of the great joys of life.
“If only there hadn’t been any mistakes,” Hayato sighed and turned to look at Ilya, only to find him looking back.
“Hmph!”
The two young men, who had been rivals since the junior division and now in the senior division, rolled their eyes at each other and turned away.
Their coaches: “Are you still kids? Vasily and Zhang Jue’s sportsmanship and mutual respect were so touching. Can’t you learn something from that?”
As Zhang Jue stepped off the ice, he realized that even though he had only performed three quadruple jumps, he was already on the verge of exhaustion. Once the adrenaline wore off, his body felt so heavy that he wanted to lie down and rest immediately.
Performing was exhausting; even the little crocodile couldn’t muster the energy to puff out its chest, exhausted.jpg.
His uncle wiped away the tears that had welled up from being moved, and Shen Liu, with his red eyes, discreetly helped Zhang Jue sit down at the kiss-and-cry area. Zhang Jue grabbed several tissues to wipe off the sweat, then bent his head and panted heavily—his breathing so loud that even the viewers watching through the camera could almost hear it.
Coach Lu felt the boy’s thin back and found his hand covered in sweat.
Zhang Jue tried hard to catch his breath and, with pauses, said: “I did my best.”
He truly had. Whether he could win now was up to fate. After all, if there was one thing Zhang Jue wasn’t lacking, it was the ability to accept things.
After all, as long as he took good care of his body, he might still be able to compete in two more Winter Olympics. And he had known all along what the scoring would be like in Sochi, which is why he had considered including four quadruple jumps when he noticed the ice was slippery.
Because he really wanted to win.
But Vasily’s “Schindler’s List” had also exceeded his expectations, and if he were to lose to such a program, Zhang Jue would accept it.
He could afford to lose!
Shen Liu and Zhang Junbao exchanged glances and nodded.
“Yes, yes, you’ve already delivered a champion-level performance.”
The kid had skated to such a high standard—maybe not the best in history, but since even the officials watching had tears in their eyes, it was clear he had achieved perfection. Whether he won gold or silver, Zhang Jue was about to set a new personal best for China in men’s singles at the Winter Olympics.
Shen Liu sighed inwardly.
Even though they had performed jumps of equal quality, Zhang Jue’s GOE (Grade of Execution) was only scored between 1.5 and 2 points, while Vasily’s was between 2.5 and 2.9. After eight jumps, that had already made a difference of five or six points. And if they made some adjustments to the performance score, docking points for program content here and skating skills there, it would have been a miracle if Zhang Jue had won.
In figure skating, rhythmic gymnastics, and other scored events, it was easy for biases to creep in—the judges had so many ways to manipulate the scores.
Zhang Jue had never lost to himself and rarely lost to his competitors. This time, he was merely defeated by the judges.
Coach Lu reminded them: “The scores are out.”
Everyone looked up to see Zhang Jue’s free skate score on the screen.
Technical Score: 107.87
Performance Score: 90.05
Free Skate Total: 197.92
Zhang Jue’s final score was 297.25, just one point lower than Vasily’s 298.25. That one-point difference meant that Zhang Jue’s debut at the Winter Olympics ended with one silver and one bronze medal.
The forum “Ice and Snow” erupted with excitement when they saw the score.
{MonkeyDrinking: I *&%￥#… When they were scoring during the competition, I already felt that GOE was fishy! Judge #1 and Judge #4 are Russian. As soon as our top skater finished jumping, they immediately gave him 0.5 or 0 points! If they have eye problems, they should get them checked, instead of ruining others! I never expected the drama to come from the performance score—there was a 7-point difference!}
{CamoSky: I’m floored. Two top athletes delivered the greatest showdown in men’s figure skating this century, embodying the Olympic spirit. I had just finished crying, and then I saw the scores. Wow, Vasily gets 97.18 for performance, and Zhang Jue only 90.05!}
{9527: What’s funny is that even after they squeezed his GOE, the Crocodile God still had a technical score that was nearly 4 points higher than Vasily’s. He got such a huge bonus for moving his jumps to the second half, and he still had an edge from the short program. The Russian judges wanted to make sure their guy won gold, so they had no choice but to manipulate the performance score.}
{Popular: China’s top skater fought through growth spurts, injuries, and even high school exams to reach the Olympics. He’s bled, sweat, and cried, but in the end, he just couldn’t beat the advantage of nationality.}
{JiaJia: One point is a chasm.}
{8848DiamondTablet: Did you see the Russian champ’s face when Zhang Jue’s score came up? He immediately turned pale and started arguing with his coach while pointing at the screen. The judges did such a number that even the Russian champ himself couldn’t stand it!}
…
Vasily pointed at the screen, eyes wide, and spat out a string of words before Boris smacked him on the back of the head.
“Brat, just go accept your medal already! If you cause trouble now, the skating officials will shove the gold medal down your throat!”
Did it make him happy to see this score?
Boris had coached countless gold medalists, as well as silver ones, and his position in the sport was unshakable. He had long since learned to accept his skaters’ results calmly. But even he felt embarrassed by the outcome.
Vasily thought he had unfairly beaten Zhang Jue, and Boris felt the same about Zhang Junbao, Shen Liu, and Coach Lu… Damn, that kid had a lot of coaches!
Still, Russia had poured a lot of effort into hosting this Winter Olympics, and figure skating, being one of the most popular events, had garnered significant attention. Whether Vasily truly deserved it or not, he had to win the gold. For appearances’ sake, he had to smile and accept his medal.
Sometimes things were uncomfortable, but as mere athletes and an old coach, there wasn’t much they could do. They weren’t like that infamous rhythmic gymnastics coach with an oligarch husband backing her up.
After catching his breath, Zhang Jue finally stood up slowly, leaning on his knees, and walked toward Vasily. As soon as he moved, the cameras followed him.
Reporters, who were always eager for a story, had been buzzing since Zhang Jue’s score came out. When they saw him heading toward Vasily, they all wondered if a confrontation was about to break out.
After all, Vasily was injured and had been in a wheelchair. He had only managed to stand up to salute Zhang Jue with sheer willpower and would probably be no match for the tall, 1.8-meter young man in a fight.
But instead, Zhang Jue knelt in front of Vasily under everyone’s watchful eyes and placed his hand on the other man’s knee.
“Does it hurt?”
Vasily paused and then replied: “It hurts a lot.”
Zhang Jue tilted his head back and smiled, extending his hand.
“We completed a fantastic competition, Vasily. I’m really glad to have met an opponent like you.”
Vasily didn’t say anything, but he obediently shook the little crocodile’s hand.
Zhang Jue said: “Vasily, this should be the last time we stand on the same podium. At the next Winter Olympics, I won’t see you anymore.”
He regretfully patted Vasily’s knee: “Take good care of yourself after you retire.”
Vasily stayed silent for a moment before he couldn’t help but say: “Do you really have to act so mature at a time like this? Your attitude makes me feel like you’re pitying me.”
Zhang Jue smiled. As he stood up, Vasily was surprised to realize that the once small, adorable child had grown into a tall young man he now had to look up to.
The other leaned down and gave him a hug.
“I don’t think I lost, just like I don’t think you lost either, Vasily. You deserve the gold medal, so let’s both accept our awards properly and give this competition a perfect, regret-free ending.”
“And by the way, there’s nothing about you, a strong competitor, that I would pity.”
The result of the men’s singles competition at the Sochi Winter Olympics was as expected, but Zhang Jue ended up surprising almost everyone.
His flawless performance and superb technique led the Chinese Skating Federation to immediately contact the Sochi Winter Olympic Committee when the scores were announced, protesting the results. However, the committee’s response was: “The judges’ scoring was fair and in accordance with the rules.”
Despite the swirling controversy, the final result of the competition was confirmed.
The scoring of the Sochi men’s singles quickly caused an uproar online. Fans of both the Russian and Chinese skaters clashed almost instantly, while experts in figure skating were divided into two camps, arguing fiercely.
The result was so complicated that people felt torn. If Vasily had truly won due to biased scoring, then people could argue he should have been the silver medalist. But the truth was that Vasily delivered a gold-worthy performance. It seemed like either skater could have rightfully taken the championship.
Yet when Zhang Jue was relegated to silver, people couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. Losing to Vasily was fair enough—athletes naturally face wins and losses—but losing to the judges’ bias was truly unjust.
After much debate, everyone reached the same conclusion: the judges were the real villains. Neither skater deserved this. Both had been through so much—one couldn’t even enjoy his gold, while the other had his victory stolen. People worried that their friendship might be damaged by the judges’ manipulations.
When the awards ceremony began, Vasily walked up with a cane and a serious expression.
Everyone understood his stern face. After all, his leg was in bad shape, and he was probably in a lot of pain—no one expected him to smile.
Those familiar with Vasily’s personality shook their heads. Some thought he was being too rigid. Now that he had the gold medal, couldn’t he just smile and accept it happily? Others felt his straightforward character was a bit much—how did Boris, the old fox of a coach, raise such an honest student?
While the champion was frowning, the silver medalist, who many believed had been robbed of gold, maintained a composed expression.
When Vasily reached the end of the red carpet, Zhang Jue jumped down from the podium, grabbed his cane, and handed it to Maquen. Then, with both hands, he grabbed Vasily by the waist and lifted him onto the podium.
The crowd burst into laughter. Zhang Jue stepped back up with his long legs and glanced out into the crowd, catching sight of a local reporter who put down his camera and gave him an “OK” sign.
Zhang Jue was pleased and turned to wink at Vasily, who stared at him. When Zhang Jue tilted his head in confusion, Vasily looked away.
After the flag-raising ceremony, when the three athletes draped in their national flags circled the rink, Vasily, who was stuck standing on the red carpet due to his injury, suddenly waved at Zhang Jue. Confused, Zhang Jue skated over, and the soon-to-retire champion grabbed his hand and raised it high.
For a moment, the celebratory atmosphere froze.
Vasily said seriously: “This Winter Olympics, because of many reasons, you can only be an uncrowned king. But at the next Winter Olympics, you will definitely win the gold medal! I’ll be waiting for that day.”
Zhang Jue’s face lit up with confidence, and he replied firmly: “Of course, the next champion will definitely be me!”
They looked at each other, and Vasily sighed before embracing the young man once again.
The tall, slender body of Zhang Jue was warm, and as Vasily hugged him, he realized that his head only reached Zhang Jue’s ear.
Little crocodile, you will face many challenges like this in the future. While I admire your strength, as a senior, I can’t help but worry about you.
No matter how talented you are, you’re still only human, and you’ll have to endure many storms and hardships to climb to the top. You’ll suffer a lot in the future, but I believe that someone like you will eventually reach the summit. It’s just a shame that I won’t be able to stay on the rink to compete with you.
That night, Vasily, who rarely used social media, posted a tweet.
He shared a photo of him and a young Zhang Jue, taken during Zhang Jue’s first Junior Grand Prix Final. Vasily was wearing his white exhibition costume, and Zhang Jue was in his little crocodile onesie. They stood side by side, smiling brightly at the camera.
Below the photo was a simple caption: “One day, you will become the G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Time).”
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