We got an early jump on the action last week, when the Queen of All That is Frozen _ Michelle Kwan _ announced she was skipping the nationals because of a groin injury, and would be petitioning for a pass onto the Olympic team.Let the hyperventilating begin!
The opinion in this corner is that if there was ever an athlete who deserved to be placed on the Olympic team because of special circumstances, it is Kwan.
She is a nine-time U.S. champion, a five-time world champion, and has won silver and bronze at the past two Olympics. She has been a gracious champion and an elegant ambassador of her sport for more than a decade, during the most tawdry and chaotic period skating has ever seen.
And there's a full-circle element to this story. When Kwan was a 13-year-old self-described "jumping bean," she finished second at the Olympic trials _ but because of the knee-whacking attack on Nancy Kerrigan by Tonya Harding's thugs, an injured Kerrigan was given one of the two spots on the team, and little Kwan was made an alternate. She never sued. She never pouted.
"I just knew Nancy deserved to go," Kwan said last week, "so I was bumped off the team."
I'll never forget watching Kwan watch one of the endless news conferences in Norway. She was in the background, her young eyes taking in the circus that was the 1994 Games. Witnessing that bizarre spectacle helped shape her into the steady, classy champion she soon became.
Now 25, she has earned the right for one more shot at that elusive gold medal.
But ... And, oh my, in figure skating there is always a "But."
It's not as simple as it seems. For one thing, Kwan's rich legacy is not to be considered by the U.S. Figure Skating Association's International Committee when it rules on her petition. Of the events to be considered, Kwan _ by choice or injury _ competed only in the 2005 world championships, where she finished fourth.
When asked if Kwan's legacy would be a factor, the executive director of U.S. Figure Skating, David Raith, deferred to the International Committee, leading one reporter to warn that the process could lead to the appearance of "making up the rules as you go along."
Hey, that's figure skating, isn't it?
Because Kwan has competed so infrequently the past two years, her status is something of a mystery. Her only outing under the new scoring system _ thought to be a detriment to her because it eliminates the murky "artistic mark" _ was the 2005 world championships.
Her only pre-Olympic competition has been a Skating Challenge, in Boston, last month. She didn't land a triple jump and overall looked shaky, but she won the event because fans did the voting. Kwan is the undisputed champion of rabidly devoted fans.
Still, she has been battling injuries _ first a hip and now a groin. Her doctor, Leisure Yu (isn't that the nickname for San Diego State?), said the two injuries are unrelated.
Yes, there is precedent for placing an injured skater on the Olympic team. It not only happened for Kerrigan in 1994 (she took silver in Norway), but for Todd Eldredge in 1992 (he finished 10th in France). But those were cases of young skaters in their prime, not of an older skater whose body might be beginning to break down.
The International Committee will be in a bind, having to make a ruling on Kwan's petition only one day after she is scheduled to resume serious training. No change may be made to the Olympic team after Jan.30.
But the ladies' competition in Turin does not begin until Feb.21. Were Kwan's injuries to flare up in between, the American team would be out of luck.
Some young skater probably will have her Olympic dream derailed by Kwan. And the unacknowledged but very real forces at work will be the desires of sponsors and of NBC. Kwan is the most visible, popular Winter Olympian in history, and it is unlikely her wish will be denied.
But the goal should be naming a team that gives the United States the best chance to win medals. In 1998 and 2002, the top three finishers at nationals automatically made up the Olympic team. The United States won two medals in ladies' skating at each of those Games. Kwan's supporters will say that medal bonanza was largely thanks to their heroine's ability. Others might say it was because the team had three skaters at the height of their talents.
Oddly, and despite such terrific success, the USFSA's Governing Council chose to change the selection procedure last year. Now, only the national champion is assured of an Olympic berth; the International Committee selects the team's other two members.
Gee, I wonder why the change was made this time, when everyone knew the field would include an aging icon who had cut back on her competition? You don't suppose ...?
Nah, it couldn't be a setup. Not in figure skating. Never!
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