Gladiator : Vancouver 2001 - Robin & Barry.

B : Alexei Yagudin - going into this free programmer in third place ... (music starts) ... knowing that not only he but somebody else has to beat Evgeny Plushenko if he's to hang on to his world title. This is just a question of saying "never mind what's happened before - I am still the best and will be next year in Salt Lake City".

....coming up to the quad combination....

R : Well that's a world championship fight! Quad toe not bad, the triple toe not so good afterwards but he knows he has no choice .... a nice and easy flow on the triple lutz ... triple axel, half loop, triple salchow. Again the triple salchow not clean, too much rotation and no speed.

B : He's competing I should tell you, after having had four injections to numb the pain of his injured foot.

R : You can numb the pain but that doubt will always stay in your head when you're on the ice trying to work through something like that. Tried to ignore it the first day - that didn't work. Better in the short programme. Again too much rotation, no concentration on the landing of the triple flip. Straight back with a triple axel!!

....aah! the lovely steps!! ...

R : There's always great care with his choreography, with the layout of the programme. Nice triple loop there from step sequence. All the elements seem to match and fit the music.

B : Very much the music to use this year but at least he's giving expression to it.

R : Triple salchow. Starting to look a little laboured but I think it's the emotion running out of steam a little.

....the slide....

B : (laughing) Applauding the crowd who applauded him! Oh this is a great step sequence if he puts it all together which he usually does. (The End) A few screams from some girls in the crowd. I don't think there's any doubt now that he will go to Salt Lake City as the underdog, as not the reigning world champion, but anyone who writes off his chances of winning there, I think, needs to be suitably tested. Not at his best,clearly, here. Hasn't been to tell the truth all season, but even so ...

...slow motion replays...

R : But he did fight and that's the most important thing to be able to do. Fought, got the quad out and, not quite the same with the triple toeloop that followed. Didn't put the foot down though, or the hand ... that's the flip. Little over rotation on the entrance, leaning. Triple axel, very good position in the air, little high in the shoulders but nonetheless, he had a go.

....kiss and cry...

B : Tatiana Tarasova, who trains him in the United States and that's the part of the plot behind the scenes. The fact that Yagudin was the one who left home. Plushenko staying at home. Yagudin to some extent ostracised by the Russian Federation as a result of that decision. 5.7s, four of them (for once he got them right! ) for the technical mark. (Alexei does the beaver thing ) (laughs) He's taking it in good part. Many, I think, with the problem that he's had with his foot would have withdrawn, but he battled on to the end and he's picked up one 5.9, the rest are 5.8s. And he's standing down as World Champion in 2001 but he's done so with some style.

...not very special was it? ...

Gladiator - Vancouver 2001 - Chris & Simon

S : You can be guaranteed that he'll leave every little bit of himself out there to try and make it four in a row. Alexei Yagudin, third place going into the free.

...music starts...

S : Nails the quad!!! Just about gets the triple toe!!!

C : Well, such is the man! I mean he was hardly moving then and still got triple toe on the end of that!!

S : Tripl lutz, the second triple ... now for the axel ... YES!!! but not the toeloop on the end of it.

C : It was half loop and a scramble, ended up with almost a triple salchow on the end!

...time for some emoting ...

S : Remember he had an injection on his foot before the short programme. We think he's had another one prior to this competiton as well ... but he can't land the flip. (sadly) And it's not going to be Alexei's day ... but he lands the second triple axel!!!

....steps....

S : There's the triple loop - triple number five.

...triple salchow....hand thing....spin...steps....end...Aw! Bless!

S : WHAT A HERO!! Got the quad, got six triples in. I don't think he's got the gold but he's lost nothing in defeat and any of you who saw the way he skated that in qualification - well this is a different guy - when the pressure was on he produced. Not a faultless performance, two big flaws, BUT it was much nearer the Yagudin that we know, and the adrenaline pulled him through. Plus his amazing guts.

....slow mos....

C : Well he's a tremendously courageous guy. Fantastic - look at this - quadruple toe - he knew how important it was at the beginning of the programme. Hardly moving coming out of the first jump and scrambled a toeloop on the end. Out of absolutely nothing. There's the flip - just over rotated a little bit on the way in on that which gave him too much on the end. And there the triple axel - superb!

S : It's amazing you know, we've had all these emails on who's going to win the shootout between Yagudin and Plushenko and a *lot* of people, I think, speaking through their heart rather than their head, have said Yagudin. It was almost impossible - he may win, Plushenko may have a nightmare - it's unlikely (kiss and cry) but SO many people love this guy.

C : And the reason I think is that he skates from the heart. There's a passion out there, so much drama, and these two (Alexei and Tatiana) have been through an awful lot. And he says that after the injections he can't feel half of his foot. Can you imagine doing all of that, all those elements, ANY sport when you can't feel your feet!!?? Phenomenal!

S : 5.6s, 5.7s. Probably 5.7s, 5.8s and a couple of 5.9s might have been enough with a lot of 5.9s for presentation. But this isn't going to be good enough, I don't think, to win gold. It would be a poor competition if he does with those marks. But he's in the lead and listen to the applause! Should be on the podium and he's done himself proud.