Russian quad-jumping prodigy Alexandra Trusova could not contain her anger as the teenage star settled for Olympic silver in Beijing despite producing a historic free skate routine on Thursday.
The 17-year-old Trusova became the first female skater ever to land five quadruple jumps in one program as she amassed a tally of 177.13 for her free skate performance – which was the best of the field in Beijing.
When added to her short skate score it earned Trusova a competition total of 251.73 – but that wasn’t enough to finish ahead of fellow Russian star Anna Shcherbakova.
Shcherbakova was given 175.75 by the judges for her free skate, handing her an overall tally of 255.95 when combined with her superior short skate score.
Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto was third with 233.13, while Russian pre-event favorite Kamila Valieva – who had been leading after the short skate – ended fourth as the pressure of her doping case ordeal appeared to take a heavy toll in an error-strewn free skate.