What is behind the Olympics figure skating furor?
The most striking aspect of the furor over the Olympics pairs figure skating medal is the disparity between the intrinsic significance of the incident that sparked the flap and the media/political uproar it provoked. The affair has shed light on two interrelated phenomena: the degraded state of the Olympics and the poisoned state of international political relations. The sports story is clear enough. On February 11, by a 5-4 decision, judges awarded the gold medal in the pairs figure skating competition to Russians Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, and the silver to Canadians Jamie Salé and David Pelletier. As has often been the case in Olympics figure skating, the competition was very close, with two highly talented and skilled pairs delivering excellent performances. Given the nature of the sport, there is always room for conflicting evaluations. Unlike speed events or team contests such as ice hockey, the measure of excellence is not entirely objective, and judges must take i
