I wasn't a big Yagudin fan when I came to Vancouver. Sure, I knew he was a great skater, but I was always a bit puzzled when he won title after title. Seeing him only on television, I didn't quite get it.

Well, in Vancouver -- I GOT IT. Sensual, charismatic, passionate, and loving every minute of what he does, Yagudin pours his soul onto the ice in every performance. He was tested severely in this competition: he skated a disastrous qualifying round, came back for an error-free short program despite a badly injured foot, and fought through the injury to deliver a shaky but gutsy free skate. While I admire his courage and I now count myself in his fan club, I think it was some extremely liberal judging which allowed him to finish in second place ahead of Todd Eldredge, who skated flawlessly and brilliantly throughout the competition -- even without a quad.