Although he initially competed in both singles and pairs, he achieved his first international success in pairs, placing seventh with Julie Laporte at the 1992 World Junior Championships. Jamie Salé and David Pelletier, The ever-controversial world of figure-skating judging became even more so during the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah.When Canadian pairs skaters Jamie Salé and David Pelletier skated a technically and emotionally compelling and nearly flawless long-program routine to the theme music from the movie Love Story, a gold medal seemed a certainty. From Red Deer, Alberta, Salé started skating at the age of five. Check our encyclopedia for a gloss on thousands of topics from biographies to the table of elements.Learn more about the mythic conflict between the Argives and the Trojans.Learn about one of the world's oldest and most popular religions.
Dubbed "Skategate," the controversy surrounding their loss to the Russian pairs team, Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, made headlines worldwide. At the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City, allegations arose that the pairs' figure skating competition had been fixed. From Sayabec, Québec, Pelletier started figure skating and playing ice hockey when he was three years old.
Their cumulative tally can reach more than 200 points.
Please note that CBC does not endorse the opinions expressed in comments.
"What I like about the system is that as an athlete, when you are working so hard to win, the difficulty that goes into your elements is actually quantified," Sale told Reuters.
"The old system, in which judges ranked skaters using a 6.0 scale for technical merit and artistic performance, was replaced by a more complex points system meant to better calibrate performances.Now, every programme element has its own numerical base value and skaters are rewarded for executing difficult moves.
Pseudonyms will no longer be permitted.By submitting a comment, you accept that CBC has the right to reproduce and publish that comment in whole or in part, in any manner CBC chooses. After French judge Marie Reine Le Gougne admitted that she had been pressured to vote for the Russians as part of a vote-swapping arrangement, Salé and Pelletier traded in their silver medals for gold, thus sharing the top honor with Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze.Test your knowledge with Infoplease trivia and quizzes.
We've got you covered with our map collection.Need a reference? Following retirement, the pair toured with Stars on Ice and continued to be active in the sport as professionals and commentators at international skating events, such as the 2006
Thank you. UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 11: Figure Skating: 2002 Winter Olympics, CAN Jamie Sale and David Pelletier in action during long program, Salt Lake City, UT 2/11/2002 (Photo by Peter Read Miller/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images) (SetNumber: X64891 TK4 R2 F16)
But their own love story has ended on a discordant note. Infoplease is a reference and learning site, combining the contents of an encyclopedia, a dictionary, an atlas and several almanacs loaded with facts. "But Sale said the emphasis on accumulating points has seen the sport lose "a little bit of its artistry, a little bit of freeness to tell stories and be more creative. The scandal was one of the causes for the revamp of scoring in figure skating to the new ISU Judging System.
"To encourage thoughtful and respectful conversations, first and last names will appear with each submission to CBC/Radio-Canada's online communities (except in children and youth-oriented communities).
Canadian figure skaters, were belatedly awarded gold medals in the February Olympics after an investigation revealed the judging had been tainted. "Pelletier said the revised scoring system had challenged skaters to expand the sport's technical boundaries.
Learn more about the world with our collection of regional and country maps.Brush up on your geography and finally learn what countries are in Eastern Europe with our maps.Not sure about the geography of the middle east? New quizzes added regularly.Get a daily dose of fun facts including birthdays, historical events, and more.Stay up to date on some of the important events happening in the world today.Infoplease knows the value of having sources you can trust. When the scandal was exposed, Sale and Pelletier were awarded golds to share with the Russians, a rare case of a ranking being revised during an Olympics.The scandal ushered in sweeping reforms in the scoring system, mostly for the better, but the current system still has its drawbacks.