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Someone to root
for in Joannie Rochette

She's in third place in women's figure skating

By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Feb 25, 2010

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Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette probably won't win the gold medal. Heading into tonight's ladies' figure skating finals, airing live on NBC starting at 8 p.m., she is in third place, trailing leader Kim Yu-na of South Korea by more than seven points.

But Rochette nonetheless may come to be remembered as one of the standout performers in these Games, which have been defined as much by tragedy as joy for the host Canadians.

Rochette's mother died unexpectedly of a heart attack just two nights before her daughter was scheduled to skate in the ladies' short program. The 24-year-old skater decided to perform anyway, and her routine Tuesday was flawless, if not quite as technically or artistically sound as Kim, the defending world champion who set a world record with 78.5 points.

When she finished skating, Rochette was overcome with emotion, dissolving in tears as the thousands of spectators at Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum gave her a standing ovation.

It's the second time this Games that sport has been overshadowed by real life. Nearly two weeks ago, during a practice run for the luge, 21-year-old Georgian athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili was killed when he lost control on a sharp turn.

The International Olympic Committee was quick to offer condolences but firmly insisted that the death was due to driver error, despite concern from other athletes, coaches and media that the track itself was at fault.

While Rochette may not have a gold medal ending to her story, she's very much in contention for silver or bronze in a final that should draw at least 25 million viewers despite airing against Fox's "American Idol" and with no Americans in position to really challenge for a medal. The two U.S. teens sit in fifth and sixth place after Tuesday's competition.

A look at this week’s top TV draws
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	CBS	“The Early Show” (N)	Johnny Depp and Tim Burton guest and talk about “Alice in Wonderland.”
8 p.m.	Fox	“American Idol” (R)	Two guys and two gals are cut in the season’s first elimination episode.
8 p.m.	NBC	“Winter Olympics” (S)	Tonight’s highlight is coverage of the women’s figure skating free skate.
9 p.m.	TLC	“Police Women of Maricopa County” (R)	Season premiere. This round of officers deal with perps in the Phoenix area.
10 p.m.	USA	“Burn Notice” (D)	A kidnapper is hiding a secret and is also kinda paranoid.
10:30 p.m.	TNT	“NBA Basketball” (S)	If you like run-and-gun basketball, tonight’s Denver-Golden State game is for you.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	NBC	“Winter Olympics” (S)	Apolo Ohno and Lindsey Vonn are back competing for more medals.
8 p.m.	Fox	“NAACP Image Awards” (A)	Live coverage of the 41st annual awards show.
8 p.m.	ABC	“Blades of Glory” (M)	Perhaps the best figure skating parody movie ever. Also maybe the only figure skating parody movie ever.
9 p.m.	VH1	“Famous Crime Scene” (N)	Another look at the circumstances surrounding Michael Jackson’s death.
9 p.m.	Syfy	“Caprica” (D)	Tamara becomes friends with gamers in a virtual world.
10 p.m.	Starz	“Spartacus: Blood and Sand” (D)	Spartacus thinks of a backup plan in case he’s not able to reunite with his wife.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27
Time	Network	Program	Description
Noon	CBS	“College Basketball” (S)	National power Kentucky faces a tough test at Tennessee.
8 p.m.	Fox	“Cops” (R)	Cops in Texas find out a drunk driving suspect has more than one identity.
8 p.m.	NBC	“Winter Olympics” (S)	Medal winners in figure skating perform at the Champions Gala.
9 p.m.	ESPN	“College Basketball” (S)	Villanova faces Syracuse in a game that could end up deciding the Big East regular-season title.
11 p.m.	Fox	“The Wanda Sykes Show” (C)	Ray Romano, Roland Martin and Kevin Hart all guest.
11:30 p.m.	NBC	“Saturday Night Live” (S)	Jennifer Lopez serves as guest host.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28
Time	Network	Program	Description
Noon	NBC	“Winter Olympics” (S)	The gold medal game in men’s hockey is featured.
2 p.m.	Fox	“NASCAR Racing” (S)	A Sprint Cup race from Las Vegas.
7 p.m.	NBC	“Winter Olympics” (S)	It’s all over: the closing ceremonies bring an end to this year’s Games.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Undercover Boss” (R)	The co-owner of White Castle serves up sliders himself.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Desperate Housewives” (D)	Celia comes down with chicken pox, so Gaby stays with Bob and Lee.
9 p.m.	HBO	“Big Love” (D)	Marilyn comes up with a plan that could affect Bill’s political aspirations.
A = awards show or special, C = comedy, D = drama, DD = daytime drama, G = game show, K = kids, M = movie, N = news/documentary, R = reality, S = sports, T = talk/variety show.