Sochi / Russia

The figure skating competition at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games concluded in Sochi, Russia, on Thursday with the Ladies Free Skating.

Adelina Sotnikova (RUS) skates off with gold
Russia’s Adelina Sotnikova skated off with the gold medal, dethroning 2010 Olympic Champion Yuna Kim of Korea and winning the first Olympic ladies title for her country. Carolina Kostner of Italy earned the bronze medal, the first Olympic figure skating medal in single skating for Italy.

Sotnikova produced seven triples including a triple Lutz-triple toeloop and a double Axel-triple toe as well as level four spins and footwork in her program to "Introduction et Rondo Capriccioso" by Camille Saint-Saens to score a personal best of 149.95 points. Overall she racked up 224.59 points. "I won. It's my gold medal. I can't believe it," the 17-year-old said. "Two years ago, all of my competitions were very bad. I didn't know if I had what it takes to be successful. Now I know that I do”, she added.

Performing to "Adios Nonino" by Astor Piazzolla, Kim landed six triples including a triple Lutz-triple toeloop combination to pick up 144.19 points, which added up to 219.11 points. "The most important thing for me is to participate in this Olympic Winter Games. It's my last competition, and I'm happy to be here", Kim said. "I was the last skater, and I couldn't see how others did. The result was good because I made no mistakes", the 23-year-old added.

Kostner’s exquisite program to "Bolero" featured seven triple jumps and three level-four spins as well as a level four step sequence. The 2012 World Champion posted a new personal best score with 142.61 points for an overall total of 216.73 points. "It was a dream to skate a dream competition and it happened to be at the Olympic Games. I know what it is like going through hard times, and I always wanted a good competition. It's been hard work and I have had many ups and downs. To do it here, my dream came true. I was telling myself I should fight and that I should believe that anything is possible and as it turned out, it is possible", Kostner shared.

Gracie Gold (USA) fell on a triple flip and placed fourth with 205.53 points. Olympic team gold medalist Julia Lipnitskaia (RUS) made errors on two jumps to finish fifth at 200.57 points. 2010 Olympic silver medalist Mao Asada (JPN), who ranked 16th following a subpar Short Program, landed a triple Axel and pulled up to sixth place with 198.22 points.

With Sotnikova’s gold medal, Russia is the first ISU member to have won Olympic gold medals in all figure skating disciplines.

The Exhibition Gala on Saturday is the last figure skating event at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games.