VANCOUVER, B.C.--When it comes to the controversy over the figure skating gold, Canadian figure skater Patrick Chan sides with American Evan Lysacek.
The decision to award Lysacek the gold, even though Russian Evgeni Plushenko did a quad jump, drew some criticism from some corners, but not from Chan.
"He definitely deserved to have won with two great skates," Chan said, speaking that British Columbia International Media Centre here. "If I had done two great skates just like he did, I think I would be side by side with him."
Chan said that "anyone can do the quad," insisting the jump gets too much attention and distracts from the true artistry of the sport.
"With the quad, you really have to take out a lot," Chan said, "because you've got to really concentrate on having a good set-up."
In the press conference, Chan said he is pleased with his performance, even if it wasn't what he hoped, and noted that at 19, he still has a long career ahead of him, including the 2014 games in Sochi, Russia.
I also asked Chan to talk about the scoring system in general, as well as the role of technology in skating.
"Technology-wise we have come so far. We have instant replay and we have computers now to put in calculations for all the marks," Chan said. "They used to write on paper. Now it's all done on touch screens."