Brilliant! Phl’s Martinez advances in Sochi

MOSCOW – Michael Christian Martinez has already made history for tropical Philippines by competing in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Thursday night, the gangly 17-year-old added to the milestone by delivering a dazzling performance that sent him into the final round of the men’s figure skating hostilities at the Iceberg Skating Palace.

Performing to the tune “A Time for Us” from the movie “Romeo and Juliet,” Martinez passionately executed his routine in the short program and impressed with his musicality, flexibility and mostly clean spins to earn 64.81 points.

His score was good for 19th overall, landing him well inside the Top 24, which would go on to skate in last night’s free program and dispute the gold medal.

“I think I did quite well,” the soft-spoken Martinez said in an interview with TV-5’s Chiqui Roa-Puno.

The youngest competitor in field, Martinez shook off the jitters by warming his hands and tapping his sides, then began his skate by hitting a nice triple axel that drew applause from the audience.

He didn’t finish the rotation on a triple lutz and triple toe loop on his second jump, though, for which the technical panel gave him a downgrade.

But he skated the rest of his routine magnificently, completing several triple axels, a triple loop and the “Mr. Frick Move,” in which he leaned backwards to the ice.

He capped his debut in the world’s biggest stage with a spectacular combination spin, highlighted by a perfectly executed Biellmann spin. 

The crowd cheered as he waved his jacket with the words “Philippines” on the back, appreciating the effort of the kid who started in a mall back home and went on to break the barrier for a non-winter country in the games.

Even in the eyes of experts, Martinez, the first homegrown Filipino talent to compete in the Winter Olympics, is worth a second look.

“I think he has a big future,” said the female commentator after he wrapped up his debut performance. 

“I said this was going to be good but to be honest, I didn’t think it would be quite this good,” the male commentator remarked.

The Russians were left in awe, as well. “Phenomenal! Simply remarkable!” exclaimed a commentator of the Russian national TV Rossiya2.

“Brilliant! But the scores are too low! He deserves much more!” another Russian journalist blogged, adding that with more participation in high-level tournaments, “judges will definitely start appointing him to higher ranks.”

Given his limited training due to budgetary problems and relative inexperience in the Olympics, Martinez was targeting to just reach the final round in Sochi.

Anything from here will be a bonus.

“I feel like a real champion,” Martinez told AP’s Tim Dahlberg after the short program.

Martinez was to perform a fiery four-minute routine to Ernesto Lecuona’s “Malagueña” in the medal round Friday night.

The Filipino teenager wasn’t among the favorites for the gold, especially in the midst of seasoned rivals like Japanese Yuzuru Hanyu, who became the first skater to break the 100-point mark in a short program on Thursday.

“These Olympics will give me significant input from the judges,” Martinez, a junior skater who has at least two Olympics ahead of him, told The STAR.

“I’ll be able to see what they want to see from a skater. This is important to me to know what I still have to work on, especially for my other upcoming competitions,” he added.

After the Olympics, Martinez will compete in the ISU Junior Worlds Competition in Bulgaria next month.

It will actually be the start of his preparations for the 2018 Olympiad.

“Of course, I’m looking forward to the next Olympics! A lot of people have been saying that I have potential to compete and get a medal in the 2018 Olympics but I will only be able to continue if there will be enough support and funding,” he said.

Martinez’s road to Sochi has not been smooth all the way, as he and his family had to overcome financial constraints to be able to train and skate in the big leagues.

“He knew that Filipinos were with him, supporting him, praying for him and he wanted to give his best,” his proud mother Teresa said.

There were goosebumps when TV commentators raved about Martinez’s feat.

“That’s the first triple x (axel) for an Olympian from the Philippines. He’s handling the pressure very well,” said the female commentator.

Everything, actually, was a first for Martinez and his proud country.

“This is the first ever for the Philippines – from a very young but very mature 17-year-old,” the rink commentator also said.

Martinez, the experts added, is the first Filipino ever to have landed the triple x in a competition, and as he skated his way in he was described as “a very charismatic performer.”

“That was fantastic. Well done. You can be proud of yourself,” said the other commentator as Martinez prepared to leave the ice.

“It’s such a great performance from a very young man. What a debut for the Philippines,” said the other.

It was the first and certainly not the last for this young Romeo.

The chase for the Olympic gold medal in Sochi, meanwhile, is tipped to end in favor of a first timer. 

Barring a shocking result in the free skate, a country will celebrate its first men’s Olympic gold medal in figure skating Friday night.

Unless Germany’s Peter Liebers or 19-year-old American Jason Brown soar from sixth place to take the title – highly improbable, even though both are well within range of a bronze – the top spot on the podium at the Sochi Games will go to a newcomer: Japan, Canada or Spain.

Three-time world champion Patrick Chan of Canada came into the Olympics as the favorite, but he’s been outskated twice already by Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu.

The momentum Hanyu carries into the free skate is substantial after he became the first skater to break the 100-point mark in a short program on Thursday. Now he could not only become the first Japanese men’s Olympic champ, but the first from any Asian country.

“I wouldn’t say I’m happy with my scores,” said Hanyu, who certainly looked thrilled when he double-pumped his fists after his 101.45 was posted. “I should be happy where I am now in this Olympics.”

Chan, the latest Canadian to challenge for the men’s crown – remember Donald Jackson, Brian Orser, Kurt Browning and Elvis Stojko? – said he likes his position, too. But he is nearly four points behind, and Hanyu hasn’t missed a thing in Sochi.

“Remember that I’m doing this for myself, not for anyone else, not for Canada, not for the media,” Chan said. “Taking a deep breath out there and remember that I’m only going to get one more chance to skate in front of an audience on Olympic ice. Really enjoy the moment and have fun.”

One man having plenty of fun in the short program, with designs on two medals, is Orser, who guided Yuna Kim to her 2010 title in Vancouver.

He now coaches Hanyu and Javier Fernandez of Spain, which has never won an Olympic figure skating medal of any color.

“When I first got him,” Orser said of Hanyu, “he was just like a 16-year-old athlete that just wants to do more, more, more, faster, better, more, more. It was a little bit erratic. We had to rein him in a little bit, organize him better, so that you can become reliable on competition day rather than just taking a gamble.”

Now, he looks like almost a sure thing.

Fernandez trails Hanyu by more than 12 points and will need a major swing in the standings to win.

Instead, he might be concentrating on holding off 2010 silver medalist Daisuke Takahashi of Japan, who is .58 points behind. Liebers is fifth, .94 in back of the two-time European champ, and the surprising Brown is .98 behind. – With Abac Cordero, AP