They passed this rule to allow professional skaters such as Brian Boitano to win championships again. Scott Davis, amateur, ignored it - and won a championship again.
In one of the biggest upsets in U.S. Figure Skating Championships history, Davis successfully defended his title Thursday night with a scintillating performance that even his hero, Boitano, couldn't match."I was shocked and surprised I won last year, and I feel the same this year," Davis said. "I was on Cloud 9 last year and I'm on Cloud 9 this year."
He's also headed for the Olympics, along with 1988 gold medalist Boitano, who spent the last five years as a pro. When the International Skating Union changed its rules to allow for a one-time reinstatement of eligibility, Boitano was credited with helping force the move.
Davis, 21, of Great Falls, Mont., said he welcomed the competition, but he didn't fret about it.
"I think when I found out professionals would be reinstated last year, it gave me the desire to work harder to compete against them and hopefully be able to compete with them," Davis said. "Growing up watching Brian, I looked to him as a great athlete and performer and a great persona. Just to compete against him . . ."
But he isn't awed by Boitano or anyone else.
"It was not a big issue with us," said coach Kathy Casey. "We just went and trained."
They came up with a strong program to "West Side Story." Davis skated it to near-perfection Thursday night, nailing six triple jumps, including two triple axels. He had more than a minute remaining in the routine when the crowd already was on its feet and Casey was jumping for joy at rinkside.
Boitano, 30, simply couldn't match it. He also hit six triples, but he popped a second triple axel near the end of the program. His routine, to "Appalachian Spring," was mature and almost majestic.
It just didn't have the vibrance Davis displayed.
"It was kind of a feeling that if I were second, it would be kind of nice after the year that's been," said Boitano, who was unbeaten from the beginning of 1988 until December 1989, but now has lost three times in the last 13 months. "It would make me an underdog and make me aggressive for my training for the Olympics. But, no, it's definitely not (nice).
"I would have liked to have won. I'm disappointed I didn't pull that stupid triple axel," he said. "As a professional, I was accustomed to doing everything in the program. But I never did two triple axels, and I need to get out of the mindset of why should I do another triple axel? I just have to kick myself in the butt and do the second triple axel."
Aren Nielsen, with the best performance of his life, was third, followed by 1990-91 national champion Todd Eldredge, who seems to be emerging from a two-year slump.
In pairs, Jenni Meno and Todd Sand, who competed in the 1992 Olympics with different partners and got together in late 1992, won the technical program. The favorites and 1993 U.S. silver medalists were ahead of Kyoko Ina and Jason Dungjen, and Karen Courtland and Todd Reynolds.
The free skate is Saturday, with the top three couples making the Olympic team.
Already on that team, of course, are Davis and Boitano. Davis hadn't really planned on being in Lillehammer.
"I signed up for school just in case," said Davis, who registered at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs. "I can't believe it."
Casey could.
"I think back in our minds we felt it would be hard," she said. "Yes, I think it would be hard to sit on that (judges') hot seat and not give first place to an Olympic champion."
Did the outcome restore her faith in judging?
"It sure does," she said with a smile.