updated 4:36 p.m. ET Feb. 12, 2006

TURIN, Italy - Figure skating’s new judging system is distorting the sport by devaluing the artistic component in favor of robotic performances, a French gold medalist from the 2002 games complained on Thursday.

“In all disciplines, this scoring system makes the choreography much more gymnastic and much less interesting in terms of innovation, the artistic and dramatic side. It’s a pity, because it’s killing what made our sport different,” said Gwendal Peizerat, who won the ice dancing gold in 2002 with his partner Marina Anissina.

The new system has been slowly introduced since the judging scandal at the Salt Lake City games in 2002 where it was alleged that a French judge voted to give the gold medal in the pairs competition to a Russian couple in return for a victory for Peizerat and Anissina in the ice dance. The International Olympic Committee eventually awarded another gold medal to the Canadian couple that had finished second.

Instead of awarding an overall mark — which had resulted in each judge ranking the competitors — judges score individual aspects of the program, making the scoring fairer.

Nevertheless, at recent European Championships in Lyon, France, the public whistled their disapproval of the judges’ decisions.

“You finish the competition and everyone looks at each other and says, ’I wouldn’t have done that. What I saw doesn’t correspond to that,”’ Peizerat said. “What’s more, none of the top five ice dance pairs were happy with their results.”

Peizerat, who is not competing in Turin, said he believes the new system influences programs that are increasingly created by trainers.

“I’ve seen coaches spend the training session counting the elements, clocking them up, and not being able to feel the slightest emotion,” he said.

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