updated 8:40 p.m. ET Feb. 19, 2006

TURIN, Italy - The ice was slippery for a whole lot of competitors Sunday.

U.S. speedskater Chris Witty possibly ended her career with a 27^th-place finish. The Canadian men’s hockey, once favored for gold, failed to score for its second straight game. The American women curlers slid straight out of medal contention. And most of the ice dancing field was horizontal on it at one point.

Ice dancing
Fiesta time on ice turned into an Olympic fallfest, with only the Russians and Americans avoiding real calamity.

With three of the final five couples taking spills, including local favorites Barbara Fusar Poli and Maurizio Margaglio of Italy, two-time world champions Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov of Russia surged into the lead in ice dancing.

Their cha cha, rhumba and samba — and ability to stay upright — put them 1.38 points in front of Americans Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto heading into Monday night’s free dance.

Belbin and Agosto were helped immeasurably by an epidemic of falls that allowed them to move from sixth after the compulsories to second overall. No U.S. dancers have won an Olympic medal in 30 years.

Slide show   Pictures of the Day Check out Sunday's best Olympic images.

The Americans, the final duo to skate, began their passionate Latin routine while the crowd was still stunned from the fall taken by Fusar Poli and Margaglio, who plunged near the end of their program.

Fusar Poli seemed to get out of position during a lift, Margaglio lost his balance and they crashed.

When they finished, her glare at him could have burned holes in the ice. Their fall probably burned a hole in their medal chances as they dropped to seventh.

Appropriately, Fusar Poli broke down in tears in the “Kiss and Cry” area.

While the Italians made the most noteworthy flop of the night, it was not the most painful.

Slide show   Emotional Moments Feb. 26: See photos of athletes' highs and lows from Sunday.

Marie-France Dubreuil of Canada had a brutal fall. Near the end of her routine, she was in a split with both her hands wrapped around partner Patrice Lauzon’s arm. Her hands slipped and she fell hard on her right hip and knee, forcing him to the ice, too.

Women’s 1,000-meter speedskating
Marianne Timmer of the Netherlands won the Olympic gold medal in the women’s 1,000-meter, eight years after winning the same event at the Nagano Games.

Timmer finished in 1 minute, 16.05 seconds, just .04 seconds in front of Canada’s Cindy Klassen. Bronze medalist Anni Friesinger of Germany was .06 seconds behind Timmer. It was the first loss this season in a 1,000 for Friesinger, who was the overwhelming favorite entering the games.

Defending champion Chris Witty of the United States was never a factor and finished 27th, continuing the U.S. women’s struggles at these games. Jennifer Rodriguez, a Salt Lake City bronze medalist, was 10th, Amy Sannes was 25th and Elli Ochowicz 32nd. The American women have yet to win a medal in Turin.

The victory was especially sweet for Timmer, who was left in tears after being disqualified from the 500 on Tuesday following a false start.

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