Fierce rivals, skaters Evan Lysacek and Johnny Weir scored the same amount of combined total points, forcing a tie-breaker to choose the new national skating champion.

After the short, leaders Evan Lysacek and Johnny Weir were interviewed simultaneously about their fierce rivalry. Evan said he anticipated having a bit of nerves but admitted that defending his title was harder than he thought.

He gave “props to Johnny” for “doing this three times.” Johnny wished him luck and said the rivalry urged him to fight even harder in the freeskate.

No one would have believed these two champions would tie -- or hug -- at the competition’s conclusion, but that’s exactly what happened. Here’s how the final group of men skated their long programs and the resulting final placement.

Gold Medalist: Evan Lysacek

This win for Evan didn’t come easily. A nose blow before taking the ice was the only indication given that he’s been battling a cold and ear infection through these championships. His coach, Michelle Kwan’s former instructor Frank Carroll, reminded him: “Nobody’s more trained to do this than you are. This is a sport. You’re ready to do this. Believe in it.”

Evan opened his freeskate with a quad toe combo that was fully rotated but not steady on the landing. Other jumps and well-centered spins gave him the points he was looking for.

Three jumping passes in the middle of the program demonstrated Evan’s incredible stamina. They were a triple Axel and a doubled toe loop, an arabesque stretch entry that gave him bonus points before another jump with a less-than-perfect addition double, and a clean triple Lutz.

With a breath before his level 4 footwork, he generated a storm from the crowd during a musical crescendo and final spin. His ending facial expression made it clear that he attacked this program from beginning to end.

Johnny Weir watched Evan bow to a standing ovation and took to the ice before Evan was off. There’s no need for head games at that point, however; Evan’s performance insisted Johnny be good -- excellent, in fact.

Replays delayed Evan’s scores and gave Weir time to focus. At the same time, Johnny had to concentrate on his pending performance while hearing Evan register his best free skating score ever. Now Evan and his girlfriend, ice dancer Tanith Belbin, can wear matching gold medals to their next press junket conference.

Silver Medalist: Johnny Weir

Olympic Gold Medalist Victor Petrenko was on the boards to support Johnny, alongside Russian skating coach Galina Zmievskaya (Victor’s mother-in-law and instructor of numerous Olympic champions.)

Johnny went for the quad and earned full credit for rotations but not the slightly two-footed landing. His triple Axel, triple toe loop jump combination was clean and followed by another triple with an expressive exit for bonus points.

As the pounding of his music heated up, so to did Weir’s jumps. He skated to music that was put together just for him, and it seemed to help with his confidence. The audience clapped continuously for the last minute and a half of his program until his final spin.

It was serious business on the ice for this dynamic skater. It was nice to be reminded that behind all the public “show” layers of fashion and conceit is a very talented young man.

Johnny erupted with tears of joy that would prove to be short-lived. He stared at the scoreboard and didn’t understand what he saw. The announcer explained the scoreboard:

The Tie-Breaker

Johnny and Evan had tied in total points of their short programs and free skates combined. The new rules say that in the event of a tie, the win goes to the skater who had the highest freeskate score. Johnny was one point behind Evan in the long program, so this Nationals got away from him again.

Regardless of his second-place finish, Johnny’s new athletic training and focus came together here. Hopefully he will keep it consistent for the World Championships in March. After hearing of his silver medal finish here at Nationals, Johnny gave gracious comments, admitting that he’s finally making the right decisions as he progresses toward the Olympics.

Bronze Medalist: Steven Carrier

This National and World Junior Champion decided not to attempt his quad until his triple Axel was more solid. That quad might come soon; his first triple Axel was clean enough for a double toe to sneak in on the end. Unique arm positioning on some jumps earned Carrier bonus points too.

A fun blues routine helped this skater get comfortable on the ice and took advantage of the new scoring system. His triple Lutz with a “Tano”-style double toe received bonus for the hand position, but Steven’s entry into the combination had sloppy hands and a set-up that left the music behind. This skater had fairly solid technique and pleasant choreography, despite those occasional pauses to set up for jumps.

4th: Jeremy Abbott

A delightfully balletic waltz program brought out a classical quality we haven’t seen before in this skater. His technique is progressing but not quite clean yet. For example, a triple toe loop followed a doubled Axel, set in between triples that were all slightly off either in edge or rotation.

Artistically, Jeremy projected strength and grace. This continued through a big triple Axel and his triple, double, double jump combination. Dance moves, like a back cabriole, nearly got in his way as he stumbled a bit before his footwork sequence. Still, Jeremy remained intense to the end and earned a standing ovation.

5th: Ryan Bradly

Skating first in the last group of guys, this National Silver Medalist worked the crowd for support before taking his starting position. He couldn’t quite pull off a clean program however, but nobody cared. Ryan’s outgoing personality paired perfectly with his Charlie Chaplin tribute.

Toe pick stepping and flexed-foot turns in character made up footwork that was more entertaining than competitive because of the lack of tight edging and quickness. Still, Ryan’s last triple Lutz, triple toe loop combo, although two-footed, showed incredible endurance and athletic ability.

An eight year old boy summed up the spectator’s point of view: “I can see how he enjoys doing what he does. That’s what I like most about him.”

Other Competitors, in Standings Order:

Scott Smith, Wesley Campbell, Shaun Rogers, Tommy Steenberg, Dennis Phan, Parker Pennington, Geoffry Varner, Eliot Halverson, Braden Overett, Derrick Delmore, Douglas Razzano, Michael Villarreal, and Rohene Ward.