Known at home as "Queen Yu-na," Kim soared to a world-record 228.56 points and shattered her previous mark by more than 18 points. It will go down as one of the greatest performances in figure skating history, and is South Korea's first medal at the Winter Olympics in a sport other than speedskating.

Kim has made a habit of spectacular performances, but even she was dazzled by this one. She said "Oh my god!" when she saw the monstrous score _ a mark her top competitors can only dream of _ and coach Brian Orser pumped both arms, shaking his clasped fists over each shoulder.

Kim's longtime rival, Mao Asada of Japan, won the silver medal, but it was no contest _ even with Asada landing both of her triple axels, one in combination with a double toe loop.

Joannie Rochette, skating four days after the sudden death of her mother, Therese, won the bronze, giving Canada its first women's medal since Liz Manley's silver in Calgary in 1988.

Kim came in with almost incomprehensible pressure on her. Not only was the reigning world champion the most overwhelming favorite since Katarina Witt in 1988 _ she's lost just one competition over the last two seasons _ she carried the weight of an entire nation on her slim shoulders.

The most popular athlete in South Korea, Kim needs bodyguards whenever she returns home from her training base in Toronto. Anything she does creates a frenzy, and even a simple practice draws a rinkful of photographers.

Kim seemed to shrug it all off earlier this week, saying after the short program that it felt like any other competition. But it was clear Thursday that it meant much more.

There were simply no flaws in her performance, from her skating to her expressions to a lovely cobalt blue dress. While other skaters slow down as they approach their jumps to steady themselves, she hurtles into them at full speed, yet touches down with pillow-like softness.

Her connecting steps are like performance art, and her edge quality is so fine there is not even the slightest hint of a harsh scrape, just the sound of her crisp edge. Her spins are centered so perfectly the tracings look as if they were made with a protractor.

But what really makes her transcendent is her performance skills. Kim breathed life into Gershwin's "Concerto in F," moving across the ice like notes on a score. As the music lifted the first time, she put one hand on the small of her back and gave a flirty little smile that set shutters clicking throughout the building.

When she finished, you could almost see the pressure fall away as Kim bent over and covered her mouth. The tears continued to flow no matter how hard she tried to blink them back, and she held up her hands helplessly when she reached Orser. So many stuffed toys and flowers littered the ice the full complement of sweepers had to be deployed _ not once, but twice.

It almost wasn't fair that Asada, skating next, had to try and better that. She couldn't. It wasn't even close.

Asada, who has swapped titles with Kim since their junior days, is one of the few women who even tries a points-packing triple axel, and she did two Thursday. But she melted down later, stumbling on the footwork into her triple toe and forcing her to cut it to a single.

Asada looked stone-faced as she waited for her marks, and she didn't even crack a smile when she got her silver medal.

For Rochette, the medal is a culmination of "a lifelong project with my mom." Therese Rochette, 55, had a massive heart attack just hours after arriving in Vancouver to watch her daughter skate, and Rochette has been the picture of courage this week.

Supported by her father, Normand, and longtime coach Manon Perron, Rochette decided to go ahead and compete. Her performance Thursday wasn't perfect; she two-footed and stepped out of a triple flip, and had shaky landings on a couple of other jumps. But she made up for those errors with an emotional and expressive portrayal of "Samson and Delilah."

Their paths are almost sure to converge at the Vancouver Olympics medals podium Thursday night, with one wearing the gold medal.

It always seems to be these two trading titles and records in figure skating's version of leapfrog. Kim took away the world title from Asada last year. Asada scored the highest marks ever, only to have Kim surpass them. When Asada nails a triple axel, Kim tops her with showmanship.

It happened that way again Tuesday night in the short program, with Kim setting a world best with 78.5 points to take a nearly five-point edge over her main rival.

"We have a little bit of a cushion," said Brian Orser, Kim's coach. "But Yu-na will put the short program aside and focus on the free skate. This is no time to hold back."

Kim never does _ not that her South Korean homeland would give her a chance to relax.

South Korea is still looking for its first Winter Olympics medal in a sport other than speedskating or short track, and fans there are expecting _ demanding _ Kim to deliver.

Anything but gold is unthinkable to them. Finishing behind Japan's Asada would be devastating to a nation that already has nicknamed Kim "Queen Yu-na."

"There's so much emphasis on the short. It's do or die," Orser said. "When that pressure is gone, there's like a lightness to your skating. There's an extra weight that is off your shoulders.

"I think she's just going to soar after this, she's just going to fly."

Kim might need to.

Asada is one of the few women in the world who attempt a triple axel, and she's the only one to do two of the 3 1/2-revolution jumps in the free skate. If she lands a good one Thursday night, she might leap right over Kim.

A triple axel has a base value of 8.2 points, but Asada plans to do one in combination. Throw in the style points, and those two jumping passes alone could be worth almost 20 points.

"Usually, I think there's like a 10-point difference," Asada said after the short program. "So I feel good there's only this difference between myself and Yu-na."

Canada's Joannie Rochette is third, but she trails Asada by almost 2 1/2 points, leaving little doubt one of the two most popular skaters in Asia will be wearing a gold medal when the time comes.

Miki Ando, the 2007 world champion, is fourth, followed by young Americans Rachael Flatt and Mirai Nagasu.

"I'm not surprised at all," said Frank Carroll, who coaches Nagasu and Vancouver men's gold medalist Evan Lysacek. "They're both world champions and they're both amazing."

Kim skates right before Asada in the final, a reversal of their order in the short program.

Kim skates to Gershwin's "Concerto in F," a light, classical piece that highlights her artistry. Its gentle melody is the perfect fit for her whisper-soft edge quality, and she appears to float above the ice in her footwork sections. And unlike her James Bond short program, there is no character to portray.

"Yu-na has her own style, she's not trying to emulate anyone else," Orser said. "She just has a style that's very generous and is open for everyone to appreciate."

Asada, meanwhile, skates to Rachmaninoff's "Bells of Moscow." It's bold and strong, demanding that everyone recognize the advantage she has athletically _ not that it could be missed with those two triple axels planned for center ice.