Shizuka Arakawa cannot match Sasha Cohen’s breathtaking spiral or Irina Slutskaya’s athleticism. But the 24-year-old figure skater came away with the Olympic gold medal Thursday night – Japan’s one and only medal of these Games – because she did the one thing Cohen and Slutskaya were unable to do.

She stayed on her feet.

Cohen, the balletic Californian with the cover girl looks, fell on her first jump, two-footed a landing on the second, and prevented a fall by putting both hands on the ice. Figuring she was out of the medal running, she went into her dressing room and changed out of her costume.

She admitted she was “shocked” to learn she had won the silver medal after world champion Slutskaya of Russia also faltered, falling on a triple loop late in her program, skipping the second half of two planned combinations, and landing just four triple jumps. Slutskaya, 27, settled for the bronze.

“I wasn’t expecting this,” Arakawa said. “I’m finding it hard to find words. I couldn’t think at all with that gold medal around my neck.”

Other than her falls, Cohen skated gracefully and received a huge ovation, as did Slutskaya. But on this night, neither skater lived up to her resume.

“Sasha established herself as the most beautiful, elegant skater … now she just has to stay on her feet,” said Cohen’s coach, John Nicks.

Cohen led after the short program, but only by the slimmest of margins – seven one-hundredths of a point separated the three – which meant, in essence, they were tied entering Thursday’s free skate.

Adding to the drama were their compelling storylines.

Cohen, 21, had the weight of unfulfilled promise on her slender shoulders. She was determined to prove she could skate her best when it counts most and put an end to a run of disappointing finishes here for the most-hyped U.S. athletes. For years, she had been one of the world’s most pleasing skaters to watch but had been incapable of putting together two great programs, leaving her with silvers at the last two world championships and at four national championships.

Slutskaya, the rosy-cheeked Muscovite with seven European titles and two world titles, was also eager to shed the label of perennial runner-up. The favorite at Salt Lake City, she settled for silver behind surprise gold medalist Sarah Hughes. Slutskaya was also somewhat of a sentimental favorite because she came back from a career-threatening vascular illness and has spent much of the past few years caring for her mother, who has a kidney ailment.

Had Slutskaya won, she would have been the oldest Olympic women’s figure skating champion since 1908 – maybe ever. Madge Syers of England was born in 1881 and was 27 when she won the gold in 1908, but nobody knows her exact birthday.

And then there was Arakawa, the least-celebrated of the trio. Nicknamed “Cool Beauty” back home, the 5-foot-6 skater is best-known for a stunning Ina Bauer stretch, in which she arches her head back almost to her hips. Arakawa has a degree in social studies from Tokyo’s Waseda University and considered retiring two years ago. But a surprise victory at the 2004 world championships recharged her battery. She trained in Detroit two years, and currently trains in Connecticut.

Sasha Cohen of the United States falls during the first jump of her routine in the Women's Figure Skating final at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 23, 2006.

Cohen was the first of the top three to take the ice Thursday night. Skating to “Romeo and Juliet,” Cohen looked perfect for the part. She was dressed in a romantic burgundy dress and had her hair back in a tight bun. But she looked shaky during warm-ups, falling twice, and later said she felt “apprehensive” when it came time for her four-minute program.

She said a nagging groin injury was relieved by Tylenol, Celebrex and ultrasound (“a nice combination”), but insisted that was not to blame for her subpar performance.

“I was a little apprehensive because I missed the lutz and flip in warm-up,” said Cohen, who missed the same jumps in her program. “You go out there, have all those people watching, it’s hard to feel like you’re getting ‘churros’ at Disneyland. I was as shocked as the rest of you probably were when I fell, but I was able to believe when everything looked dark and gray, and the music carried me through the rest of the program.”

Cohen did her polite curtseys, and gathered the stuffed animals her fans threw on the ice, but she felt in her heart of hearts that she would go home empty-handed. Nicks felt otherwise.

“I thought she still had a chance (after her imperfect program),” Nicks said. “I’ve been around a long time, seen a lot of mistakes made. I think it’s obvious the standard of skating overall was not particularly good, definitely not as good as the short program.”

Then came Arakawa, whose Puccini music delighted the Italian crowd of 6,200. Though she doubled three of her planned eight triple jumps, she looked confident and stayed upright. She took over first place, but there was enough wiggle room for Slutskaya, the final skater, to capture the gold.

Russian fans waved giant flags and chanted “Ru-see-ah! Ru-see-ah!” When her Flamenco music began, the crowd clapped along. Slutskaya was all smiles, and appeared to be on her way to victory when she fell on a triple loop jump late in her program. Though she fell only once, and Cohen fell twice, Cohen landed five triples to Slutskaya’s four.

In the end, when the judges’ calculations were completed, Arakawa topped the standings with 191.34 points. She finished eight points ahead of Cohen and 10 points ahead of Slutskaya.

“I’m happy I have one more medal,” Slutskaya said. “I’m disappointed with my skating, but it’s life, it’s competition. There are other girls who finished in 18th or 20th place, and I have a medal.”

Sixteen-year-old Americans Kimmie Meissner and Emily Hughes, younger sister of 2002 champion Sarah Hughes, both put in solid performances, finishing sixth and seventh, respectively. Eighteen-year-old Miki Ando of Japan became the first woman to attempt a quadruple jump at the Olympics, but fell.

This time, there would be no teenybopper on the podium.

The last three Olympics were won by teens. Sixteen-year-old Oksana Baiul won in 1994, 15-year-old Tara Lipinski won in 1998, and 16-year-old Sarah Hughes won in 2002.

“I was surprised I’d be a bronze medalist, and even more surprised to win the silver medal,” Cohen said. “When I found out, I was like, ‘Oh, that’s nice.’ Over the past four years, the focus has not been on the medals. I don’t even know where all my medals are. They’re in shoeboxes in random places.”

Cohen, of Corona del Mar, said she never cried Thursday. She tried to keep things in perspective.

“Ultimately, this was four minutes of one day in my life,” she said. “I’ve had an incredible journey, and become a stronger person. I’m tougher than I think I am. The medal is just a medal. What I’ll remember most is the feeling after the short program. That’s what it’s about for me.”