“But then I decided to come back as a challenge to myself. I wanted to be healthy but I wanted more here,” the spin-master added, tapping his heart.

Despite the aches and pains all over his body, Lambiel is ready to gamble his gold medal prospects on the quad—a jump that has caused a raging debate between top competitors from Europe (who perform the quads) and North America (who do not).

Olympic champion Yevgeny Plushenko and former world champion Brian Joubert of France have been critical of the fact that the last two world titles were won by North Americans who did not attempt the dizzying jump in which at least four rotations must be completed through the air.

While Plushenko’s coach Alexei Mishin said winning the Olympic gold without performing a quad is like going back to the dark ages, Joubert blamed a new scoring system—introduced after the Salt Lake City judging scandal — for discouraging skaters from attempting the high-risk manoeuvres.

“I think the quad is the future of figure skating. I remember (Canadian figure skater) Elvis Stojko doing the quad-triple and it was extraordinary,” Joubert told reporters.

“In 2002, 15 skaters were doing the quad, now there are about six. This is because of the new (judging) system.”

American world champion Evan Lysacek is among those who have exploited the new accumulative points scoring system, in which each element has a pre-determined score, by putting in complex spins and fast-paced step sequences to compensate for the lack of a quad in their routines.

But with quad specialists Plushenko, Lambiel and Joubert in the Vancouver field, the Frenchman was confident the jump would play a major factor in deciding who will win the Olympic title.

“I think the quad will make the difference for an Olympic title. I did the quad-triple (toeloop combination) in practice and if it works in practice, then it works in competition,” said Joubert.

The Swiss star carried his country's flag into the opening ceremonies. His friend, Swiss ski jumper Simon Ammann, won the first gold medal of the 2010 Games eight years after taking home two in Salt Lake City, giving the skater added inspiration for his own comeback after sitting out last season with hip abductor injuries.

"I am going to use the energy of the Opening Ceremonies, the community of athletes entering the stage, the joy, in my performances," Lambiel, 24, said at a press conference. "It was an honor to be chosen. For me, it was already a great dream."

Back for his third and likely final Olympics, Lambiel hopes to win the ultimate prize after taking silver in Torino.

"Physically, I feel perfectly fine," he said. "In fact, I feel much better now than I did at Europeans in Tallinn last month. I have to thank my physical therapy team in Geneva for that.

"I'm almost all the way to the top of the pyramid; there is only one step left, and that's Vancouver. I like the ice here, even the color. I've already practiced in both competition and practice rinks, and it went well."

The skater's longtime coach Peter Grutter, who trains Lambiel in Geneva, disagreed, saying his skater must improve before he takes the ice for the short program on Feb. 16.

"He was actually very good in practice since Tallinn, almost spotless in both programs," Grutter, a 1964 Olympian, said. "Then we had a 24-hour trip here, jet lag, and the Opening Ceremony, so I want the practices here to get better. I was worried about the Opening Ceremony; I knew it would be long, a lot of standing around, not proper food."

Grutter aside, Lambiel seemed relaxed and energized with reporters.

"When I took the first steps with this comeback [last summer], it was hard to believe I would be where I am today," he said.

"It was a lot of listening to my body and knowing where I wanted it to be. As soon as I knew that, I was able to find solutions to the problems that started two years ago. Before, I went everywhere, to so many doctors, and nothing helped."

Lambiel added that although the condition is chronic, a regular program of physical therapy and intense daily stretching has made the difference.

"Before, I lost the belief that I was able to stay healthy," he said. "Then I knew I was able to be healthy. I decided to make this comeback to challenge myself."

Unspoken is his desire to add Olympic gold to his resume, which includes world titles in 2005 and 2007.

"When he enters any championship, he wants to do his best, and if the best suffices for gold, he's happy," Grutter said. "We never speak of the color of the medal, but he is a winner, not a loser, so he is not just here to participate."

To further that end, a few weeks before Europeans, Lambiel ditched his Tango free skate in favor of a more classically elegant program to Verdi's "La Traviata." The risk paid off when the routine's program components' score defeated that of longtime rival Evgeny Plushenko.

"As soon as "Traviata" was choreographed, I knew that the program was going to be my Olympic program," he said. "I felt a freshness in the program. I had -- how do you say? -- the music under my skin.

"It's a very hard program compared to the Tango. There are no breaks in between elements. I'm moving all the time, and it takes a lot of energy to keep moving. Since Tallinn, we've worked on the details of the program and also on my physical condition."

The skater's choreographer, Salome Brunner, favors the program because it's more accessible to audiences.

"It was not my idea; actually, Mr. Grutter suggested it," she said. "Stephane said he was also thinking about music like it, so it was kind of a telepathic meeting of the minds.

"I knew it was music Stephane would really be able to present, to finish off the accents. Almost everyone knows and understands this music. It's not better or worse than the Tango, but it's a good choice for the Olympics. I think this music reaches more people."

Lambiel, who refrains from critiquing other skaters, refused to give his opinion on the high marks achieved by Plushenko, who has been criticized in some quarters for a lack of intricate transitions in and out of his elements.

"Maybe I am a bit naïve, but I still believe judges judge what they see," he said. "[Skating] is what you feel, what you see. Is it vibrating within you or not? I'm not taking one side or the other. I'm trying to not only perform the technical [elements] but also be a dancer, to put both sides into my skating."

Grutter was a bit more forthright, saying he thought his skater was the true winner of the free skate in Tallinn.

"It depends so much on the judging, on different interpretations of figure skating," the coach said. "We are from the French part of Switzerland, and we don't say 'figure skating,' it is 'artistic skating.' In English and Russian, it is figure skating -- spins, steps, jumps.

"If you listened to the crowd in Tallinn, you don't know who won. I think Stephane won. Even if you don't have the gold medal around your neck, you can have it in your heart."

Despite his unquestioned artistry, Lambiel likely must skate clean here to get any color medal around his neck. Since he rarely hits a triple Axel, the other jumps in his programs, especially his quadruple toe loops, gain added importance.

"Of course, he is doing the quad-triple combination in his short and two quads in his free," Grutter said. "It is the supreme difficulty, and the quad has been very, very consistent, so I believe in it. Of course, who knows what will happen when he is before the judges and maybe a little nervous."

Lambiel doesn't think nerves will trouble him, at least not as much as they did in Torino, when he wept with relief at his silver medal.

"The situation is different than four years ago," he said. "I am older and a bit wiser. There is an improvement in what I showed the crowd in 2006 and what I can show now. It's about me, not just my skating.

"I am nervous, but not as nervous [as I was] in Torino. In Torino, there was crazy excitement and pressure. Now I'm here just to enjoy probably my last Olympics. I want to enjoy every moment."