"It was my moment," Pat Lipinski said, remembering the gold-medal ceremony for her daughter, her only child. "Standing there, everything flashed through my mind -- all the years of skating, the day she was born, the times we've spent together."

When their eyes met, Tara Lipinski, Olympic gold medalist, exchanged knowing smiles with her mother, who mouthed the words, "I love you."

For mother and daughter, it had been their most tender moment of these Winter Games, which ended Sunday night with Lipinski marching proudly behind U.S. flag-bearer Cammi Granato in the closing ceremonies.

For them, it had been a moment they deserved, a moment acknowledging that the tough times were worth it.

Pat Lipinski has always been there for her daughter. Not sometimes. Always.

Always, as in packing tuna sandwiches and driving Tara each day to practice at the Detroit Skating Club in Bloomfield Hills.

Always, as in sitting in the same section of yellow seats at the rink, usually alone, watching every training session.

Always, as in accompanying her daughter on trips, lugging their bags, checking them in and out of hotels, going to competitions and ordering room service at midnight.

Always, as in staying apart from her husband -- the family split because of Jack Lipinski's corporate job in Houston and Tara's skating happiness in Michigan -- because it is the way it must be.

What happened this weekend at White Ring didn't make the difficult times any easier.

It only made them worth it.

"There were so many times this year when I wanted to go home," Pat L