NAGANO, Japan -- Tara Lipinski will know how well Michelle Kwan has skated in her free skate program Friday night well before she herself takes the ice.

Skaters

Will knowing how Michelle Kwan skates before she does give Tara Lipinski an edge? (Reuters)

always say they aren't that conscious of how someone has skated before them. We are talking about human beings, though. Kwan leads the standings. Lipinski is in second place with Russia's Maria Butyrskaya right behind.

IF KWAN CONTINUES to elevate herself and remain in this remarkable zone of excellence, Lipinski will at least know of Kwan's marks and the obstacle she must overcome.

You can't hit a grand slam with only one runner on base. It can be a bad habit to disrupt months of practice on one program to go for the big hit. Lipinski isn't budging on the question of whether she would plan any dramatic change.

"I don't know. You'll all have to watch," she said.

Lipinski will be the next-to-last skater. She does have in her arsenal a jump no ladies' skater employs, the triple loop-triple loop. Even if she lands that cleanly, there's a mounting sense Kwan is on the verge of a performance for the ages.

IF KWAN EXECUTES THE PROGRAM she has worked on so meticulously, she will win the gold medal. At 17, her natural grace and maturity are something the 15-year-old Lipinski just doesn't possess in the same quantity. Lipinski continues to establish herself as a fine athlete with strong jumping skills and speed. Kwan is that, and more. She is skating like a swan.

It is hard to beat a smooth swan.

"You don't think about placement," Lipinski said in the press conference following her short program Wednesday night at the White Ring. "I just go out and skate the best I can. I like being second. You're really motivated to go out and get it."

KWAN SEEMS TO HAVE FOUND a Zen-like inner peace that could be disturbed only if she somehow slips on the ice. A tireless worker, Kwan knows she has done her homework and she is reaching her career peak. That gives her heightened confidence.

"I've done everything possible," she said. "I'm here to have fun. I kind of thought I'm here for myself. At the beginning of my program I saw all the (U.S.) flag bearers and people yelling, 'Go, Michelle!' and I thought, 'I'm in heaven.' "

Can Lipinski beat an angel?

She doesn't seem to be steering her thoughts toward beating Kwan as much as skating her best and letting the scores fall where they may.

After she landed the triple flip that was her demise in the short program at the U.S. Championships in Philadelphia, Lipinski exulted and had great fun in the Nagano short program. "It felt so great, I wished it was a four-minute program. I just enjoyed the moment. I was so relieved when I finally started skating ... Once you get there and do it, it's a big relief. It gives you a lot of confidence for the long program."

Her coach, Richard Callaghan, said Lipinski looks as if she is on "a mission." Kwan is skating so well, though, it might be a Mission: Impossible.

To Lipinski's credit, she is not letting Kwan's excellence take anything from what for her was an all-time performance in its own right. She is still a 15-year-old. She does look more like a kid than an adult, which is how it's supposed to be when you are Lipinski's age.

While she must nail all of her athletic moves, Lipinski has to compete with someone who has the fluidity and elegance of a grown woman despite only a two-year age gap.

It is a tall order. But it won't keep Lipinski from having fun at the Olympics, which sometimes can be the hardest mission an athlete has to face.

Mike Lurie is a CBS SportsLine staff writer.