(no title)

Copyright 1996 the Associated Press. -- All Rights Reserved

Kristi Yamaguchi and Kurt Browning each felt they caught a break or two from the judges. It was enough to help make them world champions.

Yamaguchi fell on her best jump in her first routine, then skipped another one altogether in her second. Nevertheless, she easily topped the field to win the women's title for the third time Saturday night in the World Professional Figure Skating Championship.

''I have never done that in my life,'' Yamaguchi said of the missed jump, a triple flip planned at the beginning of her artistic program. ''I don't know what I was thinking. I was very lucky today.''

Browning retained the men's title with two soulful routines that played well to the USAir Arena audience as well as to the judges. He thought he would be at a disadvantage skating first in the technical program, and couldn't believe what he saw when nothing but 9.8s and 9.9s appeared after his routine to music from Nat King Cole.

''They were very generous,'' Browning said. ''It's difficult to win from the first draw. For me, I haven't had a lot of luck from the first draw.''

Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean won the dance title for the fifth time. Elena Bechke and Denis Petrov, who have been runners-up here four times, won their first-ever major pairs title.

What made Browning's victory more amazing was that he was able to upset Brian Boitano for the second consecutive year. Boitano failed to win for only the fifth time in 25 pro competitions. ''I really didn't think I was going to win,'' Browning said. ''Last year, it was a surprise. This year, it's another surprise. ... Brian Boitano, in my book, is a technical wizard we can pattern ourselves after if you have the guts.''

Wearing a psychedelic dress for a romantic artistic program to Puccini, Yamaguchi made up for her missed jump by hitting a triple toe-loop and a double axel. She scored mostly 9.7s and 9.8s for technical merit and 9.8s and 9.9s for artistic impression.

Yamaguchi had led after the technical program despite an uncharacteristically wobbly performance and a fall on a triple-toe loop. She was unhappy enough with the sassy tango routine that she playfully bonked her head with a bouquet of flowers as she left the ice.

''Ordinarily it's my best triple,'' Yamaguchi said. ''Weird things like that happen.''

Browning went for the T-shirt look as he skated to numbers by Cole and Al Jarreau. His Cole program finished with the skater on both knees, gesturing with outstretched arms to the judges. He also landed enough triples to earn scores of 9.8 and 9.9, easily the best of the round.

His artistic routine to Jarreau's ''Summertime'' won nothing but 9.9s for artistic impression.

''The program is not for the crowd, it's for me,'' Browning said. ''It's movement and dance and a lot of fun.''

Among the women, Yamaguchi wasn't alone in her struggles, as none of the others came close to skating clean technical programs. Defending champion Yuka Sato and third-place Caryn Kadavy rallied with solid artistic routines, but could not make up the deficit to Yamaguchi.

Ekaterina Gordeeva, in her solo debut in the event she won three times in pairs with late husband Sergei Grinkov, skated elegantly in a blue and white peasant's dress in her technical program, but failed to complete a triple jump. She placed fourth on the night.

''It's difficult,'' Gordeeva said. ''But it's fun, too.''

Boitano fell on a triple-toe loop and touched down on a triple axel in his technical program. His artistic routine to ''Music of the Night'' appeared flawless, but earned more 9.8s than 9.9s.

''The technical program was not me,'' Boitano said. ''I think I felt a lot of pressure. People are always expecting consistency.''

Torvill and Dean dominated the dance competition, earning four perfect 10s for a laid-back jazzy routine to Dave Brubeck's ''Take 5,'' then six more 10s and more standing ovations for their playful ''Hat Trick'' number.

Marina Klimova and Sergei Ponomarenko, skating as Rhett Butler and Scarlet O'Hara in their free dance, were second. Renee Roca and Gorsha Sur placed third.

Bechke and Petrov performed two programs filled with innovative, expressive lifts. They earned all 9.9s for their romantic artistic program to music by Rubenstein.

''This year, finally,'' said Bechke of ending the pairs' second-place run. ''This year, I was kind of prepared to win.''

Although several skaters added elements of humor to their routines, the biggest laugh crowd came off the ice in the kiss-and-cry area of the USAir Arena after Katarina Witt's routine to Madonna's ''Don't Cry for Me Argentina.''

After being kidded by television announcer Rosalyn Sumners for displaying a generous amount of flesh, Witt began pushing several stuffed animals thrown to her by the audience into her very low-cut green cat suit.

Witt finished last among the five women skaters in the event, which was sponsored by NutraSweet.