MALMOE, Sweden -- With a flawless free program, Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin defended their European figure skating title Wednesday, and extended Russia's dominance in the pairs event.

They moved up from second in the short program with a performance set to music from "The Cotton Club," featuring jazzy dance moves among the usual throws, jumps and spins.

They had no mistakes and two triple jumps, including a triple-double combination. After hitting the combination, Marinin let out an open-mouthed "Ah!"

"During almost all the competitions I am doing mistakes in short program and long program," Marinin said. "I was really happy,and I can be an emotional sportsman sometimes."

This was the eighth straight year a Russian couple captured the event, and the 36th time in the last 39 years a Soviet or Russian pair won.

France's Sarah Abitbol and Stephane Bernadis were second, and Russia's Maria Petrova and Alexei Tikhonov were third.

But there was a flurry of confusion as the winners prepared to get their medals when information boards viewed by the media and competitors briefly flipped the results.

Totmianina and Marinin remained in first. But the Polish pair, Dorota Zagorska and Mariusz Siudek, were shown in third. They finished fourth, officially.

Paul Peret, a spokesman for the organizing committee, said the information boards flashed incorrect results because of a technical error, and that it was not broadcast to the public in the arena or on television.

The Polish federation demanded a review of the results, and the International Skating Union said it was investigating the source of the problem.

In their winning free program, Totmianina and Marinin's routine was infused with the spirit of their adopted city of Chicago, where they have trained for two years. Their skating was both playful and precise, with intricate dance steps and daring moves, typified by Totmianina's execution of a triple twist in a near lateral position above her partner's head.

Their marks ranged from 5.6 to 5.9, including two 5.9s for presentation.

Petrova and Tikhonov failed to perform to their full ability. They tried to do two triple maneuvers in sequence, and it cost them.

They were in position to recapture the title they won in 1999 and 2000 after winning the short program, but she two-footed the landings on both throw jumps in an uninspiring free program. Their marks ranged from 5.2 to 5.7.

"At this level of competition, everyone tried to do everything -- very difficult and dangerous. We do what we have to do," Tikhonov said.

The Polish federation did not openly dispute the medals. However, Polish team leader Maria Zuchowicz complained that it was impossible to know how the final results were tallied under the interim scoring system being used at the Europeans for the first time.

Under the system, 14 judges submit marks on the 6.0 system, but five marks are thrown out randomly. Not even the judges know which were used for the final decision -- and score sheets no longer show how individual judges scored each competitor.

"I have no possibility to check the results," Zuchowicz said. "Someone must give an explanation."

The system, adopted hurriedly four months after the Olympic pairs judging scandal, is meant to discourage deal-making and bloc voting by randomly discarding marks and not revealing how individual judges voted.

Russian pair skaters Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, who shared the Olympic gold medal in the Salt Lake City judging controversy, did not compete. They won the title in 1998 and 2001, skipping 2002.

Abitbol and Bernadis skated to music from the ``Addams Family.'' Abitbol tore an Achilles' tendon just before the Olympics and has been a hesitant jumper, scaling down a triple jump to a double and singling the double axel.

"Psychologically, it is difficult on the triple toe loop. I injured myself on that jump in Salt Lake City, and I have still some feeling about it," Abitbol said.

The championships continue with the original dance and women's short program on Thursday. Russia's Elena Sokolova leads after winning a narrow decision over Olympic silver medalist Irina Slutskaya. Russia's chances for a sweep of the medals became much more difficult after Victoria Volchkova popped a triple flip, finished fifth.

The men's competition, featuring Evgeny Plushenko, begins with the short program on Friday.