2026 Olympics: Free Dance

[16Olympics]

I dont see a cong han happening here...you have two OGMs and a silver individual. And a body that still functions hopefully without pain....

Cong Han seems like he was not there by choice. They look to me like hostages every time they skate.

 

[badknees]

Wow lmaooooo. LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I CANNOT BELIEVE IT ICE DANCE IS DEAD

Well, I believe that's been said before and it never happens!

 

[reneerose]

I wish G hadn't come back. Then the podium would have been C/B, P2, and the Italians.

 

[Cutting the ice]

So happy for Piper and Paul. I unexpectedly started to cry half way through. They weren’t just skating, they were in flight - so free! So deserved. Thank you thank you for this. I think I will rewatch this many times, and likely cry each time.
F/G could have skated lights out and not caught them.

Very happy for Laurence FB - she was mesmerizing. I am so glad she got this season and was able to share her performance with the world. GC complemented her skating well - much better than Sorensen ever could.

C/B. They are very good but I think some of their chronic issues (small twizzles, too much posing and perhaps insufficient ice coverage) were challenged by a team that didn’t have those problems. I think C/B won on occasion when they shouldn’t have (Montreal worlds) but I understand the disappointment of their fans. Winning 3 world championships and then losing the Olympics must be incredibly painful. Think of Patrick Chan. It might take awhile to recover from this but - despite how it is marketed, the Olympics is not more important than a world championship.

 

[Diana Delafield]

Okay, let's not tear down LFB as some tameable woman who will do things Cizeron's way.

I don't think she likes the drama either, but she's just trying to do her best, do her job, and is a strong woman and talented skater.

And there may be financial considerations, depending on how well the French federation support their more successful skaters. If she's still living with Sorensen, whose employment possibilities may also be limited, somebody has to bring home the groceries. An Olympic gold medal might be worth a fair bit in federation or government support.

 

[skatedreamer]

Maddie and Evan win the majority of judges. The French can thank their judge who doubled down with his BS from the RD. Scored C/B Eight Points less than his team. Criminal.

Dang. Well, that just...stinks.

 

[throw_triple_flip]

I was one of those people. To be honest, I still think she's probably the female ice dancer with that most potential. I just don't think this partnership with C maximizes her potential. She's capable of so many different styles, in your face performance, and athletic complicated lifts. But, he does one style. Gabby knew how to sell that particular style very well because C doesn't perform he just has beautiful extension and edges. She can show her flow and glide in this team but isn't allowed to demonstrate her other skills. Makes me sad. I feel nothing when I watch them skate but I admire the edges.

You can kind of understand why they went with that style though- it was the best way to get that gold. If they do stick around I hope they do something a bit different though. It would be a shame to waste that versatility of her's.

 

[badknees]

I rather think the scheduling of figure skating, with the team event and then the dance the very next day was not very nice of the IOC.
The women will have had a 9 day break. That's just not right.

 

[Demandred]

In the interview I saw, the interviewer was quite considerate and asked her to imagine 8 year old Lilah and what would she think now that she is at the Olympics? She said she would be proud of her.

Yes, the interviewer was considerate, but I just don't like these inteviews of athletes right after a major disappointment when they are visibly upset, let them process and sleep on it, you can do your interviews on the next day.

 

[throw_triple_flip]

If C/B had won they would have been torn to shreds on the internet. Isolated scores would be selectively chosen to spin a narrative and judges would be labelled corrupt depending on who they preferred. Meh.

 

[badknees]

Maddie and Evan win the majority of judges. The French can thank their judge who doubled down with his BS from the RD. Scored C/B Eight Points less than his team. Criminal.

Isn't this then enough reason for a complaint to be filed for obvious favoritism in judging??

 

[chepe]

Nadal won 14 times the french open.

Yes. But I was dead tired of him by his 9th win. So was most of the fanbase.

It was same thing with Sampras' Wimbledon reign, after certain point people just wanted somebody else to win. One person having a stranglehold over a certain event can end up being demeaning towards the sport.

 

[museksk8r]

A bit late now, the British judge was not there tonight. the french one should have been pulled.

He was there for the RD though where he marked a clean G/P into 7th.

 

[bartlebooth]

I rather think the scheduling of figure skating, with the team event and then the dance the very next day was not very nice of the IOC.
The women will have had a 9 day break. That's just not right.

Some have to skate many programs in a few days and others have to keep up form for a longer stretch.
Just another ill conceived thing about putting the Team Event first.

 

[readernick]

You can kind of understand why they went with that style though- it was the best way to get that gold. If they do stick around I hope they do something a bit different though. It would be a shame to waste that versatility of her's.

My feeling is they won't. Because, she's versatile but he isn't. He does one thing and he's not a good performer . He's just a great skater. It's why P/ C always lost to V/M in the rhythm dance. He doesn't do energetic dance well or serve face. Also, he can't do the simple lifts they do this year very well there's no way they will do the kind of athletic lifts she used to do with her previous partner. So, maybe we can hope for something new, but I think it's a long shot..

 

[Cindy1983]

Cizeron clearly had mistakes on the twizzle and the lift, sorry but I just don't understand how they won gold. I may also add that their twizzles in the RD also looked slightly off.

Chock/Bates really delivered a magnificent performance.

Feels like Medvedeva/Zagitova all over again.

This does feel like something is brewing. Possibly a scandal. The fact that there’s overwhelming consensus that something is off. I’m inclined to agree that something is off, especially since there are judging anomalies throughout the competition. The only reason 2002 came to light is that someone blew the whistle. From what I read of corrupt / bad judges is that they either get a slap on the wrist or a “naughty, naughty” reprimand. They need to implement (vs simply having on the books) consequences that hurt, not idle threats. I’m inclined to say that something stinks in Denmark, especially since people have pointed out that there are other anomalies. I know that Hanlon’s razor states that you shouldn’t attribute to malice what you can attribute to incompetence, BUT..

 

[reneerose]

I really don't know how ISU could remove country bias from any of the judges...it's always THERE.

 

[skatedreamer]

Of the final group, I most enjoyed Gilles/Poirier. I liked Chock/Bates as well. Theirs is a more theatrical style, but I think it worked for the Spanish-style dance they were doing.

Fournier Beaudry/Cizeron were precise, but one-note and boring. I think Cizeron was better with Papadakis -- the programs were more interesting, original, and impactful then. This "Whale" program is meticulous and difficult and lyrical, but there's little tension or variation or climax. And that's even if you take the grossness about FB/C's association with and defense of Sorensen out of it.

Disappointing result.

This "Whale" program is meticulous and difficult and lyrical, but there's little tension or variation or climax.

Thanks! You said exactly what I've been feeling...and articulated it much better.
The FB/C win left me shaking my head. For me, it was a real puzzlement.

 

[freedomlover]

I rather think the scheduling of figure skating, with the team event and then the dance the very next day was not very nice of the IOC.
The women will have had a 9 day break. That's just not right.

Women is still the marquee event though.

 

[chepe]

You can kind of understand why they went with that style though- it was the best way to get that gold. If they do stick around I hope they do something a bit different though. It would be a shame to waste that versatility of her's.

Yeah, I hope if they continue, they do something bit different, and not just continue LARPing Papadakis/Cizeron. I am sure they are capable of it.