Gabriella Papadakis & Guillaume Cizeron

[russianskating4ever]

I am so happy for these two. I really don't want to be the ones saying ’what if’
But seriously if Gabby’s costume did not mess up in SD, they would have gotten the extra points and won gold. The costume restricted some of their movements in SD and they did not get as high of PCS as their execution went down. But seriously so proud. I am rooting for you in Beijing

 

[floatingworld]

This is such a beautiful article on USA Today that serves as a testament to their spirit:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...malfunction-silver-medal-ice-dance/353705002/

Some memorable quotes:

"There were no tears this time, well, maybe a tiny one creeping into the corner of Gabriella Papadakis’ eye, but oh, what a difference. Less than 24 hours removed from becoming the most discussed figure skater at these Winter Olympics and the humiliation of being, literally, undressed in public, Papadakis was at peace. Not just peace but triumph. The French ice dancer and partner Guillaume Cizeron turned in a spectacular performance to rock the free dance and claim silver at the Gangneung Ice Arena. It was raw, emotional, thrilling stuff, made all the more meaningful by what had preceded it."

"Epic revivals aren’t all about bottom of the ninth, or 28-3 at halftime, or sudden death overtime. And they don’t always end with a gold medal. Sometimes they are about the power of the human spirit and the strength to will yourself past adversity. That is what Papadakis did here, along with a partner who never wavered in his support for a second. It would have been easy to wilt. Instead, they were flawless in the free dance, buoyed by the love and backing of a crowd who wanted them to shine."

"But the sight of Papadakis and Cizeron celebrating, smiling and appreciating the moment left one thing in no doubt: They will leave Pyeongchang as champions."

 

[Lyyli]

MS was a mesmerizing performance. Awful and unfair for them that the dress issue happened in SD. I was hoping so much they would win because they are unique. They have like brought a new language to ID, which rarely happens. Sure they will keep expressing their own artistry in the future. I have not heard any news about the press conference so don´t know yet how disappointed they are, but I wish they will get over it soon.

 

[xzhang12]

This is such a beautiful article on USA Today that serves as a testament to their spirit:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...malfunction-silver-medal-ice-dance/353705002/

Some memorable quotes:

"There were no tears this time, well, maybe a tiny one creeping into the corner of Gabriella Papadakis’ eye, but oh, what a difference. Less than 24 hours removed from becoming the most discussed figure skater at these Winter Olympics and the humiliation of being, literally, undressed in public, Papadakis was at peace. Not just peace but triumph. The French ice dancer and partner Guillaume Cizeron turned in a spectacular performance to rock the free dance and claim silver at the Gangneung Ice Arena. It was raw, emotional, thrilling stuff, made all the more meaningful by what had preceded it."

"Epic revivals aren’t all about bottom of the ninth, or 28-3 at halftime, or sudden death overtime. And they don’t always end with a gold medal. Sometimes they are about the power of the human spirit and the strength to will yourself past adversity. That is what Papadakis did here, along with a partner who never wavered in his support for a second. It would have been easy to wilt. Instead, they were flawless in the free dance, buoyed by the love and backing of a crowd who wanted them to shine."

"But the sight of Papadakis and Cizeron celebrating, smiling and appreciating the moment left one thing in no doubt: They will leave Pyeongchang as champions."

Love

 

[Tututulum]

Since I am in the US, I could have watched P/C's performance here on prime time, but I just couldn't handle doing so live after last night's mishap (the SD, which I did watch live). I forced myself to do some of the work I needed to do tonight, but peeked in this forum every 15 minutes or so, and was elated to read the very first post on how they fared (Harriett's... boy, you are brave to watch live in faraway Australia!). I continued working for another 30 minutes or so until their overall standing was clear. After checking this forum again and knowing their fate, I finally watched their performance which I DVR'd on my TV. I obviously still felt the heart pumping and the overwhelming emotions upon seeing their brilliance. It was exactly what I wanted them to experience, gold or not. That brought me tears as I truly wanted them to feel good about themselves. And I was buoyed up to also find out that they broke another world record on their final dance! On NBC, Tanith Belbin was so generous in her praise of P/C. Not diminishing their competitiveness in any way, she said that P/C are first and foremost 'artists', and second 'competitors'. Every element of their final dance deserved a perfect score, she added. She referred to V/M as a Hollywood blockbuster like the movie 'The Titanic' and P/C as the Oscar winner 'The English Patient'. I couldn't agree more. 'The English Patient' is an all-time favorite artistic movie of mine that I have literally watched more than ten times in the past, and even have a DVD of the movie, as well as a CD of the soundtrack! I look forward to their gold in Milan next month, and their other golden moments in the coming seasons. I used to watch figure skating in the past, have lost interest in it for a few years until I saw P/C in their Mozart piece.

That is a perfect analogy by Tanith!!

 

[Roast Toast]

Of course they will be disappointed, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are glad that the whole thing is behind them

In a twisted sort of way I guess the costume mishap in the short is helping me put things in perspective. I was so mortified for Gabi yesterday and just thinking how awful and humiliating it must have been for her. Not winning the gold at their first Olympics, I don't know, it feels less heavy for me somehow.

 

[Bcash]

VM electrified audience and they peaked at the right time. Maybe previous Olympic experiences helped.

Still, a 4 point jump from just a few days ago is a bit of a stretch.

I know P/C are disappointed, but their performance tonight was stunning and transcendent. Technically secure and pristine. Some of the head movements and facial expressions fell straight out of Greek art.

 

[citron]

Congrats to Tessa and Scott, great champions rise for the occasion and they certainly did.

This is the best outcome because Gabi and Guillaume needed to skate perfectly both dances to win, 2 points difference was too much against such competitors, they must be disappointed though and rightly so. I guess I'm not that sad because it happened before with other legendary skaters who lost so I'm used to it lol.

P/C are the Gordeeva/Grinkov of ice dance, everybody knows what that means. By the way those games have been pretty awesome so far. Pair, men, ice dance: records, drama, and quality through and through!

 

[xzhang12]

Still, a 4 point jump from just a few days ago is a bit of a stretch.

I know P/C are disappointed, but their performance tonight was stunning and transcendent. Technically secure and pristine. Some of the head movements and facial expressions fell straight out of Greek art.

Of course. VM especially M is over selling their program.

 

[Bcash]

That is a perfect analogy by Tanith!!

Tanith was a class act yesterday and today. She was fair but also beautifully pointed out what made P/C stand out. She said her heart was pounding with every moment in P/C's performance.

 

[Bcash]

Of course. VM especially M is over selling their program.

Yeah. He can be fun, but also has been the main reason I can't take their "artistry" too seriously.

 

[Anyasnake]

Of course they will be disappointed, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are glad that the whole thing is behind them

In a twisted sort of way I guess the costume mishap in the short is helping me put things in perspective. I was so mortified for Gabi yesterday and just thinking how awful and humiliating it must have been for her. Not winning the gold at their first Olympics, I don't know, it feels less heavy for me somehow.

This is silver... close to Gold, with a team that has 3x their experience. 1 vs 3 Olympic cycles.
They have come a long way since 13th place at Worlds 2014

Aaah they were so good tonight, and it does feel very okay for me. I'm not going into a "What if" phases, I have better things to do ! (But if I do please stop me)

I understand what you mean by "less heavy", I remember how heavy it was for V/M after 2010. But I also know how the press can treat athletes in France, and it's a nice setup for them. Maybe it would not have been as hard, but they can focus on themselves. They are true champions.

Also : 2 Worlds, 4 Europeans, 1 GPF and an Olympic Silver. In less than 4 years. They are 22 and 23. HOW ? :hap57:

 

[jiawen2016]

I re-watched the TV show, Tessa and Scott, this weekend and discovered a big surprise! Want to see the first encounter between V/M and P/C ? Here from 15:00

It really shows how far Gabby and Guillaume has gone in the past 4 years There is no way that V/M would have thought 4 years ago that P/C would have been their biggest competitor, their new "D/W" who train with them, in this Olympic cycle.

I believe P/C will continue dominating in the next 4 years and win the gold in Beijing if God forbid they don't get injured! China has been their lucky place, where they won their first WC gold, and I believe they will be on the top podium in 4 years. Just thinking about how many more beautiful programs they're gonna continue delivering makes me feel cheerful for them.

 

[Charis]

I am so happy for these two. I really don't want to be the ones saying ’what if’
But seriously if Gabby’s costume did not mess up in SD, they would have gotten the extra points and won gold. The costume restricted some of their movements in SD and they did not get as high of PCS as their execution went down. But seriously so proud. I am rooting for you in Beijing

I really believe that even if the problem with the costume was not a fact...again something would have gone elsewhere with the judges just to be gold for Canada.I felt it was something decided from the start of the games ...
But for now i only want to scream a big BRAVO!!!!You were more than i could imagine...Thank you Gaby and Guillaume! You are the Olympic Gold champions in my heart!!!
A big hug to everyone here for living all that big moments together!!!

 

[floatingworld]

This is silver... close to Gold, with a team that has 3x their experience. 1 vs 3 Olympic cycles.
They have come a long way since 13th place at Worlds 2014

Aaah they were so good tonight, and it does feel very okay for me. I'm not going into a "What if" phases, I have better things to do ! (But if I do please stop me)

I understand what you mean by "less heavy", I remember how heavy it was for V/M after 2010. But I also know how the press can treat athletes in France, and it's a nice setup for them. Maybe it would not have been as hard, but they can focus on themselves. They are true champions.

Also : 2 Worlds, 4 Europeans, 1 GPF and an Olympic Silver. In less than 4 years. They are 22 and 23. HOW ? :hap57:

Yes, we easily forget that V/M had been on the senior level for almost 14 years now with 25 medals on the senior/international levels. P/C, on the other hand, have only been on the senior level for five years (1/3 of V/M's) but already have almost 1/2 of V/M's medals on the international/senior levels (12 medals, plus surely another one next month!).

 

[citron]

From Le Monde article (rough translation)

For Didier Gailhaguet, President of the French Ice Sports Federation, "the reason for this non-success is due to an error on our part. Maybe we should find a partner of zipper mark to be able to match our athletes. Because of a dark zipper story, we lose the gold medal. There is something to be disappointed. "

Well Didier, perhaps it's time to resign for good. Not because of that incident but because of your lost credibility on the world stage since 2002.

 

[liapacco]

I had half a day of work today, and made sure to stay clear of all social media and the forum until I got back home and watched the replay on my Eurosport stream. I have to say V/M showed a clean, professional skate today and I think their gold was well-deserved. For our dear G&G: silver at their first Olympics - we've been so caught up with talking about gold I feel like many people forget how amazing this achievement really is, when you compare them to where they were four years ago.

One thing that kept surfacing in my mind was just how immensely strong they have been in these two days. So, so, mentally strong. So much must be going through their minds, but they were so quickly whisked away for the unofficial plushie ceremony and the press conference. I just want to hug them both because they looked like they were holding in their emotions a lot at the end through all the photo-taking. I really do think that they can be proud of what they have accomplished because the growth, musicality, depth of emotions and maturity that they've shown as young ice dancers - these are their gold. And well, I had already handed them the gold in my heart after their FD brought me to tears. Just, so beautiful.

Also, I'm amazed at how many Canadian flags I could spot across the entire arena. The crowd definitely roared after V/M's program but I do believe that more people in the arena now have a glimpse of the ethereal quality that Guillaume and Gaby bring to the ice - no over-dramatization or elaborate story, but rather a seamless flow that truly painted them as one entity. Watching them, it's easy to forget about levels, step sequences and the competition because this is art. I hope they get some rest, and I know that they'll be fine. Rest well folks, I don't know how good I have it in Asia but I've been seeing so many posts about people losing sleep over watching the games. Glad everyone can now take a breather

 

[oakandbirch]

Disgusting.

 

[Harriet]

This is such a beautiful article on USA Today that serves as a testament to their spirit:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...malfunction-silver-medal-ice-dance/353705002/

That's a gorgeous article, floatingworld, thanks for the link! I really appreciate the respect so many journalists have shown for Gabi's mental strength and dignity, and it's lovely that they're also acknowledging Guillaume's support for her too.

ETA: I probably should have mentioned this earlier, but I didn't even realise what had happened until later. This is how good Gabi and Guillaume are and how much of a spell they cast this afternoon: on the Channel 7 livestream, Belinda Noonan pretty much stopped talking for their entire program.

 

[Fool]

They did so beautifully, I'm so proud of them of course I wanted a different outcome, but what can you do. Their future path is paved with success and beauty and I can't wait to be able to witness it more.

I'm not great with words (and uncreative) but the word I would use to describe their Free is "haunting" and in the best way possible. I feel something when I watch them that no one else has given me before, not singles or pairs either. I will be with these to the end :