Fans rally behind Madison Chock and Evan Bates after controversial French pair win Olympic gold
Chock and Bates were just 1.42 points behind the French champions Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron
French ice dancers Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron won gold at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, narrowly defeating US favourites Madison Chock and Evan Bates amid ongoing controversy surrounding the pair.
Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron, who partnered in March 2025, secured a total score of 225.82 after finishing first in the short programme and delivering their free dance on 11 February. Chock and Bates followed closely with 224.49, just 1.42 points behind. Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier placed third with 217.74.
The French duo reacted emotionally in the kiss and cry, embracing after their score confirmed the gold medal. However, their victory has been overshadowed by scrutiny linked to past personal and professional relationships.
Fournier Beaudry’s boyfriend and former skating partner, Nikolaj Sørensen, was suspended in 2024 following allegations of a 2012 sexual assault of a former skater and coach, which he previously denied. Although his six-year suspension from Skate Canada was later overturned because he was no longer competing or residing as a Canadian citizen, Fournier Beaudry shared in Netflix’s docuseries that the situation ended his career.
Cizeron has also faced allegations from former partner Gabriella Papadakis, who described him as “controlling, demanding and critical” and wrote that she felt under his “control” and was “terrified” at the idea of being alone with him. Cizeron responded by calling the claims a “smear campaign” and stated: “I want to express my incomprehension and disagreement with the labels attributed to me. The book contains false information, including statements I never made, which I consider serious.”
Online reaction to the result however was one-sided, with fans expressing support for Chock and Bates.
not even a bock shooter like that but imagine winning everything for the whole quad and these fucks come in and steal your gold medal i’d be mad as hell
— lara (@hanyuotonal) February 11, 2026
Yeah no launch an investigation on the isu right now
— cifera (@cerestials) February 11, 2026
After 15 years skating together, the three-time and reigning World champions delivered a flamenco-themed free dance to “Paint It Black” by the Rolling Stones.
Reflecting on their journey, Chock said “It’s definitely a bittersweet feeling at the moment”. She added “We have so much to be proud of. We’ve had the most incredible career, 15 years on the ice together. It’s our first Olympics as a married couple, and we delivered four of our best performances this week.”
The silver medal is the couple’s third Olympic podium finish, adding to team event golds in 2022 and 2026. They also became the first US ice dancers to win both a gold and a silver at the same Olympic Games.
Bates reflected on the challenge of the competition schedule, stating: “We just performed four times in six days at the Olympics. We have never done anything like it. It took so much mental strength and discipline to stay focused.”
Despite narrowly missing gold, Chock and Bates’ performance in Milan reinforced their status as one of the most accomplished partnerships in American figure skating history.
