US Olympic figure skater calls for judges to be vetted after controversial decision gave her silver

Madison Chock and Evan Bates have responded to questions about judging in the recent Olympic ice dance pairs final. Chock called for judges to be vetted for the sake of transparency. 

The couple was looking to defend their gold medal, but came in second to the French duo of Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron. 

A French judge graded Beaudry and Cizeron higher than Chock and Bates, which helped push the French team to gold over the Americans. The judging has been a topic of controversy on social media, with some arguing that Chock and Bates should have graded higher. 

Chock told CBS News, “It would “definitely be helpful if it’s more understandable for the viewers, to just see more transparent judging and understand … what’s really going on.

“I think it’s also important for the skaters that the judges be vetted and reviewed to make sure that they are also putting out their best performance,” she continued. “Because there’s a lot on the line for the skaters when they’re out there giving it their all, and we deserve to have the judges also giving us their all and for it to be a fair and even playing field.”

Chock’s answer came shortly after she sang a different tune when asked by NBC News about judging.

“We’ve certainly gone through a roller coaster of emotions, especially in the last 24 hours,” Chock told NBC News. “And I think what we will take away is how we felt right after our skates and how proud we were of what we accomplished and how we handled ourselves throughout the whole week. Putting out four great performances at the Olympic Games is no small feat, and we’ve got a lot to be proud of.”

Bates told USA Today, “We felt like we delivered our absolute best performance that we could have. It was our Olympic moment. It felt like a winning skate to us, and that’s what we’re going to hold on to.”

Bates also praised the fans who are speaking out in support of the American couple during the controversy.

“It means a lot that people are voicing their opinions on our behalf,” Bates said. “The way that we skated and the way that we’ve approached chasing these goals hopefully has resonated with people at home even in our response. I think, hopefully, that too can reflect the Olympic spirit.”

Chock and Bates were trailing the French couple by 0.46 of a point entering the free dance Wednesday night, and they were searching for their first ice dance Olympic medal with hopes that it would obviously be gold.

Their matador routine, dancing to a rendition of the Rolling Stones’ “Paint It, Black,” drew cheers from the crowd, and they finished with tears in their eyes.

They finished with 224.39 after notching a 134.67 score in their free dance.

Chock and Bates are two-time team gold winners after Sunday’s Team USA victory, but they had to watch one more routine to see if they could capture gold when Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron took the ice.

But the judges decided the French duo did enough to defeat the Americans in the end.

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Beaudry and Cizeron scored a 135.64 in the free dance for a total of 225.82.

Chock and Bates were looking to experience receiving their gold medals on the podium after a delayed reception of their medals at the 2022 games. 

Chock and Bates initially had to settle for team silver with their American teammates on the podium at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. Team Russia and Kamila Valieva, who was 15 at the time, stood above them with their gold medals. 

It wasn’t until the end of January 2024, when the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) found Valieva guilty of an anti-doping rule violation, when Chock, Bates and the U.S. were declared the rightful 2022 gold medalists. 

Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, a banned substance, during an anti-doping test at the Russian Figure Skating Championships in December 2021. She was suspended for four years and stripped of all competitive results since that date. 

Chock and Bates spoke about what their message to Valieva would be today during an interview at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee media summit in October. 

“It’s hard to, I think, imagine what a 15-year-old has gone through and under that kind of situation,” Bates said. “And I know how stressful it is, being an elite athlete as an adult, as a 36-year-old. And I think that grace should be given to humans across the board. And we can never really know the full situation, at least from our point of view. … I genuinely don’t know what I would say to her.”

Chock added, “I would just wish her well, like, as I would. I think life is short. And, at the end of the day, we’re all human just going through our own human experience together. And regardless of what someone has or hasn’t done and how it has affected you, I think it’s important to remember we’re humans as a collective, and we’re all here for this, our one moment on earth, at the same time. And I just wish people to have healthy, happy lives, full of people that love them.”

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Chock and Bates had to wait more than two years after the initial Olympics to get their rightful gold medals, and they were finally presented with them during a ceremony at the Paris Olympics in summer 2024. 

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