The fallout from the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics ice dance final has taken a decisive turn.
After days of public outrage and open criticism from fellow Olympians, US Figure Skating addressed the scoring controversy that many believe cost Madison Chock and Evan Bates a second gold medal.
Team USA’s ice dancers were narrowly defeated by France’s Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron in the February 11 free dance finale at the Milano Ice Skating Arena. The French pair won with a total score of 225.82, edging out Chock and Bates’ 224.39 by just 1.43 points.
At the center of the dispute is French judge Jézabel Dabois, whose scoring reportedly diverged sharply from the rest of the panel and played a pivotal role in the final outcome.
US Figure Skating released a statement after controversial scoring cost the team Olympic gold
Image credits: madisonchock
US Figure Skating confirmed Chock and Bates will not file an appeal, much to the disappointment of their fans. In a statement to USA Today Sports, US Figure Skating CEO Matt Farrell addressed the emotional aftermath of the decision.
Image credits: Elsa/Getty Images
“There has been a lot of thoughtful, and at times emotional, discussion about the ice dance competition in Milan,” Farrell said.
“Working together with Madi and Evan after the Games, we will have thoughtful and intentional discussions about the best way to support them and the future of the sport,” he continued.
“For now, we plan to join them in supporting the success of US Figure Skating in Milan.”
Image credits: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Chock and Bates had previously said they would “consider” submitting an appeal. However, the 24-hour window to challenge the results has now passed.
According to USA Today Sports, while a formal appeal is no longer possible, US Figure Skating could still send a letter of concern to the International Skating Union (ISU). For now, however, no such action has been announced.
The controversy centers on what critics describe as a suspicious discrepancy in scoring
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During the free dance, five of the nine judges favored the American team. Dabois, on the other hand, reportedly scored the French pair nearly eight points higher than Team USA.
That outlier scorecard proved decisive and ultimately gave her compatriots the victory.
Observers have also scrutinized what they say were overlooked errors in the French routine.
“3 clear mistakes and the judges still gave the French team level 4s. It’s just criminal,” one viewer wrote.
“The French judge should be investigated,” another added.
Image credits: Tim Clayton/Getty Images
Some viewers claimed the pair appeared out of sync in portions of the program. Reports further suggested that Cizeron made a mistake during his twizzle sequence, something critics argue was not reflected in the final marks.
“I honestly don’t get what the ice dancing judges love about the French pair. That was just a lot of arm flailing in the rhythm dance,” a third viewer wrote.
“Judges overscoring the French ice dance team, what else is new,” a fourth added. “Absolutely zero way the French ice dancing couple beat the Americans on technical skills!”
Chock and Bates said they felt satisfied with their performance, but labeled the scoring as “subjective”
Image credits: laurencefournierbeaudry
Although the pair maintained composure during the flower and medal ceremonies, smiling and posing with the US flag, the emotional toll became visible in post-event interviews.
Multiple media reports described them as “blubbering” as they tried to speak through tears.
“It’s definitely a bittersweet feeling at the moment. We really did our best, and I think that is something that we’ll try to remember and focus on most right now, which is that we really did our best,” Bates told People Magazine.
Image credits: Tim Clayton/Getty Images
“I feel like life is sometimes you can feel like you do everything right and it doesn’t go your way and that’s life… and it’s a subjective sport, it’s a judged sport.
I think one fact that is indisputable is that we delivered our best, we skated our best, we did our season’s best almost every single time.”
Image credits: Elsa/Getty Images
He concluded, “And the rest is not up to us, but I think that we felt like we were very close. We felt like we skated a winning performance, and that’s what we came here to do.”
This marked their fourth Olympics together and their first individual Olympic medal in ice dance. In addition to silver, they own two Olympic gold medals from the team event, including one from this year’s Games.
A petition calling for an investigation into the International Olympic Committee has been signed more than 20,000 times
Image credits: laurencefournierbeaudry
As outrage grew, a Change.org petition was launched on February 12. At the time of writing, it has collected a total of 20,575 calls for an independent investigation by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the ISU.
Image credits: madisonchock
“By signing this petition, you join a collective call for transparency and accountability in Olympic judging,” part of the petition reads.
“Our goal is to encourage the IOC and ISU to take formal steps to scrutinize the judging criteria employed during the Ice Dance event, evaluate potential bias, and ensure corrective actions are employed to address any injustices found.”
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Many viewers have drawn comparisons to the infamous 2002 Salt Lake City “SkateGate” scandal that saw Russian pair Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze awarded gold despite a visible stumble.
Canadians Jamie Salé and David Pelletier delivered what many believed was a flawless routine but initially received silver.
French judge Marie-Reine Le Gougne later admitted she had been pressured to vote in favor of the Russians as part of a vote-swapping deal involving the French federation.
Now, nearly a quarter-century later, critics argue that Olympic figure skating once again finds itself battling questions of bias and integrity.
For the athletes, however, the appeal door has closed.
“Give the gold medals to Chock and Bates.” Viewers shared their thoughts on social media
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