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MILAN — U.S. ice dancing power couple Madison Chock and Evan Bates won their first individual Olympic medal on Wednesday, claiming silver after two harrowing days of competition against their French rivals.
It's a moment of redemption for the four-time Olympians — and real-life spouses — who finished just off the podium in Beijing, four years ago, before winning three consecutive national titles.
But it's also bittersweet, as Chock described it afterward. The veterans and gold-medal favorites lost out to the newly-paired Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron of France by 1.43 points.
"We really gave it our all, and I wouldn't change anything about how we approached each performance, what we delivered in each performance," the typically-composed Chock told reporters through her tears.
"We really gave it our best. And that's what we set out to do coming to these Games. So I think we have got a lot to be proud of, and a lot to be grateful for, 'cause we've had an incredible career, so well-supported by our families, and our coaches, by each other, and sometimes that's just how it shakes out."
Chock and Bates are among the most seasoned skaters on the U.S. team and at these Games in general. They helped Team USA win its second straight gold medal in the team event last weekend, scoring back-to-back season's bests in both of their programs.
But they faced steep competition in the individual event from a much newer — and more controversial — duo. Beaudry and Cizeron, the reigning European champions, only teamed up last year and continue to face questions over their former partners (more on that below).
Beaudry and Cizeron finished Monday's rhythm dance competition leading Chock and Bates by less than a full point, so the Americans were under extra pressure for perfection on Wednesday.
"The game is always on, and you should know us by now: we're not changing anything," Chock said at the end of the night. "We've got this locked in, we know ourselves, we know our routine, and we got this."
They delivered another season's best score on their flamenco-inspired "Paint It Black" program, with Chock fiercely embodying the matador in a swishing scarlet skirt. But the last duo of the night, Beaudry and Cizeron, swooped in in their matching teal outfits to knock the Americans from the top spot.
"It has a very particular taste, this medal," Cizeron said after. "It was a huge challenge. We went for it and we couldn't be happier."
Third place went to fan favorites Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Canada, who dazzled in their Vincent Van Gogh program (both costume and music-wise). The three-time Olympians left the ice in a tearful mess of hugs, knowing they had a medal waiting for them.
The French battled drama off the ice
Cizeron and Beaudry paired up last year because they each needed a new partner, and those respective controversies followed them to Milan.
Cizeron's partnership with Gabriella Papadakis is widely considered one of the strongest in recent ice dance history. They won two Olympic medals — most recently a gold in Beijing — and five world titles before officially parting ways in December 2024 without much public explanation.
But in January, just weeks before the Olympic opening ceremony, Papadakis released a tell-all book describing their two-decade-long partnership (yes, they started as kids) as deeply unequal. She accused Cizeron of being a "controlling" and "demanding" partner, and wrote of feeling "under his grip," according to translations from the Associated Press.
Cizeron has denied her accusations as a "smear campaign," and said he put his lawyers on notice against further claims. Papadakis has since said she lost her Olympics commentary job with NBC as a result.
"I use my experience to highlight a reality: as long as survivors are punished for speaking out, the sport cannot truly change or become safer," she wrote on Instagram earlier this week. "As the Winter Olympics unfold, I encourage you to engage critically with the spectacle. Spectators have power, and the way we choose to watch, support, question, or look away helps shape the culture of the sport."
At one point on Wednesday, the jumbotron at the Milano Ice Skating Arena panned over several women in the crowd with the title of Papadakis' book scrawled on their bare arms.
In March 2025 Cizeron teamed up with Beaudry, who previously skated for Denmark and then Canada.
Beaudry's former skating partner, whom she is still dating, was suspended from the sport in 2024 over accusations that he sexually assaulted an American figure skater/coach in 2012, which he denies. Canada's Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner banned Nikolaj Sorensen for at least six years over "sexual maltreatment," though the ban was overturned in June 2025 due to jurisdictional issues. He has not returned to competition, however.
Beaudry defended her boyfriend of 12 years in the Netflix docuseries Glitter & Gold: Ice Dancing, which premiered just days before the start of the Olympics.
"When they decided to suspend him, it meant that his career was over, which also meant that my career was over," she said. "This was extremely difficult because it was not only about skating, it was about my integrity, it was about his integrity. I know my boyfriend 100 percent. I know him. And we [stood] strong together."
The survivor — whose name has not been made public — told USA Today earlier this month that such comments "create a dangerous environment for skaters who need to report abuse." When asked to respond, Beaudry told the outlet: "We have no thoughts."
What's next for Chock and Bates
Chock and Bates began their skating partnership in 2011, started dating six years later and married in 2024. Chock typically designs their costumes — and this year, costumes for some of their competitors too.
The two train in Montreal, where they live with their two toy poodles, Henry and Stella, whom they brought to the Games in pin form for some traditional Olympic trading. Milan is their fourth Olympics together, and Bates' fifth overall, putting them in a somewhat parental position on a team filled with mostly first-timers. Their younger teammates say Chock and Bates have filled that role well.
"I like to call them Mr. and Mrs. America," Amber Glenn, 26, said over the weekend. "They are absolutely incredible people and incredible athletes."
After Wednesday's results, Glenn called them "my Olympic champions."
It was Bates who warned the U.S. team that the ribbons holding their gold medals could pull off if they jumped around too much, said Danny O'Shea — prescient advice that he immediately ignored.
Bates similarly had words of praise for the younger skaters on Team USA during the opening week.
"The depth is there and the talent is there," he said. "But more than anything, what I noticed about the younger generation is the spirit, the curiosity, the fearlessness. It's the perfect balance of handling the nerves and just going out there with absolute joy and freedom."
U.S. duo Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik, in particular, are seen as following in the couple's footsteps. They placed fifth on Wednesday.
At the start of the Games, when asked about ongoing back and neck issues, Bates, 36, acknowledged "there's mileage on the body."
"What we do isn't easy and it's very physical," he said. "We've been really smart and intentional with our training this year, limiting the number of reps on things like lifts that could potentially cause a problem."
After their medal ceremony on Wednesday, the couple were asked if the result made them want to come back hungry. Chock shook her head sadly, while Bates said, "not at the moment."
Their future on the ice is a question — but their partnership is not.
"The skating career is something short and finite, and the relationship is much, much longer," Bates told NPR in October.
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