Lenie Yoon
American couple Madison Chock and Evan Bates took a drastic fall in their ice dance free skate on Feb. 19 at the Pyeongchang Olympics.
partnership | Photo Courtesy of People
Even before skating, the pair knew that they wanted their routine to inspire their audience with a message of hope and togetherness. Skating to John Legend’s “Imagine,” the two entered their combination spin in the midst of their four minute routine, then quickly found themselves sprawled on the ice.
Chock has been struggling with a foot injury all season. With two detached bone fragments being held in place by cartilage, she was still able to compete in the Games. Even with this injury, Chock stated that her damaged foot did not contribute to the couple’s fall.
“As soon as it happened, I couldn’t believe our butts were on the ice where our skates were supposed to be,” Chock said.
Photo Courtesy of USA Today
After the plunge, Bates and Chock got up to finish their routine, then later burst into tears as their fall resulted in ninth place overall. Through experiencing the sorrow on the ice, the couple recovered and was able to stay positive and have hope for their futures.
“To be positive and to look on the bright side, we got up and we recovered really well. We finished the program with a lot of emotion and the response from the audience at the end was really great,” Bates said. “We’ve got to come back. We’ve got to come back and redeem ourselves. That’s part of our story now.”
Courtesy of Vancouver Sun
This opportunity to redeem themselves will occur next month in Milan, Italy at the World Championships and the dancers’ faith and positivity will hopefully lead the two American favorites to future victory.
The final results of the 2018 Winter Olympics’ Ice Dancing category issued Canadian partners Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir in first place, France’s Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron in second, and the United States’s Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue in third.
