2026 Olys Free Dance PBP - Whale, Are We Ready For Some Bull Sheet Scores?

[BlueRidge]

It really does not sound like there is any basis for a scandal here.

 

[tony]

It really does not sound like there is any basis for a scandal here.

What is it I said last night? People gonna run with whatever suits them.

There are skating journalists who are pushing the most ridiculous stuff, Bev Smith didn’t even watch the skating and is complaining about how the British judge is the reason why Fear and Gibson were held up, and without him they were 12th. She has no idea how they skated.

Even skating social media personalities are pushing this French judge as being the reason the gold medal happened.

No one wants to learn rules and they’d rather scream injustice for the most bizarre reasons.

 

[BlueRidge]

What is it I said last night? People gonna run with whatever suits them.

There are skating journalists who are pushing the most ridiculous stuff, Bev Smith didn’t even watch the skating and is complaining about how the British judge is the reason why Fear and Gibson were held up, and without him they were 12th. She has no idea how they skated.

Even skating social media personalities are pushing this French judge as being the reason the gold medal happened.

No one wants to learn rules and they’d rather scream injustice.

attention and clicks are the currency of the day.

I think this one will die away pretty fast.

 

[skategal]

I wish C/B would have leaned into their strength this season - the man/woman romantic dynamic.

 

[Yazmeen]

I'm not sure who the commentator is on NBC this morning. I just heard him say that FB/C won the gold medal "despite some mistakes in their Free Dance. I know that nothing can be done. So be it.

However, I'm not blind and I know damn good ice skating when I see it. To me, both Piper and Paul, and Evan and Maddie had what I call "Gold Medal Skates"

It just made me feel better when even the NBC commentator said the phrase, "despite mistakes".

I don't expect the petition to go anywhere, nor will there be an investigation - but I'm glad the HUGE difference in the French judge's score was pointed out.

Frankly, the best comment I read online about all of this? C/B won silver, G/P won bronze.

FB/C were AWARDED the gold medal.

Says it ALL for me.

 

[BlueRidge]

I wish C/B would have leaned into their strength this season - the man/woman romantic dynamic.

There's only so much you can do with that.

I think they did really well with this FD. The first time I saw it I laughed for ten minutes. They managed to make it almost convincing and they skated the hell out of it. They really did shine in these Olys IMO. (I watched the team event FD).

 

[Miezekatze]

Yes, Piper and Paul proved all of us wrong who thought that going back to "Vincent" was a mistake. Seems like there's always a program that proves fans wrong (see also Kaori bringing down the house with the "Chicago" free program at Worlds!).

Actually of the Free Dances I didn't like at the beginning of the season looked quite lovely by the end (except Fear & Gibsons which looked like one of the strongest to me at Nebelhorn, but then they kept skating worse and worse over the course of the season).

I also think Chock & Bates FD improved a lot over the year.

For the only ones in the last group who really had their best skate of the season at the Olympics though were Gilles & Poirier.

 

[Tinycities]

I watched almost all of it and I’m just glad to put it behind me and looking forward to worlds/next season.

It’s hard to get upset about the judging when the judging had been awarding skates like this the entire quad.

I’m very happy for Piper and Paul, and I’m looking forward to the next gen competing without predetermined winners.

In terms of which programs, both RD and FD, had the full package for me in terms of skills and interest, it was probably Lopareva/Brissaud and Giles/Poirier. I was also very happy for zingas/kolesnik but I thought this run of their FD was not their best.

 

[manhn]

I think skating fans had a comparison to Piper and Paul’s original version of Vincent, which colours our view. It certainly did mine.

And I still prefer the original, but that has more to do with the current rules. Interesting how newcomers with fresh eyes view this program. Piper and Paul’s best version of the OG Vincent was their first comp at Skate Canada, which you barely find on YouTube.

 

[skipaway]

Not another French judging scandal...............

Does this mean I can’t eat French Fries anymore?

 

[Andrey aka Pushkin]

Am I the only one who thinks FBC above C/B by 8 pts is actually much more representative of the reality than C/B beating the French?

 

[Andrey aka Pushkin]

I wish C/B would have leaned into their strength this season - the man/woman romantic dynamic.

...and never let her blades touch the ice...

 

[Skaterbob]

I hope that Guillaume takes his 2 Olympic gold medals and Vogues off into the sunset.

Thank you. I needed that belly laugh.

 

[her grace]

I think the whole quad wasn't up to the level of previous quads (partially, the rules are to blame here) and whoever won wasn't going to be as strong a team as Papadakis/Cizeron, Virtue/Moir, or Davis/White.

I hope one of the takeaways that the ISU receives is that audiences like and can appreciate skating skills and not just gimmicks and entertainment.

And while I'm discussing the direction of the sport:
I would like the ISU to ensure that there are a variety of ways to achieve high-level lifts that allow partners closer in height to compete with the tall guy/tiny girl pairings; I think we saw a bit of that in the complaints that FB/C's lifts, or H/D's lifts before them, were too easy. Coomes/Buckland and Chock/Bates ushered in an era of very dynamic lifts where the male partner can (more) easily maneuver the female partner than can partnerships where the man and woman are closer in height. But teams that are closer in height can skate closer in hold and can create better synchronization of movement. Right now, we seem to be valuing lifts over these skating qualities. I think that's a terrible tradeoff since holds and unison are closer to the heart of dance than lifts, which we've already got pairs for. Not to mention that some of the easier dance lifts can be very visually effective and musical.

 

[Cachoo]

I feel sorry for Lilah and we can go back and forth on this forever but in the end, and after the team competition, the retiring ice dancers all came away with hardware and, in the words of Martha Stewart, that is a "good thing." This isn't Sochi level drama thank heavens.
And now I'm ready for the La La's and the young Americans, French and Brits. Onward.

 

[MsZem]

Am I the only one who thinks FBC above C/B by 8 pts is actually much more representative of the reality than C/B beating the French?

No, you're not. I don't see how C/B were that much better than Piper and Paul, and it won't be long before Z/K pass them.

 

[VGThuy]

I remember for the past four years, people were saying C/B were a placeholder champion team until the next generation took over. Then, Cizeron came back. One thing that boggles my mind is how the judges decided C/B had no competition until Cizeron. They really decided C/B were always better than Piper and Paul and other teams who were younger.

 

[Cachoo]

I remember for the past four years, people were saying C/B were a placeholder champion team until the next generation took over. Then, Cizeron came back. One thing that boggles my mind is how the judges decided C/B had no competition until Cizeron. They really decided C/B were always better than Piper and Paul and other teams who were younger.

My question is why the Italians dropped precipitiously earlier in the season. They have skills after all. I wasn't paying close attention so maybe there is a legitmate reason.

 

[Karen-W]

My question is why the Italians dropped precipitiously earlier in the season. They have skills after all. I wasn't paying close attention so maybe there is a legitmate reason.

Because Marco in particular was really struggling to maintain his previous level of skills and he made errors in the twizzles repeatedly, among other things. It was clear last season that his skills were deteriorating though a lot of fans were in denial but by the time the GP rolled around this past fall it was too obvious to deny any longer.

 

[rfisher]

I thought was why most of you liked ice dance to begin with. Has there ever NOT been drama? It's the most subjectively judged of the 4 competitive disciplines especially at the very elite levels.

 

[Cachoo]

I thought was why most of you liked ice dance to begin with. Has there ever NOT been drama? It's the most subjectively judged of the 4 competitive disciplines especially at the very elite levels.

All I know is that I prefer now to the ice dancing days of yore when you started the season, say in 7th position, had a terrible skate and ended in 7th position, followed by a glorious skate and remained in 7th position.

 

[MsZem]

Because Marco in particular was really struggling to maintain his previous level of skills and he made errors in the twizzles repeatedly, among other things. It was clear last season that his skills were deteriorating though a lot of fans were in denial but by the time the GP rolled around this past fall it was too obvious to deny any longer.

Also that RD the theme did nobody any favors, but they really made life harder for themselves.

 

[ryanj07]

I remember for the past four years, people were saying C/B were a placeholder champion team until the next generation took over. Then, Cizeron came back. One thing that boggles my mind is how the judges decided C/B had no competition until Cizeron. They really decided C/B were always better than Piper and Paul and other teams who were younger.

It’s definitely interesting looking back on how we reached the point of Bock being “untouchable.” If you look back at the fall of 2022, Piper and Paul were actually dominating and handily beat C/B at the GPF. Then came Piper’s cancer diagnosis and it was a question on if they’d even make it to worlds and I think that’s when the dance politics shifted in C/B’s favor. Once they had the clout of world champions, there was no looking back. They definitely got several questionable wins over the years and unfortunately for them, another team swooped in at the last minute who could also get the benefit of the doubt from judges.

 

[manhn]

The Italians more than the other teams had the unfortunate luck of having to deal with decade-themed dances. They would probably do better with rhythm-centric RDs.

Both the Canadians and the Italians needed to have an excellent RD and FD in one season to overcome this perception of C&B being the second coming of Davis and White.

They normally had one good but the other was subpar. But it’s on their coaches to rework their programs, both of them were so darn stagnant. I mean, whatever you may think of the knee socks, they were wildly disliked. But here they were in the Olympics! You could not have put on different socks like Scott Hunter in Heated Rivalry.

 

[Karen-W]

All I know is that I prefer now to the ice dancing days of yore when you started the season, say in 7th position, had a terrible skate and ended in 7th position, followed by a glorious skate and remained in 7th position.

To be honest, that's mostly where we've been for the past two Olympic cycles. You had to have really, really outstanding material to break through (SmaDie's "Dune" last season) and even then, the teams ahead of you in the hierarchy often remained ahead of you unless you showed up with substandard programs. What was happening on the ice in any given competition, more often than not, didn't matter because of how the elements are scored with there not being a big enough of a BV hit when one partner messes up the twizzles or isn't able to hit the same level in the other step sequences. The decision the IDTC made to separate the BV for both partners made it easier to overlook errors & weaknesses in one partner or the other & allowed the hierarchy to become almost immovable unless there was a glaring error (like Lilah's twizzles last night). If we want real movement, we go back to the time where a team lived or died by the weaker partner's twizzles and step sequence levels.

 

[terisa]

My lunch today is in honor of the top two. I have a French croissant. It's piled high with pulled pork BBQ, with a LOAD of tabasco sauce.

 

[allezfred]

I saw somebody say something about Mark Hanretty’s studio analysis on British Eurosport (what was said was totally taken out of context as it turned out - surprise, surprise). However he did say the following:

“Laurence and Guillaume are indisputably the strongest skaters in the world - their flow, their glide, indisputably the best.”

“They are such class and finesse and truly the best ice dance team the world has ever seen.”

 

[terisa]

If I were them, I'd say "**** it" and retire immediately. They have nothing to gain by competing at Worlds, and I'd go off and do some press, take a vacation somewhere sunny, then do SOI and, like, Dancing with the Stars or something.

Madison should do whatever version of Project Runway is still going!

 

[MsZem]

The decision the IDTC made to separate the BV for both partners made it easier to overlook errors & weaknesses in one partner or the other & allowed the hierarchy to become almost immovable unless there was a glaring error (like Lilah's twizzles last night). If we want real movement, we go back to the time where a team lived or died by the weaker partner's twizzles and step sequence levels.

Limiting the number of choreo elements and the GOEs for them would also help.

 

[Private Citizen]

It really does not sound like there is any basis for a scandal here.

I agree, no scandal. Unlucky judging draw. Subjective sport. But no evidence of wrongdoing.

No one wants to learn rules and they’d rather scream injustice for the most bizarre reasons.

In this case, I think there are legitimate questions about how the math of the scoring system should work -- i.e., whether it's fair for a small group of judges who awards a large gap between competitors to overrule a majority.

I think it's also fair to question the balance of the judging panel. It's already not allowed to have tech specialists be from the same country as any competitor in the top five, to avoid bias. Why then not either guarantee the top five each have a judge, or else forbid the top five from having a judge? Or limit them to either RD or FD?

There are also questions about national bias seemingly never having any consequences -- e.g., the French judging marking F-B&C eight points ahead, or the Canadian judge putting Lajoie and Lagha in fourth. (Funny how no one has complained about that, despite the numerous complains about the British judge.) Dropping the high and low doesn't fully correct for that if one competitor has no judge. And if one competitor seems to have two judges working for them, the problem is compounded.... .

None of this is grounds to change the result, but I do think it's fair to ask questions about whether the system needs reform when the panel is essentially determining the result. And, yes, the same goes for Chock and Bates with Rettstatt, etc.