France upsets US to claim Olympic ice dance gold in Milan

France’s Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron Win Olympic Ice Dance Gold in Stunning Upset

French ice dancers Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron claimed Olympic gold on Wednesday night in Milan, narrowly defeating American favorites Madison Chock and Evan Bates by 1.43 points in one of the most thrilling ice dance competitions in Olympic history. The victory marks France’s second consecutive gold in the discipline and cements Cizeron’s place in figure skating history as the first ice dancer to win back-to-back Olympic titles with different partners.

The French duo scored 225.82 overall, with a free dance score of 135.64 to their performance set to music from the film “The Whale.” Chock and Bates, skating to The Rolling Stones’ “Paint It, Black,” earned 224.39 with a free dance of 134.67. Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier took bronze with 217.74 after an emotional performance to “Vincent (Starry Starry Night).”olympics

A Partnership Born of Circumstance

The gold medal caps a remarkable 11-month journey for Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron, who announced their partnership on Instagram in March 2025. Fournier Beaudry, originally from Canada, received French citizenship in November 2025, clearing the way for her Olympic eligibility.heavy

Cizeron, 31, had previously won gold at the Beijing 2022 Olympics alongside longtime partner Gabriella Papadakis, with whom he also claimed five world titles. Their split in December 2024 was followed by public controversy after Papadakis released a memoir detailing an “unbalanced” relationship.olympics

“We started a new chapter a year ago. Neither of us would have thought we’d be here today, so everything is like a bonus for us,” Cizeron told reporters via Reuters after the rhythm dance.heavy

Redemption for Americans, Finally on the Podium

For Chock and Bates, the silver medal represents redemption after years of near-misses at the Olympics. The married couple and three-time world champions had finished fourth at Beijing 2022, missing the podium by 3.25 points. Wednesday’s silver is their first individual Olympic medal, though they had previously won team gold at both the 2022 and 2026 Games.nbcnews

The American pair has dominated the sport for four years, winning 20 of 24 competitions since Beijing. But entering the free dance trailing by just 0.46 points, they were unable to overcome the French duo’s near-flawless performance.olympics

Historic Night on Milan Ice

The bronze medal was particularly meaningful for Gilles and Poirier, who have competed together at three Olympic Games. The Canadian pair finished eighth in 2018 and seventh in 2022 before finally reaching the podium. Their medal ended an eight-year Olympic drought for Canadian figure skating.olympic

Britain’s Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson dropped to fifth after errors on their twizzle sequence, while Americans Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik finished fourth in their Olympic debut.foxnews