U.S. earns figure skating silver, fueled by epic ice dance

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - When it comes to legendary ice dance performances on the Olympic stage, two that often come to mind are Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean’s perfectly-scored “Bolero” in 1984 and Meryl Davis and Charlie White’s gold medal skate to “My Fair Lady” in 2014. Both teams earned a resounding gold medal.

Spectators now have reason to include Monday’s team finals skate from Madison Chock and Evan Bates at the 2022 Winter Olympics. With a Daft Punk medley which included the songs “Contact,” “Touch,” and “Within,” the veteran duo scored a 129.07, the highest score of the final. Their performance triggered a tremendous reaction from their teammates, and those following on social media.

For Chock and Bates, the perfect 10 scored on composition was enough for them to place .9 better than the reigning world champions Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov who represent the Russian Olympic Committee. The close finish could very well be a tease for their own competition, which will take place next weekend. The ice dance finals will air Sunday nigh, shortly after Super Bowl LVI.

The results also helped the United States skaters secure a spot on the medal stand. Coming into the ice dance portion, the Americans were tied with Japan at 46 points.

The team event has opened the Winter Olympics since 2014. It also includes pairs skaters and men and women who compete individually. Nations only earn points from their placement within their discipline. With enough talent across the board, the Russian Olympic Committee finished with 74 points for gold - nine more than Team USA.

Joining Chock and Bates as silver medalists are Nathan Chen, Vincent Zhou (men’s), Karen Chen (women’s), Brandon Frazier & Alexa Knierim (pairs), and Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue (ice dance).

Coverage of the 24th Winter Olympic Games can be seen on KCBD-TV. Competition ends Feb. 20.