Wikipedia

Figure skating at the 2018 Winter Olympics – Ice dance

The ice dance competition at the 2022 Winter Olympics was held on 19 and 20 February at the Gangneung Ice Arena in Gangneung, South Korea, and featured 24 teams from 17 different nations. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada won the gold medals, Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France won the silver, and siblings Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani of the United States won the bronze. In addition to their gold medal victory, Virtue and Moir set all new world record scores in the short dance, free dance, and overall total score. This was their fifth Olympic medal win – having previously won medals in both the ice dance and team events in 2010 and 2014, as well as the team event in 2018 – making Virtue and Moir the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history.

Ice dance
at the XXIII Olympic Winter Games
Figure skating pictogram
VenueGangneung Ice Arena
Gangneung, South Korea
Dates19–20 February 2018
Competitors24 teams from 17 nations
Winning score206.07 points
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Tessa Virtue
and Scott Moir		  Canada
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Gabriella Papadakis
and Guillaume Cizeron		  France
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Maia Shibutani
and Alex Shibutani		  United States
← 2014
2022 →
Gabriella Papadakis, Guillaume Cizeron, Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir, Maia Shibutani, and Alex Shibutani pose on the ice
The medalists from the ice dance event at the 2018 Winter Olympics (from left to right): Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France (silver); Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada (gold); and Maia and Alex Shibutani of the United States (bronze)

Background

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In 2016, an independent report commissioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency confirmed allegations that the Russian Olympic team had been involved in a state-sponsored doping program from at least late 2011 through February 2014, when Russia hosted the Winter Olympics in Sochi.[1][2] On 5 December 2017, the International Olympic Committee announced that the Russian Olympic Committee had been suspended from the 2018 Winter Olympics. Athletes with no previous drug violations and a consistent history of drug testing were allowed to compete under the Olympic flag as an "Olympic Athlete from Russia" (OAR).[3] Under the terms of the decree, neither the Russian flag nor anthem would be allowed at the Olympics; the Olympic flag and Olympic Anthem were used instead.[4]

The ice dance competition at the 2018 Winter Olympics was held on 19 and 20 February at the Gangneung Ice Arena in Gangneung, South Korea.[5][6] 24 teams representing 17 nations entered the competition.[7] Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada were the presumptive favorites, having previously won gold medals in ice dance at the 2010 Winter Olympics, silver medals in both ice dance and the team event at the 2014 Winter Olympics, and gold again in the team event just one week earlier.[8] Virtue and Moir were three-time world champions, three-time Four Continents champions, and eight-time Canadian national champions.[9] They had retired after the 2014 Olympics, disappointed with their silver-medal finish, but returned after two years to make another go the Olympics.[10] Their biggest rivals were Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France. Time magazine described them as "indisputably the top dance teams competing at [the] Olympics".[11] Virtue and Moir had earlier beat Papadakis and Cizeron at the 2017 World Figure Skating Championships, while Papadakis and Cizeron had beat Virtue and Moir at the 2017 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final.[11] Papadakis and Cizeron were two-time world champions, four-time European champions, and four-time French national champions.[12] Both team trained with Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon at the same ice academy in Montreal, along with Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue of the United States; the national champions of Armenia, Bulgaria, Denmark, and Spain; and a number of other teams.[11]

Qualification

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Nineteen quota spots in the ice dance event were awarded based on results at the 2017 World Championships.[13] Denmark had originally qualified one quota spot in ice dance at the 2017 World Championships; however, they relinquished their spot when Laurence Fournier Beaudry was unable to obtain Danish citizenship.[14] The extra quota spot was made available at the 2017 Nebelhorn Trophy along with the other five slots originally allocated.[15]

Qualifying nations in ice dance[13][15]
Event Teams
per NOC		 Qualifying NOCs Total
teams
2017 World Championships 3  Canada
 United States		 18
2  France
International Olympic Committee OAR
 Italy
1  Israel
 Denmark
 Poland
 Ukraine
 China
 Turkey
 Spain
2017 Nebelhorn Trophy 1  Great Britain
 Japan
 Germany
 South Korea
 Czech Republic
 Slovakia		 6
Total 24

Required performance elements

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Couples competing in ice dance first performed their short dances on 19 February.[5] Teams had to choose from one of the following rhythms: the cha-cha, rhumba, samba, mambo, meringue, salsa, bachata, or any closely-related Latin American rhythm. The required pattern dance element was the rhumba.[16] Lasting no more than 2 minutes 50 seconds,[17] the short dance had to include the following elements: the pattern dance element, one dance lift, one pattern dance step sequence while in hold, one step sequence while not touching, and one set of sequential twizzles.[16]

The top twenty highest scoring teams after the short dance performed their free dances on 20 February.[5] The free dance could last no longer than 4 minutes,[17] and had to include the following: one short lift and one combination lift, or three short lifts; one dance spin; one set of synchronized twizzles; one straight-line step sequence while in hold; one curved step sequence while in hold; and two choreographic elements.[16]

Judging

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Skaters were judged according to the required technical elements of their program (such as choreographic elements), as well as the overall presentation of their program, based on five program components (skating skills, transitions, performance, composition, and musical interpretation/timing). Each technical element in a figure skating performance was assigned a predetermined base point value and scored by a panel of nine judges on a scale from −3 to +3 based on the quality of its execution.[18] Each Grade of Execution (GOE) from –3 to +3 was assigned a value as indicated on the Scale of Values.[19] For example, a curve lift (level 4) was worth a base value of 4.50 points, and a GOE of +3 was worth 1.80 points, so a curve lift (level 4) with a GOE of +3 earned 6.30 points. The judging panel's GOE for each element was determined by calculating the trimmed mean (the average after discarding the highest and lowest scores). The panel's scores for all elements were added together to generate a Total Elements Score.[20] At the same time, the judges evaluated each performance based on the five aforementioned program components and assigned each a score from 0.25 to 10 in 0.25-point increments.[21] The judging panel's final score for each program component was also determined by calculating the trimmed mean. Those scores were then multiplied by the factor shown on the chart below; the results were added together to generate a total Program Component Score.[22]

Program component factoring[22]
Discipline Short dance Free dance
Ice dance 0.80 1.20

Deductions were applied for certain violations, such as time infractions, stops and restarts, or falls.[23] The Total Elements Score and Program Component Score were then added together, minus any deductions, to generate a final performance score for each skater or team.[24]

Records

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The following new record high scores were set during this competition. The following new record high scores were set during this competition.

Record high scores
Date Skater(s) Segment Score Ref.
19 February Short dance 83.67 [25]
20 February Free dance 123.35 [10]
Total score 205.28
206.07

Results

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Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir at the 2018 Winter Olympics
Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron at the 2019 Internationaux de France
Maia and Alex Shibutani at the 2017 World Championships
The gold, silver, and bronze medalists from the ice dance event at the 2022 Winter Olympics (from left to right):
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada (gold); Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France (silver); and Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani of the United States (bronze)
Code key

Short dance

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The short dance was held on 19 February. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada finished in first place, setting a new world record score in the process. Their performance, set to music by The Rolling Stones, demonstrated sensuality and sexuality, and included dance elements from the samba, rhumba, and cha-cha-cha.[25] Gabriella Papadakis of France suffered a costume malfunction early in her program when the clasp at the back of her neck came undone.[26] Had she and Guillaume Cizeron stopped for emergency repair, they would have incurred a penalty, so they continued to perform. "It was ... my worst nightmare happening at the Olympics," Papadakis said afterward.[25] Papdakis spent the entire routine trying to hold the top of her dress in place, which hindered some of her movements, especially during the twizzle sequence, and eventually the top of her dress slipped, exposing her breast to the audience. They still finished in second place, within two points of Virtue and Moir, a difference which Cizeron believed was not insurmountable. Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, the reigning U.S. national champions, finished in third place, setting a new personal best score, while siblings Maia and Alex Shibutani, also of the United States, finished in fourth place. A 0.02 point difference separated the two American teams.[26]

Short dance results[27]
Pl. Team Nation TSS TES PCS SS TR PE CO IN
1  Canada 83.67 44.53 39.14 9.68 9.61 9.93 9.79 9.93
2  France 81.93 42.71 39.22 9.71 9.71 9.82 9.89 9.89
3  United States 77.75 40.98 36.77 9.29 9.04 9.25 9.14 9.25
4  United States 77.73 40.33 37.40 9.36 9.18 9.46 9.36 9.39
5  Italy 76.57 40.00 36.57 8.93 8.96 9.32 9.14 9.36
6 International Olympic Committee OAR 75.47 38.36 37.11 9.18 9.14 9.46 9.29 9.32
7  United States 75.45 39.39 36.06 8.93 8.86 9.04 9.11 9.14
8  Canada 74.33 37.65 36.68 9.18 8.96 9.29 9.14 9.29
9  Canada 69.60 34.95 34.65 8.64 8.46 8.71 8.79 8.71
10  Great Britain 68.36 34.70 33.66 8.36 8.14 8.50 8.54 8.54
11  Italy 68.16 34.19 33.97 8.46 8.43 8.50 8.46 8.61
12  Spain 66.93 35.07 31.86 8.00 7.57 8.18 7.86 8.21
13 International Olympic Committee OAR 66.47 34.15 32.32 8.04 7.79 8.21 8.07 8.29
14  Poland 66.06 34.65 31.41 7.79 7.61 8.04 7.86 7.96
15  Japan 63.41 32.87 30.54 7.61 7.46 7.71 7.68 7.71
16  South Korea 61.22 32.94 28.28 6.96 6.82 7.21 7.18 7.18
17  Germany 59.99 31.39 28.60 7.21 6.86 7.25 7.21 7.21
18  France 59.97 31.18 28.79 7.39 7.00 7.29 7.14 7.18
19  Slovakia 59.75 31.40 28.35 7.11 6.79 7.25 7.11 7.18
20  Turkey 59.42 29.64 29.78 7.46 7.32 7.54 7.61 7.29
21  Ukraine 57.97 27.26 30.71 7.64 7.46 7.75 7.79 7.75
22  China 57.81 29.28 29.53 7.39 7.25 7.43 7.43 7.43
23  Czech Republic 53.53 29.11 24.42 6.29 5.93 6.14 6.25 5.93
24  Israel 46.66 23.85 22.81 5.75 5.61 5.75 5.86 5.54

Free dance

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The free dance was held on 20 February. While Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir finished second in the free dance, they still finished first overall and won the gold medals. Their score of 122.40 in the free dance – set to music from Moulin Rouge! – was a new personal best, and their overall total score of 206.07 was a new world record. It was the second gold medal win for Virtue and Moir at the 2018 Winter Olympics, as they had been part of the Canadian team that had won the team event one week earlier. They had won gold at the ice dance event at the 2010 Winter Olympics, and silver twice at the 2014 Winter Olympics – one in the ice dance event and one in the team event – making them the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history. No other figure skater at that point had won more than four Olympic medals, and their three gold medals tied them with Gillis Grafström of Sweden, Sonja Henie of Norway, and Irina Rodnina of the Soviet Union.[10]

Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron actually finished first in the free dance, giving them a overall total score of 205.28, which, at that point, was a new world record. It was then immediately broken by Virtue and Moir.[10] Their free dance score of 123.35 was also a new world record.[10][28] Papadakis and Cizeron's free dance – set to "Moonlight Sonata" by Ludwig van Beethoven – was described by Gia Kourlas of The New York Times as "a spectacle of position and daring". She wrote that "moving as one, they [were] gossamer as they transform[ed] the ice into air".[29]

Maia and Alex Shibutani, two-time U.S. national champions,[30] leapfrogged over Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue to finish in third place. The Shibutanis, who had been part of the American team who had won the bronze medals in the team event,[31] performed a near-flawless routine to "Paradise" by Coldplay.[28] Their coach, Marina Zoueva, opined that the Shibtanis had a more difficult job impressing the judges, because, as siblings, their routines lacked the romantic quality that is typical of ice dance performances. "They perform passion ... You can see it in choreography; it is not necessary to have love passion; any passion is passion."[32] The Shibutanis praised the performances of Virtue and Moir, and Papadakis and Cizeron, and also hoped that their performance might inspire other siblings and other Asian-Americans to pursue ice dance.[32] Hubbell and Donohue, however, made errors in their free dance,[31] which caused them to finish in fourth place.[33] Likewise, Madison Chock and Evan Bates, also of the United States, had a fall – an unusual occurrence in ice dance – which marred an otherwise strong performance.[10] They ultimately finished in ninth place.[33]

Free dance results[34]
Pl. Team Nation TSS TES PCS SS TR PE CO IN
1  France 123.35 63.98 59.37 9.79 9.75 10.00 9.93 10.00
2  Canada 122.40 63.35 59.05 9.71 9.61 9.96 9.93 10.00
3  United States 114.86 59.37 55.49 9.32 9.07 9.36 9.21 9.29
4 International Olympic Committee OAR 111.45 56.25 55.20 9.14 8.89 9.29 9.32 9.36
5  United States 109.04 54.94 56.00 9.29 9.21 9.25 9.46 9.46
6  Italy 108.34 55.27 54.07 8.93 8.71 9.14 9.07 9.21
7  Canada 107.65 53.48 54.17 8.96 8.75 9.18 9.04 9.21
8  Canada 107.31 55.14 52.17 8.68 8.29 8.86 8.68 8.96
9  Italy 105.31 53.82 51.49 8.57 8.50 8.57 8.57 8.71
10  Great Britain 101.96 51.66 50.30 8.32 8.21 8.39 8.57 8.43
11  Spain 101.40 51.68 49.72 8.14 8.04 8.43 8.36 8.46
12  United States 100.13 49.04 53.09 8.64 8.71 8.71 9.14 9.04
13  Japan 97.22 50.75 46.47 7.64 7.54 7.86 7.75 7.93
14 International Olympic Committee OAR 95.77 46.73 49.04 8.14 8.00 8.29 8.14 8.29
15  Poland 95.29 48.45 46.84 7.64 7.68 7.89 7.82 8.00
16  Germany 90.50 46.78 43.72 7.29 6.96 7.43 7.32 7.43
17  France 89.62 47.04 42.58 7.25 6.82 7.14 7.21 7.07
18  Turkey 87.76 44.01 43.75 7.25 7.11 7.21 7.50 7.39
19  South Korea 86.52 44.61 41.91 6.89 6.68 7.14 6.96 7.25
20  Slovakia 82.82 41.65 41.17 6.82 6.61 6.82 7.00 7.07

Overall

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Ice dance results[7]
Rank Team Nation Total SD FD
1st place, gold medalist(s)  Canada 206.07 1 83.67 2 122.40
2nd place, silver medalist(s)  France 205.28 2 81.93 1 123.35
3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  United States 192.59 4 77.73 3 114.86
4  United States 187.69 3 77.75 5 109.94
5 International Olympic Committee OAR 186.92 6 75.47 4 111.45
6  Italy 184.91 5 76.57 6 108.34
7  Canada 181.98 8 74.33 7 107.65
8  Canada 176.91 9 69.60 8 107.31
9  United States 175.58 7 75.45 12 100.13
10  Italy 173.47 11 68.16 9 105.31
11  Great Britain 170.32 10 68.36 10 101.96
12  Spain 168.33 12 66.93 11 101.40
13 International Olympic Committee OAR 162.24 13 66.47 14 95.77
14  Poland 161.35 14 66.06 15 95.29
15  Japan 160.63 15 63.41 13 97.22
16  Germany 150.49 17 59.99 16 90.50
17  France 149.59 18 59.97 17 89.62
18  South Korea 147.74 16 61.22 19 86.52
19  Turkey 147.18 20 59.42 18 87.76
20  Slovakia 142.57 19 59.75 20 82.82
21  Ukraine 57.97 21 57.97 Did not advance
to free dance
22  China 57.81 22 57.81
23  Czech Republic 53.53 23 53.53
24  Israel 46.66 24 46.66

References

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  1. ↑ Ruiz, Rebecca R. (9 December 2016). "Russia's doping program laid bare by extensive evidence in report". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2 March 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  2. ↑ Ruiz, Rebecca R. (18 July 2016). "Russia may face Olympics ban as doping scheme Is confirmed". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 25 April 2025. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  3. ↑ Ruiz, Rebecca R.; Panja, Tariq (5 December 2017). "Russia Banned From Winter Olympics by I.O.C.". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
  4. ↑ "IOC suspends Russian NOC and creates a path for clean individual athletes to compete in Pyeongchang 2018 under the Olympic Flag" (Press release). International Olympic Committee. 5 December 2017. Archived from the original on 24 April 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 "Figure Skating – Schedule". PyeongChang2018.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  6. ↑ "Gangneung Ice Arena". PyeongChang2018.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  7. 1 2 "2018 Olympic Winter Games – Ice Dance Final Results". Skating Scores. Archived from the original on 18 April 2024. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  8. ↑ O'Toole, Thomas (18 February 2018). "American couples all near the top after short program of 2018 Winter Olympics ice dancing". USA Today. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2026.
  9. ↑ "CAN–Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir". Skating Scores. Archived from the original on 21 August 2025. Retrieved 7 June 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Canada's Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir become most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history". ESPN. Associated Press. 19 February 2018. Archived from the original on 20 February 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2018.
  11. 1 2 3 Park, Alice (8 February 2018). "The story behind the best rivalry in Olympic figure skating". Time. Archived from the original on 8 February 2018. Retrieved 7 June 2026.
  12. ↑ "FRA–Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron". Skating Scores. Archived from the original on 6 August 2025. Retrieved 7 June 2026.
  13. 1 2 "Communication No. 2093: Entries/Participation 2018 Olympic Winter Games (OWG) – Single & Pair Skating/Ice Dance". International Skating Union. 23 May 2017. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  14. ↑ Nurminen, Jere (28 September 2017). "Jäätanssijoilla lupaava alku olympiakarsinnassa: "En olisi uskonut neljä vuotta sitten, että olisimme tässä"" [Ice dancers have a promising start at the Olympic qualifier: "I wouldn't have thought four years ago that we would be here"]. Yle (in Finnish). Archived from the original on 26 January 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
  15. 1 2 "Nebelhorn Trophy ice dance medallists take Olympic spots". International Skating Union. 29 September 2017. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  16. 1 2 3 "Communication No. 2076" (PDF). International Skating Union. 10 March 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 May 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2017.
  17. 1 2 S&P/ID 2016, p. 75.
  18. ↑ S&P/ID 2016, pp. 76–77.
  19. ↑ "Communication No. 2094". International Skating Union. 31 May 2017. Archived from the original on 28 February 2018. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
  20. ↑ S&P/ID 2016, pp. 15–16.
  21. ↑ S&P/ID 2016, pp. 79–80.
  22. 1 2 S&P/ID 2016, p. 16.
  23. ↑ S&P/ID 2016, pp. 16–18.
  24. ↑ S&P/ID 2016, p. 19.
  25. 1 2 3 Barnes, Dan (18 February 2018). "Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir set world record to lead Olympic ice dance through short program". National Post. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  26. 1 2 Elliott, Helene (19 February 2018). "Canadians lead after short dance". The Los Angeles Times. pp. D12. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ↑ "Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 – Ice Dance Short Dance – Result Details". International Skating Union. 19 February 2018. Archived from the original on 14 August 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  28. 1 2 Brandt, David (21 February 2018). "Canadians earn gold medal in ice dancing". The Globe. The Associated Press. p. 41. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ↑ Kourlas, Gia (20 February 2018). "French Olympic ice dancers make skating as ethereal as ballet". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 June 2026.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  30. ↑ "USA–Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani". Skating Scores. Retrieved 8 June 2026.
  31. 1 2 Wilner, Barry (21 February 2018). "US triumphs, disappoints in ice dance". The Xenia Daily Gazette. The Associated Press. p. 12. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  32. 1 2 Rogers, Martin (21 February 2018). "Bronze day: Signourney, Shib Sibs". The Globe. p. 40. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. 1 2 "Figure skating". South Jersey Times. 21 February 2026. p. C3. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. ↑ "Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 – Ice Dance Free Dance – Result Details". International Skating Union. 20 February 2018. Archived from the original on 14 August 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2026.

Works cited

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