Dancing to gold with no spills

BEIJING • Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron put their Pyeongchang wardrobe heartbreak behind them as they won the figure skating ice dance gold for France with a world record at the Olympics yesterday.

The Beijing Games' figure skating programme has been almost completely overshadowed by Russian Kamila Valieva's positive doping test but the flamboyant French duo shone through the gloom, finishing with a total of 226.98 to eclipse their 2019 record (226.61).

A wardrobe malfunction cost them dearly four years ago during their short dance, leaving them with the silver, behind Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir.

But there were no mishaps in a virtually flawless free dance at the Capital Indoor Stadium yesterday which earned 136.15 points and brought rival athletes and coaches to their feet in a standing ovation.

"I think it just fuelled us," Cizeron said of the 2018 costume drama, when Papadakis struggled to stop her dress slipping off after a clasp came undone.

"It made us want that gold medal more than anything else. And I think we've never worked that hard for a specific goal."

An overjoyed Papadakis said their triumph felt "completely unreal". "We have been waiting for this. This is the medal that we wanted," said the 26-year-old, whose well-strapped dress of shimmering gold matched her medal.

Skating to the dramatic piano and cello music of Gabriel Faure's Elegie, the four-time world champions once again dazzled with their silky, seductive dance, earning France a first Olympic figure skating gold since Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat took the ice dance title in 2002.

Reigning world champions Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov took silver for the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) with a final score of 220.51, skating to the music of Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff.

It was their second medal of the Games after winning gold in the team event with their ROC teammate Valieva.

The team medals have not been presented due to the Valieva issue, and may not be until the doping case is addressed.

"We left everything on the ice. Our feelings are mixed right now," said Katsalapov.

"The only thing I know is it was really the best free dance we did this season."

American pair Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue won the bronze with 218.02.

Meanwhile, Yuzuru Hanyu yesterday refused to rule out another tilt at Olympic gold after the two-time figure skating champion was dethroned at the Beijing Games by Nathan Chen of the United States.

The Japanese star said that he had been hampered by injury as he finished a disappointing fourth in the Chinese capital, but the 27-year-old added his achievements can never be taken away.

"I'm an Olympic champion - I won two titles in a row and I'm proud of that," Hanyu told a packed room of reporters in Beijing.

"As someone who has won two consecutive titles, I want to make sure I'm proud of myself and that's how I intend to live my life from here on."

Hanyu said he did not know at the moment whether he would aim for a fourth Olympics in Italy in four years but said he was reminded in Beijing of "how special" the competition is.

"I have an injury but I still managed to get back up and take on this challenge, and the Olympics are the only place where a skater can do something like that," he said.

"In terms of feelings, yes I would like to skate at the Olympics again."

Hanyu revealed that he hurt his ankle on the eve of last week's free skate and had to receive pain-killing injections right before taking the ice.

He said he would have withdrawn under normal circumstances but he was determined to attempt the fabled quadruple axel jump that was driving him to compete in Beijing.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE