After Madison Chock and Evan Bates’ controversial ice dance score, ISU backs Olympic judge

The American figure skating duo of Evan Bates and Madison Chock had to settle for the silver medal in ice dancing at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and there was some controversy surrounding their free dance score. After finishing just 0.43 points behind the French team of Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron, Chock called for more transparency from the judging process. In response, the International Skating Union (ISU) issued a statement defending how the judges — particularly a judge from France — landing on their respective scores.

Following the rhythm dance portion of the event, Chock and Bates were just 0.46 points behind Beaudry and Cizeron. In the free dance portion of the event, with the Americans favored to take home gold, five of nine judges scored Chock and Bates higher than Beaudry and Cizeron. Three more gave the French a narrow edge.

However, French judge Jezabel Dabouis scored the French duo more than seven points higher than the Americans — a wide margin. In the end, Beaudry and Cizeron won the event by just 0.43 points. Despite some criticism of the judging process, the ISU said a wide range of scores across multiple judges is normal.

“It is normal for there to be a range of scores given by different judges in any panel and a number of mechanisms are used to mitigate these variations,” the ISU said, per the Associated Press, adding it has “full confidence in the scores given and remains completely committed to fairness.”

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In an interview with CBS News, Chock said more transparency would benefit the skaters and fans. She also called for more thorough vetting of the judges.

“I think it would definitely be helpful if it’s more understandable for the viewers to see more transparent judging and understand what’s really going on,” Chock said. “It’s also important for the skaters that the judges be vetted and reviewed and that they are also putting out their best performance. There’s a lot on the line for the skaters when they’re out there giving it their all. We also deserve to have the judges giving it their all and for it to be a fair and even playing field.”

While Chock and Bates took home a bittersweet silver medal in the ice dance event, they did pick up a gold medal earlier in the Olympics with a victory in team figure skating.