Team USA’S Madison Chock and Evan Bates have been dramatically denied Olympic gold by a French duo shrouded in controversy.
Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron secured the top spot on the podium at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan on Wednesday.
The French pair finished with a total score of 225.82 following their free dance, narrowly beating the American favorites.
Chock and Bates, who delivered a powerhouse performance, were forced to settle for silver with a score of 224.49 – a heartbreaking margin of just 1.42 points.
Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier took the bronze medal with a score of 217.74.
Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron were seen erupting in cheers and sobbing in the ‘kiss and cry’ area as their victory was confirmed.
Team USA’S Madison Chock and Evan Bates have been dramatically denied Olympic gold by a French duo – Laurence Fournier-Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron – shrouded in controversy
Chock and Bates, who delivered a powerhouse performance, were forced to settle for silver with a score of 224.49
However, the win has been overshadowed by the dark clouds hanging over both skaters’ personal lives.
The duo only partnered up in March 2025, but their brief career together has been dogged by ‘toxic’ allegations from their pasts.
Fournier Beaudry has faced intense scrutiny over her relationship with boyfriend and former skating partner, Nikolaj Sorensen.
Sørensen was suspended in 2024 following allegations of a 2012 sexual assault involving a former skater and coach.
While his six-year suspension from Skate Canada was eventually overturned on a technicality, the scandal effectively ended his competitive career.
Fournier Beaudry recently lamented the situation in the Netflix docuseries ‘Glitter & Gold’, claiming the ordeal ruined her partner’s life.
Meanwhile, Cizeron arrived in Milan facing explosive claims from his former gold-medal-winning partner, Gabriella Papadakis.
Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier took the bronze medal with a score of 217.74
Despite the off-ice drama, the French pair have remained focused on the ice these Games
In an interview ahead of her memoir ‘So as Not to Disappear’, Papadakis described Cizeron as ‘controlling, demanding and critical.’
She wrote that she felt under his ‘control’ and was ‘terrified’ of being alone with him during their time as a world-leading pair.
Cizeron has hit back at the claims, labeling them a ‘smear campaign’ and confirming he is pursuing legal action.
‘I want to express my incomprehension and disagreement with the labels attributed to me,’ he told Reuters.
‘The book contains false information, including statements I never made, which I consider serious.’
Despite the off-ice drama, the pair remained focused on the ice, having led since the short program on Monday.
‘We started a new chapter a year ago,’ Cizeron told reporters earlier in the Games.
‘Neither of us would have thought we’d be here today, so everything is like a bonus for us.’
