French ice dancer duo Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron clinched the gold medal at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 on Monday.
The four-time world champion French pair soared to victory at the Beijing 2022, skating to a world record total score of 226.98 to claim a long-awaited Olympic title after registering 136.15 in the free dance.
The duo, skating to “Elegie”, turned in an elegant and classic performance skating over the Olympic Rings, bettering their silver medal finish behind Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir at PyeongChang 2018.
Papadakis andCizeron had broken their own world record in the short dance, scoring 90.83 to secure a two-point advantage heading into the free dance.
The podium race was a close one, with Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of ROC setting a season’s best to win silver with a total score of 220.51. Team USA’s Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue won the bronze with 218.02.
The reigning U.S. champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates rallied from a disappointing rhythm dance, getting the fourth spot with a total score of 214.77, while Italy’s Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri finished fifth with a 207.05.
Papadakis and Cizeron won France’s second ice dance gold and the first since Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat were victorious at Salt Lake City 2002. (ANI)
