French judge Jezabel Dabouis’s massive scoring swing robbed American ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates of Olympic gold, reigniting fears of international bias against U.S. athletes in a scandal eerily similar to past judging fixes.
Story Highlights
- French judge Dabouis gave nearly eight points more to the French team in free dance, enough to flip gold from Team USA to France—removing her score hands victory to Chock and Bates.
- This marks a pattern: Dabouis repeatedly favored French skaters Beaudry and Cizeron over Americans in prior events, including the 2025 Grand Prix Final and Olympic rhythm dance.
- ISU refuses investigation despite over 10,000 petition signatures, defending the scores as “normal variation” while echoing the 2002 Salt Lake City French judge scandal.
- Chock and Bates delivered their best Olympic performance but got silver, calling for transparent judging to protect the sport’s integrity.
Competition Results Ignite Outrage
On February 12, 2026, at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, Madison Chock and Evan Bates scored 224.39 total points, including 134.67 in free dance. French skaters Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron edged them out with 225.82 points, driven by 135.64 in free dance. French judge Jezabel Dabouis delivered a nearly eight-point margin favoring her compatriots, a gap so wide that excluding her scores awards gold to the Americans. This decisive swing denied Chock and Bates their first individual Olympic gold after their team event victory.
Watch;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aB4JdHIT-_Y
Pattern of Bias Emerges
Dabouis’s favoritism spans multiple competitions. In December 2025’s Grand Prix Final, Chock and Bates won despite two deductions, including a fall, as Dabouis scored narrowly for the Americans. During the Olympic rhythm dance, she again favored Beaudry and Cizeron by a wide margin. Critics highlight her free dance scores: over seven points lower for the U.S. team than France, with no other team above 130 except France at 137. This pattern underscores national bias concerns, especially given her French nationality.
Historical Echoes of Judging Scandals
The controversy mirrors the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, where French judge Marie-Reine Le Gougne confessed to vote-swapping, handing gold to Russians over deserving Canadians Jamie Sale and David Pelletier. Le Gougne faced suspension, and Canadians received gold. Despite 2004 ISU reforms shifting from 6.0 to technical and component scores, the system remains subjective and confusing. Chock noted fans struggle to understand outcomes, eroding confidence in Olympic judging integrity.
Chock and Bates expressed pride in their peak performance. Bates said, “We felt like we delivered our absolute best… It felt like a winning skate.” Chock called for better judge vetting “for the sake of transparency,” acknowledging emotional strain after past delays like the 2022 Valieva doping saga.
ISU Stonewalls, Public Demands Action
The International Skating Union defends Dabouis, claiming score ranges are normal with built-in mitigations, and expresses “full confidence” in fairness. ISU rejects investigation despite public outcry. Over 10,000 signed a Change.org petition by February 13 urging ISU and IOC review. U.S. Figure Skating backs athletes, but ISU authority limits recourse. Analysts call the inflated French component scores obvious favoritism, demanding reforms for true merit-based results.
Repeated scandals—2002 pairs, 2022 team event, now 2026 ice dance—expose systemic flaws. Chock warned opaque judging risks fan retention: “People need to understand what they’re cheering for.”
Sources:
ABC7 Chicago: 2026 Olympics ice dancing controversy
Fox News: US Olympic figure skaters speak out on judging
