Madison Chock and Evan Bates make it a three-peat in ice dance at World Figure Skating Championships
At the conclusion of their routine, Chock and Bates lingered at center ice, kneeling in an embrace as they took in their surroundings: TD Garden, packed to the brim, with thousands of fans on their feet in celebration.
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Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the United States celebrate after their winning routine Saturday at the World Figure Skating Championships.
Barry Chin/Globe Staff
'Coming in here, we were not thinking about a three-peat or any sort of title defense,' Bates said. 'It was just a standalone event, and we came as prepared as we could possibly be, and we skated as well as we could.'
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Chock and Bates entered the day with a nearly four-point lead over Gilles and Poirier after scoring a season-best 90.18 in Friday's rhythm dance competition. Their free dance score of 131.88 gave them a total of 222.06, beating Gilles and Poirier by almost six points.
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Gilles and Poirier secured their second World Championship silver medal, adding to their growing collection that also includes two World bronzes. They brought the crowd to its feet with their routine, earning a 130.10 for a total of 216.54.
Americans
Christina Carreira
and
Anthony Ponomarenko
held the lead heading into the final group of skaters, as their season-best score of 123.37 gave them a total of 204.88. They finished in fifth place overall, topping their previous World Championship best (seventh, 2024).
Italy's
Charlène Guignard
and
Marco Fabbri
overtook Carreira and Ponomarenko with a score of 123.42 in the free dance (206.46 overall), only to be bumped off the leaders' chairs by the next pair, Great Britain's
Lilah Fear
and
Lewis Gibson
.
Fear and Gibson, whose routine was choreographed to a medley of Beyonce songs that had the crowd dancing along, entered the day in third place after their rhythm dance earned a score of 83.86.
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A 123.25 in the free dance (207.11 overall) earned the pair its first World Championship medal.
As their score appeared on the screen in front of them, Fear and Gibson looked stunned, having guaranteed themselves a spot on the podium after finishing fourth at each of the past two World Championships.
'For us, it's about expressing who we are as much as possible,' Fear said. 'Having that genuine portrayal allows us to connect with as many people as we can.'
A twist on tradition
Poirier made a unique costume choice to accompany his and Gilles's modern tango routine, opting for a bright red, traditional tuxedo with a large hole cut out of the back.
The choice was intentional, he said, as it reflected the pair's program, similarly packaged as a traditional tango routine with a modern twist.
'It's kind of a program that's neither here nor there, that's somewhat traditional but not completely traditional,' Poirier said. 'My idea for this suit was to find something that sat somewhere in the middle.'
Seeing stars
Chock and Bates,
The tour is in its 39th year and will perform in Boston for the first time since 2023. Other skaters will include
Isabeau Levito
and
Amber Glenn
, as well as 1990s favorite
Elvis Stojko
, a two-time Olympic silver medalist from Canada.
Globe correspondent Kat Cornetta contributed to this story.
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