This is the heart-breaking moment a pair of American figure skaters had the dreams of winning a medal at the Winter Olympics dashed.
Madison Chock and Evan Bates were within sight of the podium in the ice dancing competition at the PyeongChang Games on Tuesday.
But a rare and stunning fall was enough to damage an otherwise beautiful performance to John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ that still drew an emotional applause.
Madison Chock and Evan Bates were within sight of the podium in the free dance competition at the PyeongChang Games
A stunning fall was enough to damage an otherwise beautiful performance to ‘Imagine
They were the only ice dancers to have a fall in the entire competition, and it came as they were preparing to do a combination spin.
Their blades clicked just as he was bending down and she was beginning to spin.
‘It’s impossible to do the spin with our feet attached,’ Bates said.
‘We were too close together,’ Chock explained.
‘It’s a moment we wish we could have back,’ Bates added.
‘It’s a mistake that has never happened in training before, ever. There’s no explanation.’
The fall came as the pair, based in Novi, Michigan, were preparing to do a combination spin
Their blades clicked just as he was bending down and she was beginning to spin
The pair, who have been skating together since 2011, embrace after their performance
Chock, 25, and Bates, 29, ultimately finished in ninth place with a score of 175.58.
They said they didn’t want the fall to take away from the message they were trying to convey while skating to ‘Imagine.’
‘We hope we got the message of peace across,’ Chock said as she wiped her eyes.
‘We think the audience understood.’
‘It’s a mistake that’s never happened in training before, ever. There’s no explanation,’ Bates said
Chock said they didn’t want the fall to take away from the message they were trying to convey while skating to ‘Imagine’
While they lost out on a medal, compatriots Maia and older brother Alex Shibutani won the bronze medal with a near-flawless free skate to ‘Paradise’ by Coldplay.
Meanwhile, US champions Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue made two key errors in their free dance and slid from third to fifth place.
Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir took gold with their final Olympic performance – a dazzling interpretation of ‘Moulin Rouge’ – to become the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history.
Chock and Bates, who are based in Novi, Michigan, have been skating together since 2011 and began dating in 2016.
Together, they have won two world championship medals (a silver and a bronze) and came in eighth place at the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2014.
Chock and Bates have won two world championship medals (a silver and a bronze) together
The couple, who have been dating since 2016, came in eighth place at the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2014