- 16 hours ago
Glitter and Gold Ice Dancing - Season 1 - Episode 03
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TVTranscript
00:00:10Gold medal on the line in the free dance here this afternoon, Lake Placid.
00:00:14The pressure is so intense.
00:00:16Years of sacrifice for this one shot at Olympic glory.
00:00:20And moments away from that final team taking the ice,
00:00:23and it is the Americans, Madison Schott and Evan Bates.
00:00:28Pain is scary, like especially the unknown, it can be dangerous.
00:00:33It's not uncommon for athletes to just push through pain.
00:00:38It's just kind of built into us to train through it, to skate through it.
00:00:43You always want to like go for it, but then at a certain point once you realize like,
00:00:49maybe I shouldn't have done that, you're out there and like there's a lot of people watching.
00:01:00There's also another factor, which is the skirt.
00:01:04They're going to be trying to do the slide, plus hold the skirt,
00:01:07and not let anything disastrous happen.
00:01:11The questions in my mind right now are, is my body going to hold up?
00:01:15Am I going to bail out of a lift or something because it hurts?
00:01:20Am I going to be safe to lift Maddie?
00:01:32What a great lift into that difficult position.
00:01:36How risky it is too.
00:01:41They've been together for so long, experienced so much.
00:01:44They skate very much at the same heartbeat.
00:01:48Good speed across the ice, up over the shoulders.
00:01:51The audience is on their seats.
00:01:59Wow.
00:02:00Just incredible, really.
00:02:02Who can do that?
00:02:10Just tremendous skill throughout the whole performance.
00:02:13I can see this at Center Ice in Milan.
00:02:16The fans of the United States of America have earned a free dance score of 127.8 of a season
00:02:25in the United States of America have earned a free dance score of 127.8 of a season.
00:02:35Now the adrenaline's leaving my body, and my body doesn't feel good.
00:02:43But we did what we needed to do, and I'm proud of that.
00:02:47The Grand Prix scores are so close.
00:02:50Like, we knew it was going to be tight, but this is pure insanity.
00:02:53We truly will not know how everyone's going to stack up until the Grand Prix Final in Japan.
00:03:00We are so close.
00:03:20Hi.
00:03:21Good.
00:03:22How are you?
00:03:25Today, we are in Toronto, and we are doing a shoot with Coca-Cola.
00:03:32Sorry, you said I didn't get you to look forward to.
00:03:34Oh, my goodness, sorry.
00:03:35I can't not look at my husband. He's so handsome.
00:03:38He's such a handsome woman.
00:03:39Look at that.
00:03:40Settling. Quiet on set.
00:03:44And action.
00:03:46There is always, like, a little bit more pressure.
00:03:49In an Olympic year, there's just more going on,
00:03:51and, like, more eyes on the sport.
00:03:55It's so cool.
00:03:58So let's start, you guys, with twisting and turning.
00:04:01Do not look at camera.
00:04:03Lifting her a bit.
00:04:04Want me to lift you a little bit?
00:04:05Sure.
00:04:07Yeah, there you go. Great, great.
00:04:10No, it's like with the Olympics, I feel like every four years,
00:04:12it's like a balance of finding time to train and get ready for the season,
00:04:16but also take once-in-a-lifetime opportunities like this one.
00:04:19This is a different amount of attention.
00:04:22But it's up to us to manage how we focus on what's important.
00:04:26The Winter Games in Milan Cortina now just 100 days away.
00:04:32We're getting closer and closer to, like, Olympics time.
00:04:35I am so excited.
00:04:39When you're halfway through a season, and especially an Olympic season,
00:04:42you kind of can predict what might happen in ice dance results.
00:04:47But this year is very different.
00:04:49That is a jock and Evan Bates as they take the title.
00:04:53Peter Gillis, Paul Poirier on top of the podium here in Skate Canada.
00:05:00With Guillaume and Laurence in the mix, everything has shifted now in ice dance.
00:05:06Usually, it takes time for teams to gel.
00:05:10They have gelled extremely well.
00:05:16With what we've seen from Guillaume and Laurence at their last Grand Prix,
00:05:21they are definitely the ones to beat this season.
00:05:29If you are Piper and Paul, and if you are Madison and Evan, I don't see how you could not
00:05:34be a little rattled.
00:05:35So, we're headed into Finlandia next week, and now you're going to have two top teams,
00:05:41Piper and Paul, meeting with Laurence and Guillaume.
00:05:44It's going to be a bloodbath.
00:05:46It's going to be a bloodbath.
00:05:47This is where all of the placements for the Grand Prix Final get solidified.
00:05:52And a preview of what's to come at Olympics.
00:05:56This doesn't happen a lot where you're up against one of the other top teams before the Grand Prix Final.
00:06:02So, if Guillaume and Laurence beat Piper and Paul, holy cow.
00:06:08They need to have, like, the best material of their life.
00:06:12No pressure.
00:06:16Oh, this one.
00:06:29Remember my My Fair Lady?
00:06:32Costume.
00:06:34I loved the pink.
00:06:36I felt so elegant, and it was just so beautiful.
00:06:40If I could wear this now, which one, maybe.
00:06:46I haven't really changed since I was 13, 14, so it's possible.
00:06:53Let's see.
00:06:54Oh, gosh.
00:06:55The 90s sweaters.
00:06:59All the top skaters had it.
00:07:01Actually, my mom, now I'm just remembering that.
00:07:04Any costume that we would have, she put a gold ladybug inside, because ladybugs are supposedly good luck.
00:07:12She was heavily involved in the design process, and I think that was how my mom and I truly bonded.
00:07:28She could turn anything into everything.
00:07:32With costume, she could literally pull an idea and be like, this is what we're doing, and shape it into
00:07:38something beautiful.
00:07:41My mom was, like, the skater mom to everybody.
00:07:44She wasn't afraid to give her own opinion on your skating, which was just like, oh, mom.
00:07:50But, like, people loved it because she was so honest.
00:07:58Going into the 2018 Olympic Games, I started to notice some really bizarre behaviors.
00:08:08So I took her to see a doctor.
00:08:11Within about an hour, they were like, she's got some kind of tumor on the left and the right side
00:08:16of her brain.
00:08:16It was, like, spread out like a butterfly.
00:08:21And, of course, the first thing you do is go to Google, right?
00:08:24Like, if you have glioblastoma, which is what she had, and, like, the size of it, stage four, you have
00:08:29anywhere from five days to 15 months.
00:08:36It was just a complicated situation trying to figure out, like, do I stay home and help my mom?
00:08:46But my dad was, like, this is, this was an Olympic journey and an Olympic dream that she had, right?
00:08:51So we continued and decided to go for it.
00:08:55Next skate, Fiber Mills, have all four years.
00:08:58We made it to my first Olympic Games.
00:09:02My dad and my siblings were there to watch in person, but my mom was watching from home.
00:09:08And Paul and I had a skate of a lifetime.
00:09:13Complete split.
00:09:15Oh, now, that is very interesting and cool.
00:09:19There was a vision, there was the execution, there was the change in mood, a change in timing.
00:09:27To this day, like, I could still get goosebumps.
00:09:34What we created in that moment was so special.
00:09:40That just brings a smile to your face.
00:09:45Just a marvelous performance.
00:09:50And to know that my mom was able to see
00:09:54a Olympic Games,
00:09:58it was really cool.
00:10:00It was really cool.
00:10:13If we want to keep the same timing,
00:10:16we can do the swivel swivel,
00:10:17but if we're not going to do the point on the turn to the left,
00:10:20then it doesn't matter.
00:10:21Doesn't matter.
00:10:22Let's do it again.
00:10:23Okay.
00:10:24So, for our free dance,
00:10:26we call it Vincent,
00:10:27but a lot of people call it Starry Night.
00:10:30It's a program we did
00:10:32seven years ago
00:10:33that put us on the competitive
00:10:36map.
00:10:37I don't know,
00:10:38I don't care how many times
00:10:40I've seen this program.
00:10:41It never fails
00:10:44to move me.
00:10:45When we were thinking about Olympic music,
00:10:47we kept coming back and thinking
00:10:49we would really like to finish
00:10:51the story with Vincent again
00:10:53because they never did it
00:10:56in an Olympic year.
00:10:57And that program
00:10:59meant a lot of different things
00:11:01to different people.
00:11:03It was the program we choreographed
00:11:05when Piper's mother was very ill
00:11:07before she died
00:11:08and Piper's mother never got to see it.
00:11:12I actually remember hearing
00:11:13the first draft of Vincent
00:11:15on my patio in Colorado
00:11:17while we were kind of organizing
00:11:19all the funeral stuff.
00:11:20Starry, starry night.
00:11:22And I felt like,
00:11:23oh my God,
00:11:24this would have been a program
00:11:25that my mom would have loved.
00:11:27And as we started to compete it,
00:11:30every time I finished,
00:11:31like I had like a tear in my eye.
00:11:33I looked at the top of like
00:11:34the arena
00:11:36and I was just like,
00:11:37she's here.
00:11:38She's here.
00:11:38And like,
00:11:39I want that feeling.
00:11:40Like I want to be almost like
00:11:41reconnected with my mom
00:11:42by bringing this program back.
00:11:45So pick it up from corner or?
00:11:49Uh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:11:50We'll take it from the corner
00:11:51kind of the end.
00:11:52But then it's like,
00:11:52oh my gosh,
00:11:53now I have to kind of like
00:11:54bring myself back
00:11:55to a time that was so hard.
00:12:00Since we're recreating a program,
00:12:02the risk could be that
00:12:04it seems like you're not
00:12:05living for a bird.
00:12:06Yeah.
00:12:07Let's go for it.
00:12:07Make something we all like.
00:12:09Okay.
00:12:10For us,
00:12:11it was really important
00:12:12to not just to do it
00:12:14the way that we had done it before,
00:12:16but to take this piece of music
00:12:18that we feel really connected to
00:12:19that we really love
00:12:20and see where does that music
00:12:23take us now?
00:12:24I don't know what she's doing,
00:12:25so.
00:12:26Well, hold on.
00:12:28Programs are never finished
00:12:29across the course of the season.
00:12:31And as soon as you compete,
00:12:33it changes everything.
00:12:34I'm fine to leave it.
00:12:34I'm fine to leave it.
00:12:35It was just one thing
00:12:36that popped out in my own mind.
00:12:37We can put that on the list.
00:12:38Ski Canada was successful
00:12:40in the fact that we won.
00:12:43We have good feedback.
00:12:46But obviously,
00:12:47the free dance for us
00:12:48was really disappointing.
00:12:49And there,
00:12:50that one moment,
00:12:51just don't feel
00:12:53it's quite as polished
00:12:54as we're used to seeing
00:12:55from these two.
00:12:56It's going to have to go up a notch,
00:12:58I think,
00:12:58as the season goes on.
00:13:00The overall goal
00:13:01is just to be faster,
00:13:03be closer,
00:13:03be stronger.
00:13:05But I think we know
00:13:06exactly now
00:13:06what we need to do
00:13:07to make it better.
00:13:08You are the artist.
00:13:10Like,
00:13:10I'm the painting.
00:13:11You know,
00:13:12it's the story
00:13:12about Van Gogh
00:13:13and his relationship
00:13:13to his art
00:13:14and how he was not
00:13:16a painter
00:13:16that was appreciated
00:13:17in his time.
00:13:18Where are we taking it from?
00:13:19He said Mark the Limb.
00:13:20But it's also
00:13:21the story
00:13:22of us
00:13:23and our relationship
00:13:24with our own crafts.
00:13:27I'm feeling really
00:13:28positive about
00:13:28the adjustments
00:13:29that we made.
00:13:30Sorry,
00:13:31that's okay.
00:13:31But really nervous
00:13:33for the Grand Prix
00:13:35in Finland.
00:13:52I'm so sorry.
00:13:53Do you want to go to the exterior?
00:13:55Oh, yes.
00:13:57I'm so sorry.
00:13:58I'm so sorry.
00:13:59I'm so sorry.
00:14:00I'm so sorry.
00:14:00I'm so sorry.
00:14:01I'm so sorry.
00:14:03I'm so sorry.
00:14:05I'm so sorry.
00:14:07I'm so sorry.
00:14:07You've never done that.
00:14:12I'm sorry.
00:14:20It's hard to compare
00:14:22really the effort
00:14:22of biking
00:14:23versus skating.
00:14:24The biking helps us
00:14:26with our overall endurance.
00:14:28But what we do
00:14:29on the ice is much harder.
00:14:35It's hard to replicate off the ice
00:14:37because you would have to use your legs
00:14:39and your arms and your core
00:14:41at the same time.
00:14:46Here we don't have to make it look like it's easy,
00:14:49like it's a repetitive movement
00:14:50and we're kind of doing our thing.
00:14:51On the ice we have to look like everything is easy.
00:15:01There is also that human aspect
00:15:03that when you find your partner's eyes
00:15:06it's like an exchange of energy
00:15:09that even when you're tired
00:15:10you're kind of like going through the same motion
00:15:13and you want the same goal
00:15:14and you're just kind of like putting more fuel on the fire.
00:15:18There is that exchange and connection aspect
00:15:21that is hard to find in another sport.
00:15:30Ice dancing is being a princess on the ice
00:15:35and you're actually skating with a partner
00:15:38so it's like you're skating with a prince.
00:15:41It's like a fairy tale kind of.
00:15:47But with that your appearance matters.
00:15:53When I was around 15,
00:15:55I started comparing myself to other girls.
00:15:59Envying other girls
00:16:00because I was always a very athletic girl
00:16:02and at the time you had to be a ballerina on skates.
00:16:06You had to be very elongated
00:16:09and have very nice lines.
00:16:12In my mindset, the muscle was breaking the lines.
00:16:18So I had a period of my life
00:16:20where I was going through phases of anaeroxia and bulimia.
00:16:27I think the one word that I can remember feeling
00:16:31at that moment is really feeling alone.
00:16:36I could not say that to anyone
00:16:38because I knew it was not something healthy.
00:16:41But then at the same time,
00:16:43it's like I felt like there was no other option.
00:16:47I remember being young
00:16:48and just being like,
00:16:49well, in order for you to be better than the next girl,
00:16:53you need to figure out how to stand out.
00:16:56Like we are seen as the perfect doll.
00:17:01We can't just be athletic.
00:17:04We also have to be creative.
00:17:06We also have to be beautiful.
00:17:08When you step out onto the ice,
00:17:09you're not just being judged for what you do on the ice,
00:17:13but how you do it,
00:17:14how you look while you're doing it.
00:17:16We don't like her because her costumes were ugly.
00:17:18About hair.
00:17:19About makeup.
00:17:19Did she wear too much makeup?
00:17:21Too little makeup.
00:17:22About weight.
00:17:22Your facial expressions.
00:17:24How you're emoting on the ice.
00:17:25You're too young.
00:17:26You're too immature.
00:17:27Too muscular or not muscular enough.
00:17:29Do I like that color?
00:17:30Is that dress pretty?
00:17:32About everything.
00:17:35And then you're trying to please
00:17:37nine judges on today's panel,
00:17:39but then another nine on tomorrow's panel.
00:17:45What helped me the most was to open up
00:17:47with the people closest to me.
00:17:53And I think there was a lot of healing done
00:17:56through years, you know, through years.
00:18:00And just thinking that if I had to do this
00:18:02to somebody else, I wouldn't.
00:18:04So then I thought, why do they do this to me?
00:18:08Hello?
00:18:11And I just thought about, like,
00:18:13if that was my little girl,
00:18:16like, how would I react?
00:18:19Hello, everyone.
00:18:21Is it okay?
00:18:23Yes?
00:18:25It's not something that you fix in one day.
00:18:28It's not something that you can just snap your finger
00:18:32and it goes away.
00:18:33I bring my fingers together.
00:18:35I bring my fingers together.
00:18:37I bring my fingers together.
00:18:37The hardest thing is to find what's unique for you
00:18:42and let go of that self-criticism
00:18:45and use the tools and the community
00:18:48and the team that you have around you to help you.
00:18:51The movements.
00:18:52But the movements, it comes from you.
00:18:56It comes from your heart.
00:18:57If there's something I always want to share,
00:19:00it's that I want them to remember that they are unique.
00:19:04Vos entraîneurs vont vous donner une base de mouvement.
00:19:07Mais c'est ce que...
00:19:08Comment toi tu vas l'interpréter?
00:19:10Comment toi tu vas interpréter le mouvement?
00:19:12Comment toi tu vas interpréter le mouvement?
00:19:15Comment toi tu vas interpréter le mouvement?
00:19:25I really hope that by being able to skate like both me and Guillaume do,
00:19:32we're going to be able to portray that with athletic bodies,
00:19:38you're able to win.
00:19:47Welcome to Helsinki.
00:19:50This is one of the deepest Grand Prix dance fields I have ever seen.
00:19:55Of course, this is the final Grand Prix qualifier in this year's series.
00:20:00Biggest, biggest showdown.
00:20:02Gillis and Poirier versus Fania, Beaudry and Cizeron.
00:20:05Who's coming out on top?
00:20:07Guillaume and Laurence, Piper and Paul,
00:20:09it's an insane event.
00:20:11It's do or die at these Grand Prix events.
00:20:14If you don't make the podium, you're not going to the Grand Prix Final.
00:20:18I want to say it's like the Hunger Games.
00:20:21Gillis and Poirier have had now three weeks to tinker.
00:20:25I think the question is how much will that help them increase their scores?
00:20:42We've just arrived in Finland. We're doing our second Grand Prix of the season.
00:20:47So in order to qualify for the Grand Prix Final, we want to win the competition.
00:20:58Every competition is kind of a check mark into the confidence aspect.
00:21:02Right now, I would say I feel pretty chill.
00:21:06Before Angers, it felt okay, but it was like kind of a safety mode.
00:21:12Yeah.
00:21:12And now we're more like in a more like attack mode.
00:21:15Yeah.
00:21:28It's a very exciting life at competitions.
00:21:30You just kind of spend a lot of time in your room taking care of your body.
00:21:35We did a lot of changes to the program since Skate Canada.
00:21:38And so it felt a little bit chaotic, especially the first week coming back.
00:21:43And my brain felt like I had to do a lot of gymnastics to figure out,
00:21:47to get comfortable with everything again.
00:21:49But I'm feeling really positive about those changes.
00:21:52You're so used to doing it a certain way.
00:21:54You've built that muscle memory.
00:21:56And when you make those changes, even if they are positive changes,
00:22:01it takes time to get used to it.
00:22:05We've probably changed about 25% of this program in the two weeks that we had.
00:22:16But I think, I mean, it was definitely for the better.
00:22:18I think Paul and I feel way more comfortable with what we've changed this program to.
00:22:28I'm more nervous when I'm doing nothing.
00:22:32I think just like the waiting and sitting around is the worst part.
00:22:38I get the most nervous on a bus ride.
00:22:59Piper and Paul's first test to see how do they stack up in that race to the gold medal in
00:23:06Milan,
00:23:07is how will they fare at this Grand Prix in Finland against Guillaume and Laurence.
00:23:13Welcome to Helsinki in Finland for this Finlandian trophy rhythm dance.
00:23:18We have a gold medal favorite who has no world placement from the year before,
00:23:23going head to head with somebody who's seated.
00:23:26This is, like, not a normal circumstance.
00:23:32Helsinki, are you ready?
00:23:36Inshalzakwa.
00:23:37Time to shine.
00:23:43Work together.
00:23:44Look after each other.
00:23:45That's the way it always works the best, right?
00:23:47We know this.
00:23:49And the pressure has never been so intense.
00:23:52The energetic expectations of these teams heading towards the big one, the Olympic Games.
00:24:09In the ice dance competition, on a technical panel, they will assign a level to the elements the skaters skate.
00:24:15That can be anything from a base level to the maximum level four.
00:24:22The quality of blade control, so, so impressive.
00:24:26And that is clear criteria for the judges.
00:24:29We have come to expect that skaters of the caliber of Laurence Guillaume, Piper and Paul,
00:24:35they'll be pushing level three and level four.
00:24:37Their musicality and energy really evident throughout that rhythm dance performance.
00:24:44I hope for a season best. That's the first thing.
00:24:47But to be in first position, they would have to be around 84, 85, 86.
00:24:53Exactly.
00:24:54Any more than that would be a bonus.
00:24:55Any less than that, I'll be a little disappointed.
00:25:00Slight break there for Piper.
00:25:02Lots of ice coverage through the sequential twizzles.
00:25:08Such quality and the body control of these two athletes is really, really crisp.
00:25:18It's been a good skate.
00:25:22Great job, guys.
00:25:23Well done.
00:25:24Well done.
00:25:25Good job, guys.
00:25:27Good job.
00:25:28Good job.
00:25:29Good job.
00:25:30Laurence and Guillaume, they have three elements under review at present.
00:25:37The nice dance, the technical specialist, the technical controller, they can bury somebody.
00:25:44Because it is so subjective.
00:25:47And now it's a level one for their pattern dance type step and a level one for both of the
00:25:53skaters.
00:25:56The scores, please.
00:25:59Theoscook love and the athletes to work in their身.
00:26:02To do with a bun.
00:26:05But then the egalitarian system is to react to the futu up.
00:26:07That's what we may want.
00:26:12Level one is normally a level more assigned to skaters of far less experience.
00:26:19Our skating community is rocked by the concept that the Olympic champion can be deemed only worthy of a level
00:26:25one.
00:26:25And here, just a look at the back bracket.
00:26:29This is a fucking sabotage. I can't believe it.
00:26:34They just showed my fucking bracket to slow down.
00:26:38No team going above 80 thus far. Now, Piper Gillis and Bob Poirier under review by the panel.
00:26:46Good job. I'm very proud of you.
00:26:48No matter, you know.
00:26:50Yeah.
00:27:01Let's not over-enalyze.
00:27:03And that's some harsh calling by the technical panels.
00:27:08What happened?
00:27:09You got a base on it.
00:27:10But your arms were identical.
00:27:13I couldn't see the numbers.
00:27:16It was crazy.
00:27:18Piper got base twizzles. I don't think she's had a base twizzle in her entire life.
00:27:22In anything. Ever.
00:27:26I'm kind of surprised about, I think, all the levels throughout the competition.
00:27:31It's unfortunate that, like, the top athletes in the world are getting level ones.
00:27:36It looks like we're almost junior skaters.
00:27:38And it's not, like, no one should be getting bases level ones at this caliber of skating.
00:27:43Does that make you, in the future, want to continue to be involved in the sport?
00:27:49If it continues like that, it's a hard pass.
00:27:53We're very well trained to not get carried away with all the judging.
00:27:58But in this case, it was just so unfair that, like, we couldn't stay silent.
00:28:04Thank you for not leaving me by myself.
00:28:07No, I literally had prepped that in my head.
00:28:10And then you started and I was like, yes.
00:28:12I can rationally comprehend the levels that were assigned.
00:28:15I can understand why those levels were given out.
00:28:19The difficulty is that it's a different lens and framework that has been used for the calls here
00:28:26than it has been for so many events previously.
00:28:31The ISU said that they are now investigating the dance event at that competition
00:28:36and the way it was judged.
00:28:37My hope is just that we can see an effort being made
00:28:42to make sure that teams understand why they are getting these levels.
00:28:48Yesterday doesn't change anything.
00:28:50They'll just come out and skate their program.
00:28:52They know what to do.
00:28:54They have their plan in their head.
00:28:55They know how they need to approach it.
00:28:58And that's what they'll do.
00:29:03Next escape deck, Piper Gillis.
00:29:06Call Paul Pele bottle!
00:29:11Old Dade.
00:29:12The first one is the much better pitcher for my turn.
00:29:14Guillaume Sissero.
00:29:44Well, yesterday the ice dance competition was shrouded in discussion about levels and technical element score.
00:29:54And yes, of course, levels count. Yes, of course, rules are important.
00:29:59But what makes our sport so special is the way in which it can move humans and move as emotionally.
00:30:08For me as a fan of the sport and a fan of these people that have given so much for
00:30:14so many years.
00:30:18I'm most grateful for the way they emult and express and move us.
00:30:46Five weeks ago, they won Le Grand Prix de France with the highest score of the season.
00:30:51What will be significant is the relationship of their result to the world's silver medalists, Piper Gillis and Paul Poitier.
00:31:00Since we saw this free dance earlier in the season, they have changed elements to create more points.
00:31:06As they vie to try to take the title at the Finlandia trophy.
00:31:12With a free dance score of 122.55, it's a silver for the Canadians.
00:31:18And with 124.29, it's gold for the French.
00:31:25Both teams will be headed to the Grand Prix Final in just two short weeks.
00:31:30Where they will finally go head to head with the three-time and reigning world champions, Madison Chalk and Evan
00:31:36Bates.
00:31:39I think you have to be mindful of how we treat this experience and how we treat this result.
00:31:45It's very easy to get caught up in all of the numbers of everything and to doubt yourself and feel
00:31:49like you're doing everything wrong.
00:31:51And that's not something we can afford to do right now.
00:31:53We were able to bring the rhythm dance to another level and bring the free dance to another level.
00:32:00And we know how we felt on the ice, no matter what the scores were.
00:32:05And that's what we're going to bring back home.
00:32:07And that's what we're going to bring back home.
00:32:25Your mom wrapped this in my sleeve.
00:32:27This one's cute.
00:32:30Evan's mom is our Olympic historian.
00:32:34This is from Sochi.
00:32:38She's got it all organized.
00:32:39She labels our costumes for us.
00:32:42You can see my mom catalogs everything with great care.
00:32:50These are the opening ceremony glows.
00:32:53She like, keeps it in these nice plastic bins so it's preserved for when we hopefully one day pass it
00:32:59down to our family.
00:33:02We would definitely like to have kids.
00:33:04If it's in our future, we would be very happy.
00:33:07But that's been on hold and we understand that's just part of the business.
00:33:13My costume from PyeongChang has not come out of that box for seven years.
00:33:30Madison Chalk and Evan Bates have been among the best in the world for the last several years.
00:33:36Look at that lift.
00:33:38Perfectly done.
00:33:40This is make or break for them if they want to climb to the podium.
00:33:45Oh, no.
00:33:48And that is a disaster in Ice Dance.
00:33:54Just looked like she wasn't ahead of him enough on the circle.
00:33:58And with them both going down, that's a two-point deduction.
00:34:02Before the music was even over, I could see Maddie was already crying.
00:34:09Very upset.
00:34:10That's...
00:34:11I hate to say that for anybody.
00:34:13That's their dreams.
00:34:13I hate to say that for anybody.
00:34:21That's their dreams.
00:34:25Because it...
00:34:26It's just like...
00:34:29It was over before it started.
00:34:37This sweater's from Beijing.
00:34:39This team does lifts like no one else in the world.
00:34:42Such trust and beauty.
00:34:45We felt like we actually delivered a great skate.
00:34:50Chalk and Bates with a chance to make it on the podium for the first time.
00:34:54And finished in fourth place just off the podium.
00:34:58Margin for error is just so small to be in Ice Dance.
00:35:03After we had the kind of Olympic heartbreak, we packed all that stuff away and we, like, didn't want to,
00:35:09like, even wear the gear.
00:35:16Just the reminder, I think, was really, like, difficult.
00:35:27So, it was hard in that moment to commit to another four years after that Olympics.
00:35:35You didn't do coffee to go?
00:35:37Yeah.
00:35:37But in my heart, I think I knew we weren't done.
00:35:56A few years ago, I started kind of feeling ill, just nauseous and, like, period-like pains, specifically on the
00:36:04left side.
00:36:06And I always had bad periods, but I was like, I'm not having my period right now, but something's happening.
00:36:11And then, eventually, got in contact with my current doctor.
00:36:17My point's at 345, right?
00:36:19Uh, yeah.
00:36:21That's what I thought.
00:36:23And then, on my birthday, January 16th, 2023, the results came in.
00:36:29And, of course, I opened it and I was like, ah, cancer.
00:36:32Crap.
00:36:36I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, stage one.
00:36:41It was so, so scary.
00:36:45It's like, am I going to have to stop skating?
00:36:47Am I going to have to, like, go through chemo?
00:36:49There was so much unknown.
00:36:52I was lucky enough to just have surgery.
00:36:56Like, we didn't know how bad it was because it was a nine centimeter cyst, um, with the tumor bleeped
00:37:03attached to it.
00:37:04That I got really lucky to not have to do, like, any other treatment.
00:37:08Um, just follow-ups.
00:37:11Hello.
00:37:12Hi.
00:37:12How are you?
00:37:13Good. How are you?
00:37:14Long time no see.
00:37:15I know.
00:37:16Um, anything new since your last visit?
00:37:19Pretty much everything's been...
00:37:21Similar?
00:37:21Yeah.
00:37:22Okay, perfect.
00:37:23Yeah.
00:37:23And no aches or pains?
00:37:24Any changes in...
00:37:26No.
00:37:27No.
00:37:27Periods or anything like that?
00:37:28Everything's good?
00:37:29I think it's totally normal.
00:37:30Okay, perfect.
00:37:30Yeah.
00:37:30I'm doing well.
00:37:32Like, I'm currently cancer-free.
00:37:33It took about two and a half years for me to, like, feel like myself.
00:37:37What I've learned was, like, I just had to be a little bit more patient with myself.
00:37:41Like, I couldn't expect myself to be 100% Piper.
00:37:46Cause that 100% Piper isn't there anymore.
00:37:49So all good news from the ultrasound point of view.
00:37:52Okay.
00:37:53So that's awesome.
00:37:53Okay.
00:37:54Alright, so we'll see you in six months.
00:37:56Okay.
00:37:56Any problems?
00:37:57You know where to find me?
00:37:58Yep.
00:38:01Having to experience my mom's cancer battle and my cancer battle, I think I fought for her.
00:38:12You know, I fought to just live the life that she couldn't see.
00:38:16You know, and if she could see me and, like, what I'm up to, she'd be proud.
00:38:26It's just made me appreciate every moment in life.
00:38:30It's like, every day I get to wake up and go to the rink, it's a blessing.
00:38:42Even if it's hard.
00:38:48You're waiting too long.
00:38:51You're waiting too long.
00:38:53You're waiting too long.
00:38:53You know, I'm glad I get to go through the hard stuff.
00:38:55Cause it, the alternative is way worse.
00:38:59Ah.
00:39:01It felt good.
00:39:03Yeah.
00:39:25Last week, I've received the message with the confirmation that I had obtained my French citizenship.
00:39:43So I'm at the consulate of France in Montreal for the actual physical passport.
00:39:50Oh my God.
00:40:00This is a very special moment.
00:40:10It's very special also to me because I have family in France.
00:40:14So it's more than just for skating.
00:40:21I'm extremely grateful to have that opportunity.
00:40:25It's very exciting.
00:40:48I feel like it'd be fun to open a tea shop.
00:40:51Yeah.
00:40:53That would be fun.
00:40:54So candles and incense.
00:40:56Maybe more incense than candles.
00:40:59Hmm.
00:41:00I know what I want to do once I retire.
00:41:02I'll be a librarian at your shop.
00:41:04I like this life for us.
00:41:06I'm excited about it actually.
00:41:08It's my favorite yogurt from Japan.
00:41:11So there's something really special about the yogurt lids in Japan.
00:41:15If you drop yogurt on them, none of the yogurt stays on the lid.
00:41:22It just rolls right off.
00:41:26It's magical.
00:41:28This society is superior.
00:41:30They are living in the future.
00:41:33I'm so grateful to be here because there was a moment there where I thought I might not see you
00:41:38in Japan.
00:41:39Skate America was not fun.
00:41:41I was just having a flare up with my back.
00:41:43And so I just took time off after Lake Placid and I felt so much better.
00:41:47I think we both needed a little break.
00:41:49And when we got back on the ice, it was, we were just all systems go for Japan.
00:42:02Let's talk about the Grand Prix Final.
00:42:04It is the Grand Prix Final.
00:42:05It is the best of the best going head to head.
00:42:08This is like the final frontier.
00:42:10This is what we've kind of all been waiting for.
00:42:13For this Olympic season, it's the first confrontation of the six contenders for the Olympic podium.
00:42:21I expect for the top three to be some combination of Fournette Baudry-Cizzeron, Chalk and Bates, Gillis and Poirier.
00:42:33I gotta give my vote of confidence to Piper and Paul.
00:42:38I feel like you have the gold medal favorites of Chalk and Bates.
00:42:42I just really cannot see anybody beating Mulan and Guillaume.
00:42:46I think it can be very close.
00:42:49Honestly, I cannot tell who is going to win in this case equally.
00:43:07I'm so conscious of the cleanliness, the crispness and the match stylistically in this team.
00:43:23It's very hard to debate the quality of this team, no matter who your favorite team is.
00:43:29Laurence and Guillaume just move with such quality.
00:43:47Madison and Evan, they can do stuff that Laurence and Guillaume couldn't do in their very early stages of their
00:43:54partnership.
00:44:03Watch me do it like this.
00:44:08A smallizione to the next day.
00:44:09Oh
00:44:36Madison and Evan will take first place
00:44:38with Laurence and Guillaume close behind them in second.
00:44:42Piper and Paul are in third place, frustratingly further back,
00:44:45as they head into the Freedance to determine
00:44:47who will stand at the podium here at the Grand Prix Final.
00:44:502nd, 3rd, 3rd...
00:45:04Well, check to be fairly precise.
00:45:06Respect the stairs. I'm super smooth.
00:45:08Let it glide. Don't force anything.
00:45:11Okay.
00:45:33So in practice today, my skirt got caught under his foot in the slide.
00:45:39I felt like I had the skirt in my hand.
00:45:41And then when we released to go for the exit, I had a big chunk of it and I just
00:45:46let it go.
00:45:47It kind of slipped underneath my blade and then at that point, like, you can't skate on fabric.
00:45:55Maddie's the most classy, stylish, well-dressed woman.
00:46:00And it's like she's the victim of her own brilliance when it comes to costume making.
00:46:05And now that dress, it's making me nervous, so I don't know how she's coping.
00:46:12It's a feeling, like, with anything, I think, any skirt, like, the other girls also have long skirts.
00:46:18So it's just being aware and, like, finding that sense of awareness while you're out there skating.
00:46:34Final day of competition for the Grand Prix.
00:46:37After the first group of skaters, the British team temporarily hold the lead.
00:46:43That certainly places pressure on Piper and Paul, who will open the next group.
00:46:50It is particularly exhilarating and exciting, of course, because it is the Olympic season.
00:46:56We see the real battle for the podium start to shake out now.
00:47:00Very close at the top between Chalk and Bates and Fournier, Beaudry and Cizeron.
00:47:07Also close for that third place podium spot.
00:47:10Every single move will be important.
00:47:16It would be understandable that the couples would be cautious and want to play it safe and skate cleanly.
00:47:22But unfortunately, the battle is so intense that they can't have a cautious performance.
00:47:28It has to be an aggressive attacking performance.
00:47:33Getting to that mindset, okay?
00:47:36No distraction, just another day in the office.
00:47:40Okay.
00:47:40Okay?
00:47:41Take one step at a time.
00:47:43Yeah.
00:47:43You got this?
00:47:44Yeah, we got this.
00:47:46All right.
00:47:48I'll get it then.
00:47:52See you after.
00:47:53Yep.
00:47:53Piper Gillis and Paul Poirier of Canada, they need to score 125.93 points to guarantee a podium spot.
00:48:024番目, Piper Gillis, Paul Poirier組, Canada.
00:48:20Starry, starry night, paint your palette blue and gray, look out on a summer's day, with eyes that know the
00:48:35darkness in my soul.
00:48:37It's been really special to come here at this event, and it's just crazy to think about all the years
00:48:45we've skated together.
00:48:48All the things that we've been able to live through together.
00:49:00On this 15-year journey of ours, while he is my stable, loyal friend, partner, I wouldn't be where I
00:49:09am without him.
00:49:14I'm just so struck by how unique the lives that we've been able to live are.
00:49:20Those experiences, those stories, those relationships.
00:49:24Those are the things I'm going to cherish the most.
00:49:31You just take this leap of faith that you found the right partner, and I know I definitely did.
00:49:42The way in which each element is interwoven, and the way in which this is constructed, you don't want to
00:49:48interject with words.
00:49:50I love it.
00:49:52Beautiful.
00:49:53Oh my goodness.
00:49:55I'm all so good.
00:49:56No.
00:49:57Good job.
00:49:59Come on, it's breathing.
00:50:01They need 125.92 points to tie for third.
00:50:08.93 would guarantee them a top three spot.
00:50:10Going to be very close between them and Lila Fear and Lewis Gibson as they wait for their scores.
00:50:19125.86.
00:50:21The total competition score of 208.75.
00:50:26Most likely move them off the podium.
00:50:29Six one-hundredths, separate.
00:50:32Six one-hundredths.
00:50:33Very close.
00:50:35Goodness gracious, that is so close.
00:50:38All good.
00:50:39You've seen the best.
00:50:41That's a bit of a shocking result for me.
00:50:45Despite skating well, Piper and Paul find themselves out of the conversation for gold.
00:50:50There are a host of questions now for Piper, Paul, and their team as to how they can get back
00:50:56in favor with the judges.
00:50:58What can be done moving toward the Olympic Games?
00:51:05I don't want to go into the rest of the year having to, like, skate amazing like that and have
00:51:09no supporters.
00:51:15We've put so much energy into this, and, like, we've put in everything we can.
00:51:22We're going to go home and put in work.
00:51:27But it's one of those moments where we have to appear strong, and if we're pissed off, then we can
00:51:32have all of our feelings, okay?
00:51:34I understand how you feel.
00:51:36I'm just like...
00:51:38There's...
00:51:39There's just so much work.
00:51:41Yeah.
00:51:42It feels like it's for nothing this year.
00:51:45It's going to be for something.
00:51:47I know.
00:51:47It's going to be for something, okay?
00:51:49It's going to be for something.
00:51:49You can actually say something, maybe?
00:51:52Yeah.
00:51:55Yeah.
00:51:57Yeah.
00:52:10From the race to the podium, to the race to the top, Laurence Fournier-Baudry and Guillaume Cizeron.
00:52:18And this is a team that could challenge for an Olympic gold medal.
00:52:23So their performance here, super important to see how they stack up against Chalk and Bates, who are Olympic gold
00:52:28medal favorites.
00:52:30Madison Chalk and Evan Bates have accomplished so much.
00:52:33They are the three-time reigning world champions, and they feel like it is their time to grab that Olympic
00:52:40gold medal.
00:52:42And for sure, no one can make a mistake here.
00:52:49I've raised my glass, I'm a woman, and I'm seeing clearer, I'm done with waiting, for greatness, I can feel
00:53:06it in my blood.
00:53:13I can feel it in my blood.
00:53:14Qualifying for the Grand Prix Final was already a big milestone for us.
00:53:18I can feel it in my blood.
00:53:20It's so crazy, like, coming into this with Laurence and having this history together, like, being such close friends for
00:53:27so many years.
00:53:33This might be our final Grand Prix Final, so I know it's going to be special just in that regard.
00:53:42This year in particular has presented some new challenges for us.
00:53:48All the goals that we've set for ourselves are right in front of us.
00:53:52This team will draw blood, sweat, and tears to get themselves to be the Olympic champions in Milan.
00:53:59I'm so happy that I found the courage to ask Laurence to skate with me.
00:54:04It's important to pause, look back how far we've come, and how much we've grown together.
00:54:11This is the first time that they've really felt the heat of another team kind of nipping at their heels.
00:54:20All the years of hard work, we left no stone unturned.
00:54:24And we did it together.
00:54:26This has been the problem element earlier in practice.
00:54:32Well, they've done it.
00:54:36We don't know how long it's going to last.
00:54:39We don't know if it will keep going or if it's just for this one year.
00:54:44So we try to grasp every moment of it.
00:54:49Laurence and Giong showcasing something incomprehensibly spellbinding.
00:54:57Oh my goodness, absolute nightmare.
00:55:00And the final element incurs a fall.
00:55:04So that mistake will cost them.
00:55:08They had a chance to make a big statement against Chalk and Bates in this competition,
00:55:12and it was their opportunity to win over this team ahead of the Olympics.
00:55:18Wow.
00:55:20The plot absolutely thickens.
00:55:25But, despite all the pressure placed upon them by the French team,
00:55:29Madison and Evan stepped up and delivered.
00:55:33Ice dance this season has been dramatic.
00:55:55The margin was 1.18 points between this team and the team of Chalk and Bates.
00:56:02The mistakes certainly seem like they'll loom costly here as the judges put the finishing touches on the score.
00:56:09Don't move on.
00:56:10Don't move on.
00:56:10Don't move on, because it's magnificent.
00:56:11Like that.
00:56:12It's the chemin.
00:56:12Well, that somewhat freakfall by Laurence at the end of the program.
00:56:18And we'll see that, of course, in the replays.
00:56:22Oh, it's a dress.
00:56:23Was it the dress?
00:56:24It was the dress.
00:56:25No way.
00:56:26Yes.
00:56:28What do you want?
00:56:29The errors are human.
00:56:30The errors are human.
00:56:32The errors are human.
00:56:33The errors are human.
00:56:56The errors that they've received from the judges.
00:56:59The next team have had dress issues themselves.
00:57:02They've been very much the undisputed favorites for that Olympic gold medal.
00:57:07And I think that they've handled this pressure so beautifully.
00:57:11Here, the final team in the Grand Prix Final.
00:57:15In a season of surprising results and surprising scores, you can still see that Madison and Evan
00:57:21are wondering what is going to be rewarded and awarded to them.
00:57:32131.6, a season's best first overall with a total competition score of 220.42.
00:57:40You are looking at the champions.
00:57:42These are the winners of the Grand Prix Final.
00:57:451-8-1-0!
00:57:48It has to have been a challenging season, but despite all the pressure placed upon them
00:57:55by the French team, they have maintained their status as the frontrunners.
00:58:01I'm happy that we still got second.
00:58:05But we're at this point in our career where unfortunately we're not content with a second place.
00:58:13It kind of brings up that fire inside towards the Olympics.
00:58:20I'm proud of you.
00:58:21I'm proud of you.
00:58:24It's hard to be in this position and like have to go home and try to figure out how to
00:58:28be better.
00:58:30We have eight weeks until the Olympics.
00:58:33It's very important to not let the setbacks turn into doubt.
00:58:38The path to success will require us to have utmost faith in the decisions that we've made for ourselves.
00:59:01Oh, thank you.
00:59:04Chestnuts?
00:59:05Chestnuts.
00:59:05Beautiful.
00:59:06Wow.
00:59:12I'm sorry, bud.
00:59:15Mochi is superb.
00:59:20Splendid.
00:59:21Succulent.
00:59:23You don't like mochi, do you?
00:59:25Yeah, I know.
00:59:25Sorry.
00:59:27Good sport.
00:59:29Being here is a win.
00:59:31Honestly, it could have been easy to just not show up.
00:59:39Just kind of like respectfully bow out.
00:59:42But we didn't.
00:59:47We have proven to ourselves what we already know to be true is that like, we'll do whatever it takes
00:59:52to take the ice.
01:00:00Olympic gold was always the goal.
01:00:03After this week, it has solidified we have the ability to accomplish what we set out to do.
01:00:14What if it all works out?
01:00:17What if all our dreams come true?
01:00:21What if we get exactly what we've been working for?
01:00:24A 30-year-old.
01:00:25Real.
01:00:30Real.
01:00:33Real.
01:00:40Real.
01:00:43Real.
01:00:45Real.
01:01:14I'll see you next time.
01:01:20I'll see you next time.
01:01:50I'll see you next time.
01:02:16E allora vedrai se poi ti conviene.
01:02:21Essere per bene non me la bevo, non ti conviene.
01:02:25Oggi se lo vedrai, mi impegnerò a volermi più bene.
01:02:29Scioglierò capelli e catene.
01:02:31Perché sono libera di portare il mio tempo, dire quello che sento.
01:02:38Sono più libera se a volte un po' spando, se lascio il comando.
01:02:42Il cuore si libera non ha più l'affanno, era solo un inganno.
01:02:46Perché sono libera.
01:03:01Sono libera.
01:03:05Perché sono libera.
01:03:34Il cuore si è libera.
01:03:35Il cuore si è liberato.
01:03:53Ma non mi lo so, èoresano.
01:03:54Però è ancora libera.
01:03:56Si era libero Ciao.
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