U.S. Ice Dancing Team Breaks Down After 'Heartbreaking' Mistake

The dream of an Olympic medal came to a crashing end Tuesday for U.S. ice dancing team Madison Chock and Evan Bates.

The duo, who stood in seventh place heading into the medal competition, experienced what NBC commentators described as a “heartbreaking” and “obvious” mistake during their program, both falling in the middle of a turn element.

“That’s such an obvious mistake,” NBC’s Terry Gannon said. “It’s just kind of a given that you don’t fall if you’re going to challenge one of the top spots.” He later added, “I don’t know how you carry on with the rest of the program because you know your chance for a medal is gone.”

Team USA's Madison Chock and Evan Bates fall in the ice dance free dance event during the Winter Games on Tuesday. (Photo: MLADEN ANTONOV via Getty Images)
Team USA's Madison Chock and Evan Bates fall in the ice dance free dance event during the Winter Games on Tuesday. (Photo: MLADEN ANTONOV via Getty Images)

Midway through the free dance, Chock and Bates moved into a turn element when their skates clicked together at the very beginning of the spin, causing the athletes to tumble to the ice. As a result, the error cost them significant points on their technical score and ended their chance of placing on the podium.

Chock and Bates were one of three U.S. ice dancing teams competing for a medal on Tuesday, and they were separated by only a few points from U.S. fan-favorites Maia and Alex Shibutani following Monday’s competition. Right before Chock and Bates took the ice Monday, Chock said, her old foot injury flared up, which she said was “kind of traumatic.” Still, they skated a stellar program, which brought high expectations for Tuesday.

Though it was unlikely they’d contend for gold, Chock and Bates were within reach of bronze before the fall.

The duo made a quick recovery and finished their graceful program to John Lennon’s “Imagine” without error. The crowd cheered them on as they moved on from the mistake.

Chock later tweeted her gratitude to fans for their support, noting they received tons of kind messages after their performance.

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Toller Cranston, 1976

The Canadian skater performs at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.
The Canadian skater performs at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.

Robin Cousins, 1980

The British skater performs part of his gold medal routine during the free program of the men's figure skating event on Feb. 21, 1980, during the Winter Games in Lake Placid, New York.
The British skater performs part of his gold medal routine during the free program of the men's figure skating event on Feb. 21, 1980, during the Winter Games in Lake Placid, New York.

Scott Hamilton, 1984

The American fan favorite skates his long program during the men's singles competition at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, on Feb. 16.
The American fan favorite skates his long program during the men's singles competition at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, on Feb. 16.

Brian Boitano, 1988

The Californian competes in the final of the men's singles figure skating event of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Canada.
The Californian competes in the final of the men's singles figure skating event of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Canada.

Brian Orser, 1988

The Canadian skates in the final of the men's singles event of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Canada, on Feb. 20.
The Canadian skates in the final of the men's singles event of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Canada, on Feb. 20.

Kurt Browning, 1992

The Canadian performs at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.
The Canadian performs at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.

Viktor Petrenko, 1992

The Ukrainian star performs his original program at the Winter Olympics on Feb. 13, 1992, in Albertville, France.
The Ukrainian star performs his original program at the Winter Olympics on Feb. 13, 1992, in Albertville, France.

Elvis Stojko, 1994

The Canadian in the men's technical program at the Lillehammer Winter Olympics in Norway.
The Canadian in the men's technical program at the Lillehammer Winter Olympics in Norway.

Oleg Tataurov, 1994

The Russian competes in the free skate portion of the men's figure skating singles competition at the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway.
The Russian competes in the free skate portion of the men's figure skating singles competition at the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway.

Alexei Urmanov, 1994

The Russian champion in the free skate portion of the men's figure skating singles competition at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.
The Russian champion in the free skate portion of the men's figure skating singles competition at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.

Margus Hernits, 1998

The Estonian skater at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
The Estonian skater at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

Kyu-Hyun Lee, 1998

The South Korean performs at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
The South Korean performs at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

Philippe Candeloro, 1998

The French skater performs at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
The French skater performs at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

Ilia Kulik, 1998

The Russian competing at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
The Russian competing at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

Todd Eldredge, 2002

The American performs in the men's short program in Salt Lake City.
The American performs in the men's short program in Salt Lake City.

Ivan Dinev, 2002

The Bulgarian skater in his free program at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The Bulgarian skater in his free program at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Takeshi Honda, 2002

The Japanese figure skater performs his men's short program at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The Japanese figure skater performs his men's short program at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Dmitri Dmitrenko, 2002

Performing his men's short program for Ukraine at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Performing his men's short program for Ukraine at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Viktor Pfeifer, 2006

The Austrian competes in the men's free skate program final in Turin, Italy.
The Austrian competes in the men's free skate program final in Turin, Italy.

Evan Lysacek, 2006

The American competes in the men's short program at the Turin Games in 2016 in Italy.
The American competes in the men's short program at the Turin Games in 2016 in Italy.

Ilia Klimkin, 2006

Competing in the men's short program for Russia at the Palavela in Turin, Italy.
Competing in the men's short program for Russia at the Palavela in Turin, Italy.

Johnny Weir, 2006

The U.S. skater competes in the men's short program at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games.
The U.S. skater competes in the men's short program at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

Stefan Lindemann, 2006

The German competes in Turin, Italy.
The German competes in Turin, Italy.

Kevin Van Der Perren, 2006

The Belgian competes in the men's short program at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.
The Belgian competes in the men's short program at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.

Viktor Pfeifer, 2006

Competing in the men's short program for Austria at the Games in Turin, Italy.
Competing in the men's short program for Austria at the Games in Turin, Italy.

Gheorghe Chiper, 2006

Competing for Romania in the men's short program in Turin, Italy.
Competing for Romania in the men's short program in Turin, Italy.

Shawn Sawyer, 2006

The Canadian competes in the men's short program figure skating at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games.
The Canadian competes in the men's short program figure skating at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

Stephane Lambiel, 2006

The Swiss skater in Turin, Italy.
The Swiss skater in Turin, Italy.

Anton Kovalevski, 2006

The Ukrainian performs Feb. 16, 2006, in Turin, Italy.
The Ukrainian performs Feb. 16, 2006, in Turin, Italy.

Daisuke Takahashi, 2006

Japan's star performs in the men's free skating program in Turin, Italy.
Japan's star performs in the men's free skating program in Turin, Italy.

Emanuel Sandhu, 2006

The Canadian in the men's free skating program in Turin, Italy.
The Canadian in the men's free skating program in Turin, Italy.

Brian Joubert, 2006

The French skater performs in the free skating program in Turin, Italy.
The French skater performs in the free skating program in Turin, Italy.

Evgeni Plushenko, 2010

The gold medalist from Russia competes in Vancouver, Canada.
The gold medalist from Russia competes in Vancouver, Canada.

Johnny Weir, 2010

The American in the free skating at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in Canada.
The American in the free skating at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in Canada.

Jason Brown, 2014

The U.S. skater at the Sochi Winter Olympics on Feb. 9, 2014.
The U.S. skater at the Sochi Winter Olympics on Feb. 9, 2014.

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