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Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron broke their own world record in the rhythm dance at the Beijing Olympics on Saturday night, scoring 90.83 points to give the four-time world champs from France a cushion over Russian rivals Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov heading into the free dance.
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Papadakis and Cizeron finished second four years ago in Pyeongchang, where many believe they deserved the gold medal over Canada's now-retired Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. And they certainly appear intent on making it to the top step of the podium this time.
Sinitsina and Katsalapov, the reigning world champions, scored 88.84 points to stay within striking distance of gold.
Then came the U.S. contingent: Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, who just missed the medals four years ago, scored 87.13 points to their "Rhythm Nation" program while Madison Chock and Evan Bates scored 84.14 points as they try to finally crack the podium in their third Olympics together.
The free dance to decide the medals is scheduled for Monday.
Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron, of France, perform their routine in the ice dance competition during figure skating at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Saturday, Feb. 12, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
The two American teams are already assured of at least one medal from Beijing after helping take silver in the team event last week. That could eventually be upgraded to gold depending on the outcome of a Russian doping inquiry.
Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin, who were late arriving to Beijing and did not take part in the team event, were the first to post a real target for everyone else Saturday night. The Russians scored 84.09, just off their season best set at the European championships, to their pop mashup of The Backstreet Boys, Shawn Mendes and Justin Bieber.
The lead lasted through Britain's Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson and until Papadakis and Cizeron took the ice.
The four-time world champions showed why they have been nearly unbeatable during the past four years, losing only once, at the 2020 European championships. With sharp edges and crisp turns, Papadakis and Cizeron seemed to float across the ice of the historic Capital Indoor Stadium, finally breaking through what had been some stingy scoring.
The two graceful technicians received Level 3 marks for their midline step and pattern dance and Level 4s — the highest mark possible — for everything else, giving them a record score and sending them into first place.
That one team that beat Papadakis and Cizeron a couple years back? Sinitsina and Katsalapov.
With an edgy program highlighted by "Brickhouse" by the 1970s and ‘80s American funk and soul band The Commodores, the reigning world champions rocked their way through a strong program. They also earned Level 3s for their midline step and pattern dance and received a score of 88.85 to keep in contention.
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Chock and Bates, who is appearing in his fourth Olympics after teaming up with Emily Samuelson in 2010, had some shaky moments during their rhythm dance. Chock fought to hang onto a significant bobble during the midnight blues sequence, and their Level 2 marks for their midline step left them playing catchup for a medal.
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, the world bronze medalists from Canada, also struggled through their midline step sequence to a medley of music by Elton John. That left them behind Stepanova and Bukin in sixth place.
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