Madison Chock and Evan Bates have responded to questions over judging in the recent Olympic ice dance pairs final. Chock called for judges to be vetted for the sake of transparency. The couple was looking to defend their gold medal, but came in second to the French duo of Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron. A French judge graded Beaudry and Cizeron higher than Chock and Bates, which ultimately helped thrust the French team to gold over the Americans. The judging has been the topic of controversy on social media, with some arguing that Chock and Bates should have graded higher. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COMChock told CBS News, “It would “definitely be helpful if it’s more understandable for the viewers, to just see more transparent judging and understand … what’s really going on.””I think it’s also important for the skaters, that the judges be vetted and reviewed to make sure that they are also putting out their best performance,” she continued, “because there’s a lot on the line for the skaters when they’re out there giving it their all, and we deserve to have the judges also giving us their all and for it to be a fair and even playing field.”Chock’s answer came shortly after she sang a different tone when asked by NBC News about judging.”We’ve certainly gone through a roller coaster of emotions, especially in the last 24 hours,” Chock told NBC News. “And I think what we will take away is how we felt right after our skates and how proud we were of what we accomplished and how we handled ourselves throughout the whole week. Putting out four great performances at the Olympic Games is no small feat, and we’ve got a lot to be proud of.”Bates told USA Today, “”We felt like we delivered our absolute best performance that we could have. It was our Olympic moment. It felt like a winning skate to us, and that’s what we’re going to hold on to.”Bates also praised the fans who are speaking out in support of the American couple, amid the controversy.”It means a lot that people are voicing their opinions on our behalf,” Bates said. “The way that we skated and the way that we’ve approached chasing these goals, hopefully has resonated with people at home even in our response. I think hopefully that, too, can reflect the Olympic spirit.”Chock and Bates were trailing the French couple by 0.46 of a point entering the free dance Wednesday night, and they were searching for their first ice dance Olympic medal with hopes that it would obviously be gold.Their matador routine, dancing to a rendition of The Rolling Stones’ “Paint It, Black” drew cheers from the crowd, and they finished with tears in their eyes.They finished with 224.39 after notching a 134.67 score in their free dance.Chock and Bates are two-time team gold winners after Sunday’s Team USA victory, but they had to watch one more routine to see if they could capture gold when Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron took the ice.But the judges decided the French duo did en
US Olympic figure skater calls for judges to be vetted after controversial decision gave her silver
