Ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates are competing for a record-breaking seventh U.S. championship title.
The pair achieved a season-best score in their rhythm dance at the 2026 U.S. figure skating championships.
Chock and Bates are expected to compete in their fourth Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina.
The duo has hinted that this current competitive season, culminating in the Olympics, could be their last.
ST. LOUIS — Pretty soon, U.S. Figure Skating may have to name its national championship ice dance event the “Madison Chock and Evan Bates Invitational.”
It’s mostly a joke, but it just captures the dominance the pair has achieved on home ice.
Chock and Bates have been on the podium every year since 2013. They have won four straight U.S. ice dance championships, and their six titles overall is tied for the most alongside the great Meryl Davis and Charlie White.
Come Saturday, they could become the sole record holder. Their rhythm dance performance on Thursday at the 2026 U.S. figure skating championships was a sesaon-best.
“It really felt like we were very present and grounded and able to enjoy the energy of the arena and the energy between the two of us,” Chock said. “We felt like this was a great skate and a good stepping stone towards Milan.”
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It’s just the latest feat in what’s been a dominant season for the married couple. Since the start of 2025, they have won all but one of the seven competitions they entered, including winning the Grand Prix final in December for the third straight year.
But their penchant for consistent approvement from showing to showing has powered this stretch of dominance. Their short program is a Lenny Kravitz medley that is a hard-hitting rock performance that captures the essence of the genre. At Skate America in November, they earned an 84.77, a season-best. Then, at the Grand Prix final in Japan, they bested themselves with an 88.74.
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Coming into the national championships, Chock said they continued to tweak the performance after Japan. The result? A new season-best score of 91.70 at nationals.
“We made a lot of enhancements to our program and put a lot of focus on our technical turns and technical elements, and when we stepped out on the ice today, it was just about delivering what we had practiced,” Chock said. “We’ve been honing in on all the details and refining all our movements. So when we step on the ice at competition, there’s not a lot to think about, and you can just be very present when you step on the ice and enjoy the moment.”
Chock and Bates are nearly six points ahead of Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik in second place, a comfortable margin to be heading into the free dance on Saturday. And the quality of Chock and Bates’ free dance program could ultimately yield a double-digit victory.
The couple’s return to the Winter Olympics is all but official, making Milano Cortina their fourth Games. The only thing that’s eludes them in their decorated careers is that ice dance Olympic medal after finishing just short of the podium in 2022.
“It’s an Olympic year,” Bates said. “It needs no extra sort of hype or motivation. It’s what we’ve all dreamt of.”
As Chock and Bates inch closer toward achieving a U.S. championship record, it could be the perfect bow on their time as the faces of American ice dance. They have hinted – but not confirmed – this could be their final competitive season, with the Winter Olympics possibly being the final event for them.
It’s given this year’s championship some extra meaning. Bates said “we’ve tried to not get too emotional,” but they are appreciating it.
“We also want to just enjoy that moment, because it’s fleeting and it could very well be the last,” Bates said.
