Madison Chock and Evan Bates will try an ice dance routine that is pretty foreign to most in the sport. And they’ll do it at the Oympics.
You are gonna see something surprising at the Winter Olympics. Something unique and risky. But incredibly entertaining: An alien and astronaut on ice skates. Evan Bates, who is from Ann Arbor and went to the University of Michigan, is the astronaut. Madison Chock, his ice dancing partner, plays an alien. “Where did that come from?” I asked them. “Did it come from a movie or a TV show or just your imagination?” “Our coach was kind of the one who really wanted us to do an outer-space program,” Bates said. “Like an intergalactic opera. And we’re like, hmm?” They were intrigued because it fits their personalities. Chock and Bates, three-time national champions, are known for their creativity, whether it’s playing aliens or snakes. MORE SEIDEL: Olympic skaters Madison Chock and Evan Bates are bursting with talent and personality RELATED: Meet the 2022 Winter Olympics athletes with Michigan ties “So we gave it some thought,” Chock said. “We’re like, that’s a really cool, interesting out-of-the-box idea, which we love. So we watched some space movies. We listened to a lot of music, just to kind of understand the concept and the idea more.” They are expected to perform the routine in the free-dance portion of the Olympic Team Event in Beijing (scheduled to air Sunday night on NBC). The U.S. has taken bronze in the team event the last two Olympic Games. But after the first day of competition, Team USA was in first place with 28 points, while the Russian Olympic Committee was in second with 26. Zachary Donohue and Madison Hubbell, who was born in Lansing, skated the rhythm portion of the team event. But Chock and Bates are expected to take the free dance for Team USA.
