Fear and Gibson: British pair could still win Olympic medal in 2026 – if flawless
As we grilled on Monday’s events, I asked former Olympic figure skating champion Robin Cousins what Layla Fair and Louise Gibson would need to do to win an ice dancing medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
After a short pause, he gave a brief answer: “They must be flawless.”
Fear and Gibson – aiming to become the first Britons since Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean in 1994 to win an Olympic medal in figure skating. In fourth place after rhythmic dancing.
In the first half of the ice dancing competition in Milano Cortina, they performed their popular Spice Girls medley – but were unable to match the best result of the season they received in the team event three days earlier.
Fair, 26, lost her balance a little at one point, but she and her partner recovered well to maintain their footing in the hunt for the podium.
Their total of 84.57 points put them 0.71 points behind third-placed Canadian duo Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, before they take part in the free dance on Wednesday, where the medals will be decided.
Gold and silver may be out of reach. Frenchmen Laurence Fournier Baudry and Guillaume Cizeron led with a score of 90.18. World champions and pre-event favorites Madison Schock and Evan Bates, who have already won gold in the team event for the United States, are second with 89.72.
But bronze remains within reach of Fair and Gibson.
The Disco Brits are fans of British figure skating – as was evident at last month’s European Championships in Sheffield.
You can have your photo taken in the arena lobby with a fun beach style cutout design – your face on the bodies of Fear and Gibson.
Their Spice Girls-themed routine received applause from the group’s official Instagram account.
There have even been vague stories about how the last time the European Figure Skating Championships were held in Sheffield in 2012, Fear was a flower girl.
But amidst all the glitz and hype, the hard truth is that while they are certainly good enough to medal, this is such a competitive field that any mistake in it is costly.
Fear and Gibson won the bronze medal in SheffieldBut perhaps it could have been more than that. In just the second part of nine of their free routine, Gibson slipped up a bit in the synchronized twists, and the gold was gone.
