Hubbell and Donohue Third, Chock and Bates Fourth After Rhythm Dance

Three-time U.S. champions Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue are in a familiar position to four years ago. In PyeongChang and now here in 2022, they are sitting third after the rhythm dance with another U.S. team hot on their heels in fourth.

Hubbell and Donohue, skating to a Janet Jackson medley, earned a personal best 87.13 points in the rhythm dance while training mates Madison Chock and Evan Bates sit fourth with 84.14 points.

In what was their last rhythm dance on Olympic ice in their careers, Hubbell and Donohue executed a Level 3 midline step sequence, a Level 4 stationary lift, a Level 3 midnight blues step sequence, a Level 3 pattern dance and Hubbell was called Level 3 for her twizzles while Donohue received a Level 4 for the element. Donohue let out a roar at the end of the performance at center ice, celebrating the effort.

"Finishing the end of the performance, we were very happy with what we were able to put out," Hubbell said. "This is just the first step toward this competition, but we're extremely happy to have shown this program so strong."

Reigning U.S. national champions Chock and Bates are not far behind. In Beijing, Bates became the first U.S. figure skater to compete at four Olympic Games: 2010 with former partner Emily Samuelson and three appearances with Chock. Chock and Bates placed eighth in 2014 and ninth in 2018.

In the rhythm dance, the couple's Billie Eilish medley earned a Level 3 midnight blues step sequence, a Level 3 pattern dance, a Level 4 curved lift, Level 4 twizzles and a Level 2 midline step sequence. During the midnight blues step sequence, Chock had a slight bobble when she nearly lost her edge, which cost the team a level.

"In general, it was a bit of a fight," Chock said. "But there were also a lot of fun moments where we were just dancing to the music. So overall, we had to work for it today but we're very proud of what we put out."

In a television interview with Andrea Joyce, Chock added, "It's not over yet."

Both Chock and Bates and Hubbell and Donohue already each earned a silver medal so far in these Games as part of Team USA's efforts in the team event.

In their Olympic debut, the third U.S. ice dance duo to compete in Beijing, Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker, scored 74.58 points to hold onto 11th place in the rhythm dance.

Their Donna Summers medley featured a Level 4 curved lift, a Level 2 midnight blues step sequence, a Level 2 pattern dance and a Level 2 midline step sequence. The twizzles were called a Level 3 for Hawayek and a Level 4 for Baker.  

At center ice when the duo finished, Hawayek punctuated their ending pose with her arms raised over her head and cheering. After saluting the audience, which included three-time snowboarding Olympic champion Shaun White, Hawayek exited the ice and exclaimed to her coaches, "That was so much fun!"

Prior to departing for the Olympic Winter Games, Hawayek mentioned that part of what the team wanted out of their Olympic experience was the chance to "move people and have them feel something," both in the arena in Beijing but also those watching at home.

She also recalled fighting off her two older brothers as a child for control of the remote because they wanted to watch hockey; during the Olympics, she won that battle and got to watch U.S. Olympic ice dancers win medal after medal.

"I felt like both of us were so present in every second of the performance," Hawayek said. "I just loved the way we performed and the feeling that we had throughout the entire program."

Baker told Fan Zone in January that the team was striving for a top-eight or top-10 finish, which could still be in play after Sunday night's (U.S. time) free dance.

In both 2014 and 2018, all three U.S. ice dance teams finished inside the top 10. A U.S. ice dance Olympic medal streak dates back to 2006, which appears likely to continue.

"We're looking forward to the opportunity to continue the legacy," Hubbell said in January.

Four-time World champions and 2018 Olympic silver medalists Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France lead the field with 90.83 points and reigning World champions Viktoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov, competing at these Games as part of the Russian Olympic Committee, are second with 88.85 points.

The free dance begins Sunday night at 8:15 p.m. on USA Network before moving to NBC. Fans can follow Team USA on the competition central page on the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.