How Madison Chock & Evan Bates Fell In Love On The Ice

Olympic figure skaters Madison Chock and Evan Bates are exceptional athletes in their own right, known for their rock-solid precision, consistency, and artistry. But while most ice dance teams are strictly platonic — engineering the appearance of romance through intense eye contact and close embraces — Chock and Bates are partners both on and off the ice. They stand out for something rarer: natural chemistry that reads as ease rather than performance.

They first met as teenagers, shortly after Chock, now 33, moved from California to Michigan to pursue ice dance. Following a brief relationship in 2008, they stayed friends, and in 2011, they teamed up as skating partners.

After leaning on each other through a string of injuries and rocky competitions for five years, something shifted: In 2017, they fell in love, and in 2024, they got married. Together, they’ve competed at three Olympic Games, helped secure a team gold medal in 2022, and won their third consecutive World Championship title last year. They’re widely considered favorites to win gold at the 2026 Olympics.

On Feb. 6, the first day of the team event, their rhythm dance earned a nearly flawless score of 90.16 points, putting Team USA in the lead. At one point, when Chock leaped into Bates’ arms, inches from a kiss, their passion felt real.

A summer fling as teenagers led to friendship and marriage. Now, another gold medal's in reach.“I can hardly remember a time when we weren’t in each other’s lives in some way,” says Bates, 36, as their toy poodle, Henry, scampers onto the couch. Ahead of the Milano-Cortina Winter Games, the couple is Zooming with Bustle from their home in Montreal. Outside, a blizzard is coming down; inside, Chock stays warm in a Team USA sweater.

Below, the husband-wife team tells their love story.

How did you meet?

MC: He was training in Ann Arbor and I was training 20 minutes away in Canton. We didn’t know each other well, but we hung out in the same circles, so we’d sometimes see each other at group gatherings.

What were your first impressions of each other?

MC: Oh my gosh, Evan had such a warm lightness to him. He was so charismatic.

EB: I would say immature.

MC: Well, maybe, but you made everybody laugh.

EB: I remember Madi so vividly. Here's this California girl who comes into this cold Michigan rink and lights the place up with a big smile. She had an aura around her — a color, a glow. She was such a beam of sunshine.

Your first date was on Madison’s 16th birthday. Who made the first move?

MC: I don't remember. I would assume it was you asking me out.

EB: I picked you up in my mom’s red Ford Ranger. You were watching old-time movies with your parents — Bogart or something.

MC: The conversation just flowed. We’ve had this great chemistry from the very beginning.

But you broke up?

MC: We dated for a summer, but then when school started and the skating season picked up, it didn’t work logistically. We were super busy.

EB: We’d still see each other when a skater threw a party, or we’d grab ice cream. Then in 2010, I moved to her rink and started training under the same coach. I had a really rough injury that summer and had to take a year off to recover. When I got back in 2011, Maddie’s partner had unexpectedly retired. It was just right place, right time, and the rest is history.

You teamed up as skating partners, but didn’t date until several years later. Who developed feelings first? Was it mutual?

EB: Madi’s presence was such a bright spot in my life during a really difficult time. I wanted to stop skating, honestly, and thought the 2018 Olympics would be our final hurrah. But in the back of my mind, I was really scared that we were going to walk away and never see each other again. I really didn’t want that to happen. I felt strongly that I wanted to be more than just skating partners. We were touring around, city to city, and eventually I just blurted it out. I didn’t plan to — it was just like, “Blah!”

MC: ​​I wasn’t expecting it at all. When I was young, I made up a weird rule that I would never date my skating partner. I just thought it was probably for the best.

EB: It's probably good. Yeah.

MC: ​​But then Evan told me how he felt, and I was surprised that I also had feelings for him. Having this one person who’s always by your side, always supporting you and cheering you on and lifting you up… I think it's almost impossible for love not to bloom in that situation.

How did people react?

MC: I think some were surprised. But when I told my old coach, she was like, "Oh, yeah, I should have called that." I was like, “What? How?” She was like, "It’s just the way he looks at you.”

Did your relationship change the way you skated together?

EB: I mean, our sport is inherently a little bit romantic. Skating with Madi has always been inspiring because she's super talented and beautiful. She has this magnetic quality that makes it really easy to frame her and make her shine on the ice. But when we realized our love was real, our skating just became more authentic.

MC: We were like two magnets moving as one.

Do you think your relationship gives you an advantage over skaters who are just friends?

MC: Honestly, yes. When you’re at a competition and in your feelings, it’s really nice to have cuddles and some quiet time together. We can read each other’s body language and lighten the mood.

EB: We’re so passionate about skating, it trickles into everything. We’ve been dancing together in our living room, troubleshooting parts of our program, and brainstorming at midnight.

Every couple gets on each other’s nerves sometimes. How do you deal with that on the ice?

MC: When you’re tired, hungry, and pushing yourself to the limit, your patience becomes shorter. Especially when we were first navigating our relationship, it was easy to take things personally. You’re like, “Why did you sigh at me like that?” And the other person’s like, “What? I’m just tired.”

EB: We've gotten way better at bouncing back from those kinds of things.

MC: When things get heated, you can’t just pretend everything’s perfect. We’ve learned how to speak up for what we feel we're not getting from the other person. Oftentimes when you just voice how you're feeling, it takes the weight off completely. Skating has been such a great teacher for us — it’s really accelerated our growth as a couple.

What was your first dance at your wedding?

MC: “Moon River.” There was no choreography. We do enough of that on ice.

This interview has been edited and condensed.