'What on earth is that?' - Britain's Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson denied bronze medal at World Figure Skating Championships by points deduction
Updated 29/03/2026 at 14:10 GMT+1
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Relief turned to more disappointment for British duo Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson at the World Figure Skating Championships in Prague on Saturday. A bronze medal seemed to have been secured, but a two-point deduction meant third place went instead to American pair Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik. British Ice Skating said they will formally challenge the judges' decision.
'What on earth?!' - Fear and Gibson suffer two-point deduction after stunning routine
Video credit: TNT Sports
British Ice Skating claimed Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson were "incorrectly" deducted two points at the World Figure Skating Championships in Prague.
Fear and Gibson were third and looked set to win a bronze medal after impressive performances in both the rhythm and free dances.
But a penalty for an "illegal element" meant they finished fourth, behind the USA's Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik.
"We believe this deduction was applied incorrectly and does not accurately reflect the performance delivered on the ice," read a BIS statement.
"As an organisation, British Ice Skating stands for fairness, clarity, and transparency in sport. In this instance, we do not believe those principles have been upheld.
"All athletes deserve to be judged with consistency, integrity, and transparency at the highest level of competition.
"We are formally challenging this decision and will be raising our concerns with the International Skating Union."
Fear and Gibson were visibly emotional after their free dance appeared to have earned them bronze.
But, after a long wait for the judges' scores to come in, they were left disappointed.
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"No! The reviewing has gone wrong," said TNT Sports commentator Simon Reed. "Two deductions. What is that about? They don't know. We don't know. What on earth is that?
"Hopefully it's going to be explained to us. They [USA] have got a medal."
There was no official explanation for the penalty, but it was reportedly due to the height of an overhead lift.
It was another setback for Fear and Gibson, who missed out on a medal at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics because of a mistake in their free dance routine.
There appeared to be no such problems in Prague, where the end of their free dance was met by cheers from the crowd.
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"She must be so relieved," TNT Sports commentator Louise Walden said of Fear. "I was relieved - they were so good today! Not even a waiver of doubt in the rotation.
"I'm so thrilled for them. She was heartbroken after making the mistake at the Olympic Games. Sad at the Europeans, too, but not tonight.
"They skated really well throughout the performance. I do think it's improved from the Olympic Games. They seemed to lilt and move as one, and the transitions and hand-holds were much better connected."
"Amazing crowd response," added Reed. "Looks like they've just done enough."
But they had not, and it was the American duo who celebrated a bronze medal.
Olympic champions Guillaume Cizeron and Laurence Fournier Beaudry of France took gold, having finished a record 19.29 points ahead of the field.
Canada's Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier won silver, with Zingas and Kolesnik taking bronze on 209.20 points. Fear and Bronze agonisingly missed out with 208.98 points following the deduction.
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