Wardrobe malfunction leaves French ice dancer exposed at Olympics
'It was pretty distracting, kind of my worst nightmare happening at the Olympics,' says Gabriella Papadakis
By Tanya Casole-Gouveia, CBC Sports
High-speed spins and a delicate costume clasp seemed to have caused a wardrobe malfunction that exposed Gabriella Papadakis on international television.
Papadakis and her partner Guillame Cizeron took to the ice after Canadian rivals Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir nailed a world-record setting short dance.
The French duo's program began with a Latin mix of Ed Sheeran's Shape of You, and was a very crowd-pleasing, high-energy performance, until it took a turn for the worse.
Papadakis' clasp in the back of her halter dress came undone, and according to CBC's Kurt Browning, it wasn't the first time it happened this week.
Gabriella Papadakis experiences a costume malfunction with her dress for the second time this week, according to <a href="https://twitter.com/KurtBrowning?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KurtBrowning</a><br><br>The clasp at the back of her halter snapped.<br><br>Bad luck and a distraction for the experienced French pair. <a href="https://t.co/F6quTbadWu">pic.twitter.com/F6quTbadWu</a>
—@CBCOlympicsAs the program ended Papadakis looked visibly shaken as she pulled up one side of her dress over her exposed breast. Partner Cizeron assisted in re-clasping, and the crowd cheered while they completed their bow.
"It was pretty distracting, kind of my worst nightmare happening at the Olympics," Papadakis said. "I told myself I don't have a choice. I have to keep going and that's what we did."
The #FreeTheNipple moment was unfortunately shown on live television, but the Canadian broadcaster had no control over what was shown and confirmed the moment will not be available online in replay.
CBC tweeted: "We aired this event live with no tape delay and the replay packages are provided to us by the host broadcaster. We will be removing these moments from our re-broadcasts."
Of course, there was much online reaction to the mishap, but most were mortified on Papadakis' behalf and were supportive of the French duo skating through the malfunction like pros.
I'm so heartbroken for Papadakis/Cizeron, the costume issue clearly was a huge distraction <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PyeongChang2018?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PyeongChang2018</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/figureskating?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#figureskating</a>
—@robojojoThere was a lamentable wardrobe malfunction w a halter dress a moment ago in ice dance, & the Olympic press corps is a-twitter. I feel for the French skater. whose eyes welled w tears afterward. It's a universal nightmare, isn't it, to be exposed in public? Wishing her the best
—@lizclarketweetHandled like pros. Great skate!
—@cmabernierAnd it didn't seem to affect the duo's score much, as they are sitting in second place behind Canada's Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir.
CBC will re-broadcast and stream an edited version of the short dance Monday between 3-5 p.m. ET.
With files from Associated Press