The “worst nightmare” of French ice dancer Gabriella Papadakis came true Sunday when she suffered a wardrobe malfunction during her routine. But she won praise for powering through and completing the performance.
The 22-year-old was dancing to Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” with partner Guillaume Cizeron, 23, on Monday, Feb. 19, when the pair’s routine was nearly put in jeopardy by a major wardrobe malfunction, the Daily Mail reports. During a lift by her partner, the clasp of her glittering emerald costume came undone, exposing much more of the shape of her body than she had been anticipating.
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Gabriella Papadakis experiences a costume malfunction with her dress for the second time this week, according to @KurtBrowning
The clasp at the back of her halter snapped.
Bad luck and a distraction for the experienced French pair. pic.twitter.com/F6quTbadWu
— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) February 19, 2018
“I felt it right away and I prayed,” Papadakis told reporters after the routine. “That’s about what I could do.”
Rather than halting the performance, Papadakis finished. She and Cizeron scored 81.93 points to finish second behind Canadian stars Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir.
“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. I think we can be proud of ourselves being able to deliver a great performance with that happening.”
Papadakis’ energy to carry through despite mishap won praise on social media.
Gabriella Papadakis skating a full short program with a wardrobe malfunction is true heroism
— sham corb (@samcorb) February 19, 2018
I feel so bad for Gabriella Papadakis with that wardrobe malfunction during their ice dance short program. But I applaud her for pushing through and never giving up till the end! #olympics #PyeongChang2018
— Ⓜ️ark Christopherr (@MCAlviz) February 19, 2018
Seriously, a million points to Gabriella Papadakis for just saying “Fuck it” when her dress broke and skating with her entire boob out. That is a bad bitch. 🇫🇷⛸️⛸️
— Onson Sweemey (@ChurchCarlton) February 19, 2018
Can’t we just leave this all Gabriella Papadakis drama behind? The only important thing about this is how amazing athlete she is not to bother about this wardrobe malfunction and how they show off their hard work with Guillaume. Seriously,big respect to them both#PapadakisCizeron
— always undecided (@sorrybae132) February 19, 2018
The routine, broadcast live, forced NBC to use wide angles in an attempt to mitigate any possible exposure not suitable for audiences. They have edited out the moment where Papadakis breast is momentarily exposed for future broadcasts and online videos.
Papadakis’s wardrobe malfunction wasn’t the first during the first week of the Olympics. During her Olympic debut on Sunday, Feb. 11, Korean figure skater Yura Min was frighteningly close to experiencing a wardrobe malfunction when a hook on the back of her red dress became loose, threatening to reveal more than she anticipated. Min and her partner, Alexander Gamelin, finished their routine, the wardrobe malfunction costing them points and landing them in ninth place.
