ISU Upholds Deduction That Cost Fear and Gibson Bronze in Figure Skating

The International Skating Union has ruled that the two-point deduction penalizing British ice dancers Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson is final and non-appealable. The penalty, issued for an illegal lift in their opening element, dropped them from third to fourth place at the 2025 World Championships in Prague.

Fear and Gibson finished just 0.22 points behind bronze medalists Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik of the United States. Olympic champions Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron won gold.

British Ice Skating has called for a full and independent review of the officiating process, asserting the deduction was erroneous. The ISU maintained that field-of-play decisions are binding, emphasizing its established scoring review system ensures athlete fairness.