The ice was smooth. The scoring was not.
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After settling for silver in Milan, Team USA's Madison Chock and Evan Bates are at least open to the idea of pushing back following a judging controversy that has set the skating world on fire.
"I suppose we would consider it," Chock said when asked about a possible appeal.
The issue centers on one French judge, Jezabel Dabouis, whose scores heavily favored France's Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron. The rest of the panel had the two teams much closer. Without that wide gap, the Americans likely would have been wearing gold.
The International Skating Union says nothing to see here. In a statement, the ISU said score ranges are normal and that it has full confidence in the results. Translation. Don't expect a quick reversal.
There is also the clock. The Court of Arbitration prefers Olympic disputes to be handled within hours of competition, not days later after social media has had its say.
Chock has called for more transparency in judging. Bates kept it simple.
"It felt like a winning skate to us," he said.
The medals are staying put at the moment. But the debate is just getting started.
