FEAR / GIBSON (GBR) | Ice Dance Rhythm Dance | GP Final 2023

Our next skaters represent Great Britain. The next team is from Great Britain, Laila Fear and Lewis Gibson, 84.93, they earned that NHK trophy just a few weeks ago. Brilliant performances there to take the title. They'll skate to Sweet Dreams and here comes the rain again. So crisp and sharp. Twizzle nightmares continue for all of the competitors. First Laila, then Lewis. Sweet dreams are made of, sweet dreams are made of something. Some of them want to use you. Some of them want to get used by you. Some of them want to abuse you. Some of them want to be abused. Great example of the backhand safe rocket there from Lewis. Forward, outside, more hard for Laila. Well another example of just how risky and difficult the twizzles are. These teams pushing the limits to how fast they twizzle and how close they do. Another mistake here, unusual. Usually these teams are very clean on the twizzles. Wow, I mean this is such a hotly contested event. There was so much discussion as to how things would unfold. I don't think anybody anticipated mistakes being made by each and every one of the first three teams to compete. And you just wonder, we've seen it in the single skating events and perhaps the pairs events where mistakes are made and the energy of that is sensed by the subsequent competitors taking to the ice. And you just wonder, all three of the teams that have competed so far trained together. They know each other well. Have they picked up on what has happened either consciously or unconsciously? But as you say Ted, it's a rarity for mistakes as readily exhibited by these experienced competitors. As we look back at the performance from Laila Beer and Lewis Gibson, there's so much that's gone into this. Here you see just too deep in the right forward outside edge, she's forced to touch down for Laila there. And then her partner, empathic to her, had an issue with his group C feature, the third twizzle later. But I must say there is just so much going on in this rhythm dance. It appears like they've spent endless hours on and off the ice on adding additional arm movement, head movements. Obviously a great connection between them, firm friends on and off the ice. Here, the choreo rhythm sequence. I think we're so used to seeing these teams at such a high level without any mistakes. It's been kind of that way through the Grand Prix series and to see these mistakes here in the final is really unusual. And yet to come are the three medalists from the World Championships, the most seasoned and experienced of the lot. How will they cope with what's taken place? And equally, how will what happens today and now affect the preparation for the free dances? They are such, such firm friends. And I'm sure that Laila and Lewis will, you can see there instantly the connection between them. And as I mentioned in the warm up, they've just been at the British National Championships following the NHK Trophy. That's just not the best start. Laila's saying not the best start. Romain, Aguinaldo, their coach. Nope, you're right there, love. That's OK. I mean, all these competitions are important, but it is the World Championship that everyone is working towards and focused on. And these little dips and rises in the journey to that championship are all adding up to probably their best performance of the year. Peaking at the right moment. Let's take a look at the rhythm dance scores for Laila here. Lewis Gibson, great race. 76.24, that is first in the rhythm dance with mistake. Let's see the qualities. But it's close.