Because chickadees are joyful even in the cruelest storm. I post and reblog things I like, ship, and agree with. So VirtueMoir, West Wing, Austen/Regency era, and other random things. Currently obsessed with Sanditon. nove1198 on Ao3.
Q&A: Virtue and Moir reflect on life after skating, Olympic gold, future of ice dance
February 1, 2026
It’s hard to believe, but eight years have passed since Canadian icons Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir skated to Olympic gold with their mesmerizing “Moulin Rouge” performance.
The most decorated Olympic figure skaters in history, Virtue and Moir captured five medals (three gold, two silver) across three Winter Games from 2010 to 2018.
After 24 years as partners, they officially retired in 2019 and have since taken different paths, with Virtue moving into business and Moir building a coaching academy.
Canada’s favourite couple-that-isn’t-a-couple — in partnership with OLG’s Quest for Gold program — reflected on life after competition, the thrill of Olympic gold and the future of ice dance amid this season’s judging controversy.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
—
CP: After so many years together, what’s your relationship like when you reconnect in your post-competitive careers?
MOIR: It’s fun. Twenty-four years of skating together is something pretty wild and a special relationship. When we get back together now, we’re maybe a little bit more grateful for the opportunity we had to be partners and work together. We were always just in it. We started when Tessa was seven, and I was nine. We grew up together, and that was just our reality. It’s maybe just impossible to get an understanding of just how special that is until afterwards.
CP: You both chose very different paths after retiring. What drew you in that direction, and how difficult was it to stick the landing?
VIRTUE: Any kind of life transition is difficult, and skating was so much a part of our lives for so long. We probably used to fool ourselves into thinking that we were well-balanced and multi-dimensional, but how could that possibly be true when we were spending countless hours, six days a week, 50 weeks a year, and really sacrificing a lot of ‘ordinary’ childhood experiences in pursuit of a goal?
I’d known for a while that business was of interest to me. I launched into some school, and I started with Deloitte. I’m an adviser in all things high performance, and I’m really loving it. Doing a little more speaking now. It never ceases to amaze me the parallels between sport and business. There’s a lot to learn from the world of athletics. For example, I think athletes have cracked the code on handling pressure, on visualization, on mental chatter, on all of the things that really lead to human flourishing, so it feels like at this point in my life, my lived experience as an athlete has merged with my academic interests, and now I get to amalgamate all of that into the corporate setting.
MOIR: Wow, that was cool. I’m inspired by that … I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. Whenever someone asked me if I was going to coach, I used to laugh. I used to think that was so funny, like there’s no way. Then my mom asked me to help with her students. We went to nationals, and the athletes didn’t do as well as I thought they could. Came home, and I was like, I’ll try coaching a little bit more, but we’re going to change how we do everything. So we created a completely different skating academy, and that’s been my passion project for the last six years, creating this (Ice Academy of Montréal, London, Ont. campus).
Then my pride and joy — my family and two kids. Sums up the last eight years. I’m learning every day from my kids. Every day I go to bed thinking that I’m ready for what’s going to come, and I get a surprise the next day.
CP: You both seem energized by what you’re doing now. But can anything really replicate the thrill of skating to Moulin Rouge and winning Olympic gold?
VIRTUE: I don’t think I’ve figured that formula out, and I actually think that’s OK. I think I can find fulfilment in different realms. That adrenalin and sense of being completely in flow and so present in a moment, when the world is watching, and you have three minutes to be nearly perfect — I haven’t been able to find something as electrifying as that.
One day after we retired, Scott said, ‘Isn’t it nice not to walk around with that heavy weight of pressure?’ And it’s twofold, because it’s so liberating and so nice, but it’s also the thing I miss. So I don’t know, Scott, do you get that coaching because you’re a little closer to it?
MOIR: No, it’s not the same. I get the fulfilment, I’ve found little things that you feel quite good about. Not everybody gets to win an Olympic Games, but a lot of my athletes are able to have really great life-changing moments at all different stages of their careers, and that is cool to see.
I’m a bit more nervous as a coach than I was as a competitor, but the rush is different. I don’t get to actually act on it … To be involved in it and immersed in it, with the touch and the feel, I don’t think we ever get that again. We got a lot of opportunities to skate at a really high level. I know we created those for ourselves, but boy, we were fortunate to have the opportunities that we did.
CP: What do you think of the current ice dance field, particularly Canadian champions Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier?
MOIR: When we were competing, we had this tunnel vision. They were a very good ice dance team, but Tess and I were very focused on ourselves. It’s been neat for me to be a coach behind the scenes. I really like to see what they’re able to create on the ice, of course, but the way that they are backstage is what really struck me at this last national championships. The way they are with volunteers, the way they are with my athletes, it’s been cool to see. They’re real leaders.
It’s a thick field. They’re going to need to bring their A-game. They have the three-time world champion Americans (Madison Chock and Evan Bates), who are going to be a force. Then here comes Guillaume (Cizeron) out of nowhere with Laurence (Fournier Beaudry). Boy, I’m going to have my popcorn out to watch this last group.
CP: We’ve seen some top ice dancers, including Gilles and Cizeron, publicly question the judging this season. What was your reaction to that, and how concerning is it for the future of your sport if inconsistent scoring overshadows Olympic performances?
MOIR: It is necessary for us to have a squeaky-clean Olympics. Any time we have a judging scandal or a doping scandal, it hurts us all, not only in figure skating but as an Olympic movement. That’s not why I wake up every day and go to the rink or why any of my athletes do, to go to an event that’s already been predetermined. It needs to be judged on what happens on the day, and free of cheating and doping.
I’m very proud of Piper, actually, and Guillaume for speaking out. I like it. I think we need more personality in figure skating. I’m kind of over the ‘do as you’re told, or else they’re going to make you pay next time.’ They didn’t agree. When the scale is shifted week to week, it feels like someone’s out to get you. Now, I don’t know if that was actually the case, but I can say that there was definitely an inconsistency in the scoring that I think the ISU needs to look at after the year is done.
The last thing I would want is to see Piper and Paul after the Grand Prix Final be like, ‘OK, sweet. That’s cool, I’m fourth, who cares?’ Get fiery, get going, get back in the fight.
VIRTUE: That’s the thing about skating. It’s a sport that marries art and athleticism, and what we love about it is its subjective nature, but it is also the very thing that can be infuriating. Being more removed, I hope that the powers that be are making the decisions to help steer the sport in the right direction, be that rhythm dance choices, technical requirements. I hope there is an evolving nature in the way that we highlight ice dance. I miss some things, and I’m wishing that there were some things involved from an element standpoint and from an artistic lens, just purely as a viewer. It’s incumbent upon the ISU to take that really seriously and to right the ship for our sport that we love so much.
Is that fiery, Scott? Is that controversial?
MOIR: Not at all, that’s honest. You might want to be careful because it sounds like you have a pretty good idea, and they could use maybe that consultation at that level. I think you’d be a fantastic person to be able to bring back some of those qualities.
CP: What are some of those things you miss, Tessa?
VIRTUE: I miss compulsory dances, but that’s a long way back. Scott, I think you have a different opinion. Keep me honest here, because I don’t know if I’m speaking out of turn.
MOIR: I love it.
VIRTUE: I miss the ballroom dance element of ice dance. I say that as almost a separate thought to the quality of skating, and the products being put out on the ice now are incredible. I’m thinking of it more as a structure. What are the parameters? How are we setting these athletes up to really thrive and succeed and to keep elevating the sport?
MOIR: That’s a great spot, T, and I agree with you. We’ve done a lot of work to try and modernize the sport and have our young athletes be excited about what they’re doing. A lot of those art forms, while they’re brilliant and very cool, they don’t have that structure. It’s hard to compare team-to-team when you don’t really know what the technical requirement is to make it worth a certain amount of marks. A waltz, we know that if you’re fluent and on time and very clear and have a big frame, that’s good waltzing. I’m not sure in some of these ’80s, ’90s (rhythm dances) and the new millennium, what is that? What makes a good choreo step?
Tessa Virtue should maybe run for the ISU council or technical committee, or at least get on a phone call.
Tessa for president! (pumps fist) It’s so funny because they’ve been asking about where Tessa is, and now she’s coming back with a vengeance.
globeandmail: Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir were often grilled about their relationship status off the ice. The former Olympic ice dancers spoke to The Globe’s Robyn Doolittle about navigating that speculation and their friendship today. #TessaVirtue #ScottMoir #VirtueMoir #IceSkating #IceSkatingTikTok #IceDancing #figureskating
I just feel like I'm... ...I'm carrying all of this by myself, you know, and I'm doing all of this alone. || Or, Conrad can't stand to see Belly in pain (a recurring theme)
rip prince charming, who had to let the whole kingdom make jokes about his foot fetish for the rest of his life because every blonde with an updo looks basically the same as far as he can tell
they call him prince charming because he’s always really polite to strangers to cover for the fact that he doesn’t know if he’s supposed to recognize them from somewhere and when you’re a prince that shit starts wars
I have watched this dance more than I can count and I feel like I know every details. We all know that Sidney and Charlotte didn’t do the dance like the other couples and I wanted to share with all of you everything that I’ve noticed with GIFs. I don’t know if someone have already done it but here’s my little analysis.
Here, is the moment right after they do the thing where they bring their palms together. If you look at the couple in the back we can see the lady’s arm going down and as the camera turns we can see all the men’s arms behind their back. While Charlotte and Sidney take each other’s hand.
Their hands. I swear this dance is all about their hands, you’ll see. So I have two or three other GIFs about their hands but this one is the most important. I think we all know that they are not supposed to be hand in hand and that’s why we have this shot. If you look at every other couples during the dance we can see that the men support the ladies right hand. So Sidney was supposed to give the back of his hand to Charlotte and not an opened hand. It shows how much Sidney wants to be intimate with Charlotte and open with her. I think it can be a metaphor of Sidney ready to open his heart to her.
I love this shot. Here we can see the intimacy of every couple by the space between their bodies. Let’s take a look to the couple in the back on the right with the lady wearing the red dress (kinda orange on my gif). There’s a lot of space between them which makes me think that they don’t know each other. So the personal space is not crossed. Now, let’s take a look to the couple right in the middle in the back with the lady wearing the white dress. I would say that they know each other but not in an intimate way. There’s space between them but not as big as the previous couple. We can say these two things for pretty much every couples except for one. Sidney and Charlotte. Where is their personal space? It looks like Sidney grabbed her and glued her to him. Also, their hands!
Sidney, stop! Okay, so I love this moment! We’re gonna take a look to the same couples as the previous GIF. Right on the left we have the couple who I presume don’t know each other. Do you see how the man holds the lady’s hands? He holds them very heigh and very close to her with outstretched arms. Again, personal space. And he puts his left arm behind his back. The other couple in the middle, the man holds the woman’s hands lower than the previous man and more close to him and puts his left arm behind his back. Now, Sidney and Charlotte. Sidney holds Charlotte’s hands to his stomach (so she can feels the butterflies in his stomach. Just kidding…?) So he holds her hands to his stomach and keeps them in his hands longer than the other men. Longer than he doesn’t have the time to put his left arm behind his back. Then when they take each other’s hands, Sidney makes a few steps towards Charlotte, while the other men stay put. Another proof of Sidney’s feelings for Charlotte. He is so ready to love her and to be loved by her during this dance.
Here’s two GIFs about their hands. Like I said, they are not supposed to take each other’s hands like that. If we look at the couples in the back, we see that the ladies hands are simply ON the men’s hands.
Okay, so you are going to hate me for this one. I hate myself for this one. So first, I love how they take each other’s hands here. See, their hands. Again. And now, for the part where you are going to hate me. Take a look right on the left in the corner… Yep. We see Eliza’s arrival… (we see her in the previous GIF too). Alright, let’s forget about that. To the next one!
Another ‘hands GIF’. We can perfectly see the other couple’s hands behind them and how the lady’s hand is. If you look closer, you can see Sidney and Charlotte bumping each other’s thumb while taking each other’s hands. I noticed it while making the GIF and thought it was cute. I also spotted Lord Babington on the right. It’s very quick.
Of course, I have to mention the famous “I’m-to-busy-staring-at-my-future-wife-to-distant-her-from-me-and-lead-her-into-the-last-spin-of-this-dance-so-I’ll-put-her-hand-on-my-heart-instead-PS-leave-us-alone!” moment. This moment is so precious. And the way how the other couples moves before the spin it looks like Sidney and Charlotte have had stopped to ‘dance’ for awhile now.
The dance is over and Sidney is not ready to let go of Charlotte’s hands. Look how he looks at his empty hands. He looks so sad about it. Plus, look how he clenches his jaw! I don’t know if it’s a Theo thing or a Sidney thing but he did it a few times through the season and I’ve always had a thing for actors doing it but that’s another story.
And to finish, let’s talk about that moment. It’s right after Sidney notices Eliza. Do you see what he is doing with his hands? There’s the obvious reason, he does it to simply thanks Charlotte for the dance. But we can see it in a different way. Sidney touched and hold Charlotte’s hands for the first time. For three or four minutes he was in his bubble with her. He couldn’t take his eyes and hands off her. For a few minutes it was just them with no one around. But now he is back to the reality with his ex in front of him. So to me, the way he holds his own hand, it is to hang on to what he just lived and felt. He wants to remember Charlotte’s touch in his hands forever because he’s afraid of what will come next with the return of his ex. Also, we can see it has the metaphor that we had earlier at the beginning of the dance when he takes Charlotte’s hand. Now it can be a metaphor of Sidney closing his heart because he is lost, confused and doesn’t want to be hurt again. Besides, we can see Charlotte doing pretty much the same thing. She touches her left fingers with her right hand. It is very similar to what Sidney is doing but yet so much different. While Sidney closes his entire hands, Charlotte touches only her fingers with her hands wide open. So I think for her, it’s a “pinch-me” kinda thing to remember Sidney’s touch on her hands. To remember what she felt while dancing with the man that she had just realized she was in love with.
Okay, so I’m done now. I’m sorry it was this long. I hope some of you were interested by all of this and by how I see this scene. Maybe I overthink to much but I love this show and Sidney and Charlotte so much!
You’ve discussed how Charlotte wouldn’t be considered attractive due to certain features compared to other female characters, but do you think Sidney would be considered attractive by their standards?
From what I’ve read, and correct me if I’m wrong, but I think Sidney would not have met the beauty standards of the time, just like Charlotte wouldn’t. He has quite a dark compexion, probably because of travel and living in Antigua for a while that just wasn’t fashionable at the time. To our 21st century brains his looks scream tall, dark and handsome, but back then people would’ve seen someone who has to earn his living because of that dark skin and, even more than that, his muscles. Believe it or not, being ripped wasn’t considered an attractive thing in early 19th century - because again, that meant you had to work. The most fashionable dandies had something feminine about their looks, they were fair and it was considered attractive for a man to have a thin “pinched” waist (they even wore sort of corsets for this!). So someone like Edward Denham would’ve been a lot “hotter” than Sidney by the standards of that time, if he could tone down his muscles as well.
legit believe sidney only pretended he didn’t hear charlotte’s name because he wanted to hear her speak. he didn’t ask mary to repeat charlotte’s name, he wanted to her hear say it. i see you, i’m onto you sidney
