These Olympic Ice Dancing Stars Might Be Retiring But Don't Freak Out Just Yet

Ice dancing is one of the most entertaining Olympic events, and on Tuesday, history was made. Two of ice dancing's biggest stars, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, skated their hearts out and scored a total combined score of 206.07, the highest of their competition. But did Canada just see the last of these faves? Even if Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir are retiring, they've had an amazing run and achieved what they came to do: make their country and fans proud while bringing home the gold in the process.

When talking to CBC Sports, Virtue may have hinted at an end to the duo's time as a professional skating pair. "I think it's a nice end to our Olympic career," said Virtue. "I can't help but think about the 20 years we've spent working for this moment." After winning a gold on home turf in Vancouver in 2010, then taking silver in Sochi, the pair came back strong in 2018 and clutched this gold. But notice that Virtue said end to their Olympic career; retirement wasn't mentioned (yet).

And in terms of totally leaving the sport for good, the pair mentioned something hopeful when making an appearance on the Today show. “We have to let the dust settle before we make that decision,” Moir said, referring to whether retirement really is in the cards. As CBC Sports reported, the duo are just down to live in the here and now. "We're going to celebrate hard tonight and then we're going to go watch our teammates," Moir said.

This isn't the first time that retirement has been on the table. Back in 2014, after Moir and Virtue competed in the Sochi Olympics, they announced that they'd be retiring. They did skate in years after that, but officially came back to the sport and won gold in the 2017 Canadian Figure Skating Championships. Throughout their 20-year career as partners, Moir and Virtue have had a very impressive run both in and out of the Winter Games. They are currently the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history, with five medals under their belt.

The duo have been talked about a ton this year, for more than just being amazing skaters. One "controversy" was their less than G-rated lift during their Moulin Rouge routine. They performed it, unedited, at this year's Canadian Figure Skating Championships and took gold again. It's a few seconds of Virtue wrapping her legs around Moir's upper body, or neck, to then come back down. It was definitely not as scandalous as many would suggest, but it got plenty of buzz.

This of course also added to the rumors that the two ice dancers were dating in real life. They've known each other since they were children (and did date way back when Virtue was seven and Moir was nine), but they've denied being involved in their adult years. They're definitely super comfortable with each other and have chemistry, but if you work with someone for 20 years, and grew up together, that's bound to be the case.

Regardless of their relationship status, Virtue and Moir are capturing everyone's attention these days. And if they do decide to retire, their coach, Patrice Lauzon, doesn't think ice dancing will see a pair quite like them for awhile, Huffington Post reports. "Probably it will take a long time," said Lauzon. "They're a once-in-a-generation talent, that you don't see often."

Virtue and Moir have left a big mark on their sport, and have become gained some lifelong fans (and medals) in the process. "I would say that how we want to be remembered is by inspiring the next generation, and that goes for Canadians and anyone in the world," said Moir to CBC. "Hopefully ice dance has come to a new level." Based off their memorable routines and undeniable chemistry, they've upped the ante for sure.