by Garth Meyer
Barbara and Wes Chock couldn’t be present when daughter Madison finished fourth with partner Evan Bates in ice dancing, and earned a silver medal in the team competition at the Beijing Olympics. But they helped make it happen.
Barbara and Wes Chock took Madison, their only child, to the Promenade Ice Chalet in Palos Verdes for the first time when she was five.
Afterwards, she wanted to go again.
And again after that.
By the time she was in seventh grade at Manhattan Beach Middle School, Madison was a competitive singles skater. But she wanted to become an ice dancer.
Madison’s coaches at the Skating Edge Ice Arena in Harbor City told her parents that their daughter was talented. But to get into ice dancing, she would need to be where the training was.
“We decided to let her try it,” said Barbara.
“To find the top ice dance coaches,” said Wes.
The choices were Texas or Michigan. The Redondo Beach family chose Michigan.
“That’s a big decision. We were just giving it a try,” Barbara said. “It turned out very nicely.”
Sunday evening, at the Olympics in Beijing, Madison and partner Evan Bates finished fourth in ice dancing, and shared a silver medal with their fellow U.S. skaters in the team competition.
Madison was 13 when she and her family moved to Novi, Michigan (between Detroit and Ann Arbor).
In California, she had been skating six days a week. At their new home it was down to a concentrated five days – school until 10:45 a.m., then to Novi Ice Arena or a rink in nearby Canton, Mich., to skate until 5 p.m.
Wes, an American Airlines flight attendant, transferred to a flight crew based out of O’Hare in Chicago. Barbara resumed her work as a ticket agent for American, at the Detroit airport.
“We didn’t know how long we were going to stay, we just tried to make it a home,” said Barbara, a fifth-generation Californian, who grew up in Lincoln, Calif. Wes is from the Big Island of Hawaii.
“U.S. Figure Skating helps a little, and you pay for most of it,” said Barbara. “It’s a big commitment.”
Madison began to compete internationally just before she turned 16.
Now 29, Chock and Bates, 32, made it to the Olympics first in 2014, and 2018, finishing eighth and ninth, respectively.
No parents or fans from outside China were allowed in this year’s Olympic venues due to the pandemic.
Chock and Bates are three-time U.S. ice dance champions, and finished second in the World Championships in 2015. They now live and train in Montreal. Next is a return to the world championships in Montpelier, France, March 21-27; followed by a 24-city tour with “Stars On Ice” in April and May.
The pair have been skating partners since 2011, and dating for the past six years. They have talked about marriage in the press, though no formal engagement has been announced.
Wes and Barbara moved back to California, to Rancho Mirage, two years ago.
“It’s wonderful. It’s warm,” said Barbara.
In Beijing on Sunday night, after the Super Bowl, Chock and Bates completed their 2022 Olympics with the free dance segment, scoring a personal best of 130.63 points.
“We’re tickled for her,” said Barbara. “It’s great.” ER
