GANGNEUNG, Korea, Republic Of -- Canadian ice dance darlings Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir are going out on top, ending their illustrious career as the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history.
In what was likely their final competitive performance, Virtue and Moir won ice dance gold at the Pyeongchang Winter Games on Tuesday after scoring 122.40 points in the free program for a world-best combined score of 206.07.
Fans at the Gangneung Ice Arena roared during Virtue and Moir's steamy skate to music from "Moulin Rouge" and the Canadians were all smiles as they took what will likely be the last bows of their career.
"It's an overwhelming feeling because it's something we have envisioned for so many years," Virtue said about their centre-ice hug. "That moment has replayed in my mind over and over but you just never know what will go through your head.
"I couldn't help but think about the 20 years we've spent working for this moment and the incredible team of people behind us."
While they said they will make an official announcement in the coming days, the couple is expected to retire.
"Amazing," said Virtue. "It was a special moment to come out last. It was a strong last group, there was a lot of pressure, but I'm so happy with how we performed."
France's Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron, the Canadians' training partners who skated to Beethoven's mournful "Moonlight Sonata," recorded a world-record 123.35 in the long program to finish second with a combined score of 205.28.
Skating two teams after Papadakis and Cizeron, Virtue and Moir knew nothing of the French world record. They'd made a decision to plug their ears, focus on themselves, and "let (the French) have their moment."
"That's the beautiful thing about figure skating. No matter what happens, we get our four minutes and we wanted to make sure we took full advantage of it," Moir said. "We were holding our breath, obviously, in the kiss and cry because we know what fantastic skaters they are, we know that they're going to post a world record.
"We thought that was a good enough skate to win us an Olympic title but you never know in this sport, you never know."
American siblings Alex and Maia Shibutani finished third with a combined score of 192.59.
Kaitlyn Weaver of Toronto and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont., were seventh, one spot ahead of Piper Gilles of Toronto and Paul Poirier of Unionville, Ont.
Virtue and Moir also won gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, but were beaten by Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie at the Sochi Games four years ago.
They also helped Canada to gold in the team event last week and won team silver in Sochi.
The three-time world champions will retire as the most successful figure skaters in Olympic history with five medals.
"I am thrilled with this competition," said Virtue. "That performance was really special and truly memorable. The gold medal is the cherry on the cake."
Moir said these Olympics were "personal."
"It was for each other, we skated with each other in mind the whole way and we skated with our hearts," he said. "It's extremely fulfilling."
Gold was far from a sure thing heading into Tuesday's free dance.
They roared to a world record in Monday's short dance, but still took a tiny 1.75-point lead over Papadakis and Cizeron into the free dance, despite Papadakis skating with a nipple exposed after the hooks on her dress came undone.
Skating fans raged on Twitter about the short program scores, worried that corrupt judging that has plagued ice dancing in the past would rear its ugly ahead in Pyeongchang.
Moir said he was surprised the short program scores were so close because "we felt like we kind of blew the roof off the arena yesterday. But that's the scoring system."
Virtue and Moir, who carried Canada's flag into the opening ceremonies, came out of retirement last season, gunning to reclaim the gold they lost to Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White in 2014. They made a spectacular return, rewriting the record books and racking up wins until the Grand Prix Final in December, where they lost to Papadakis and Cizeron by less than two points.
The world's top two teams train together in Montreal and share coaches in Canada's Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrick Lauzon, but they have very different styles. The French skate a simpler style favouring elegance and long lines. Virtue and Moir have pushed the ice dance envelope with their athleticism and intricate spins and footwork.
Lauzon was asked when Canada will see another dance time like Virtue and Moir.
"It will be a long time," he said. "They're a once in a generation talent."
And of course, their palpable chemistry is unparalleled.
The 28-year-old Virtue, from London, Ont., and Moir, 30, from Ilderton, Ont., are two of Canada's most recognizable Olympians, and have been melting hearts since they won gold in Vancouver.
Hours before they took stepped on the ice Tuesday, fans took to Twitter lamenting a career that, for them, was ending too soon.
One tweeted: "I need to emotionally prepare for this."
Another posted: "Can this never end."
Canada's favourite couple that isn't a couple -- the two maintain they're friends and "business partners" -- have captivated viewers with their chemistry and storytelling on skates, a byproduct of a partnership that spans 20 years.
Virtue and Moir surpassed Sweden's Gillis Grafstrom, who skated in the 1920s and '30s, and retired Russian star Evgeni Plushenko as the most decorated Olympic skaters with five medals.
They tied legendary Sonja Henie -- an Olympic champion in 1928, '32 and '36 -- for the most gold figure skating medals.
Virtue and Moir are among a group of Canadian veterans who are calling it a career after Pyeongchang. Three-time world champion Patrick Chan retired right after finished ninth here, while Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford, two-time world champs in pairs, won Olympic bronze in their career finale.
