The Winter Olympics are amazing and enlightening for so many reasons. Every year, I fall in love with Chloe Kim all over again and marvel at how curling is still, somehow, a riveting sport. But the real showstopper for me is figure skating. For someone who grew up on a steady diet of Michelle Kwan and Kristi Yamaguchi, it’s one of those things in life that is more impressive the older (and more aware of your physical limitations) you get. This year, Nathan Chen and the French team of Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron won gold in their events, while there was controversy with the Russian Olympic Committee in the women’s event over a skater’s positive drug test and extreme pressure from a coach.
One thing that skaters have not learned to control, however, is the faces they make on the ice. From the over the top to the involuntary, here are some fun photos of figure skaters doing what they do best — entertaining us.