Russian Ice Skaters cause offense at Olympics

The ice skating original dance this year featured a theme of "folk dancing". Countries such as Georgia and Israel did dances representing their own countries, while Canada, the United States, and Russia portrayed other countries. The interpretation of Australian Aboriginal dance by Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin has caused an outcry among aboriginal leaders, who find the dance to be offensive and inauthentic.

They were criticized for this dance in January, and removed some of their body and face paint, but did not change the dance. Moves considered "offensive" include Shabalin pulling Domnina by her hair, stuck out their tongues, and patted their hands over their mouths. This performance made them drop from first to third in the Winter Olympics.