Gabriella Marie-Hélène Papadakis (born 10 May 1995) is a French ice dancer. With former partner Guillaume Cizeron, she is a 2022 Olympic champion, 2018 Olympic silver medalist, a five-time World champion (2015–2016, 2018–2019, 2022), a five-time consecutive European champion (2015–2019), the 2017 and 2019 Grand Prix Final champion, and a seven-time French national champion (2015–2020, 2022). They have won ten gold medals on the Grand Prix series. Earlier in their career, they won silver at the 2012 Junior Grand Prix Final and at the 2013 World Junior Championships.
Papadakis and Cizeron have broken world records 34 times, which is itself a record across all figure skating disciplines since the introduction of the ISU Judging System in 2004. They are the former and historical world record holders in the short dance, free dance, and combined total. They are the first team to have broken the 90-point barrier in the rhythm dance, 120-point and 130-point barriers in the free dance, and the first team to score above the 200-point, 210-point, and 220-point barriers in the combined total score.
The pair are recognized for their lyrical and musical style. Their programs, inspired by modern dance, have been described as lyrical, and commentators have frequently acclaimed the quality of their skating skills.
Gabriella Papadakis was born on 10 May 1995 in Clermont-Ferrand, France. She is the daughter of Catherine, a French skating coach, and Emmanuel, the owner of a food truck in Austin, Texas. Her father is from Korydallos, Greece, and his family has roots in Crete.
Catherine raised Papadakis as a single mother. In her memoir, Pour ne pas disparaître ("To Not Disappear", 2025), Papadakis detailed their tumultuous relationship, describing Catherine as an "authoritarian mother" who was easy to anger. She further shared, "My mother and I became real enemies. She thought her strictness would save me from self-destruction. But I didn't know how to explain to her that I needed my mother, tenderness, and a break... I was suffocating from her pressure."
Growing up, Papadakis attended a music school, where she learned to play the violin.
In 2023, Papadakis came out as bisexual. In her memoir, Papadakis said that she was a survivor of sexual assault, having been raped twice during her adolescence.
Papadakis and Cizeron teamed up when they were about 9 or 10 years old in Clermont-Ferrand at the suggestion of her mother, Catherine Papadakis. She coached them from the beginning of their partnership. Many years later, in 2026 Papadakis discussed the negative aspects of this dynamic, alleging that her mother and Cizeron would constantly exclude her from decision-making, leading to her to gradually lose all self-confidence. She said she felt that the only way her mother and Cizeron could get along was by "ganging up on her."
2009–10 season: Junior International Debut
The pair debuted on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series in 2009–10, placing 15th at JGP United States. They were 22nd at the 2010 World Junior Championships.
In 2010–11, Papadakis/Cizeron finished 4th at JGP France and won bronze at their second event, in Austria. They advanced to 12th at the 2011 World Junior Championships.
In 2011–12, Papadakis/Cizeron finished 4th at both of their Junior Grand Prix events. They rose to 5th at the 2012 World Junior Championships.
2012–13 season: Junior World Silver & Coaching change
In mid-June 2012, Papadakis/Cizeron decided to move to Lyon to train with new coaches Muriel Zazoui, Romain Haguenauer, and Olivier Schoenfelder. They competed in their fourth season of the Junior Grand Prix, winning their first title at JGP France. They took another gold medal at JGP Austria, where they scored their personal best of 142.08 points. Their wins qualified them for the 2012–13 JGP Final in Sochi, Russia. Papadakis/Cizeron won the silver medal in Sochi behind Russian ice dancers Alexandra Stepanova / Ivan Bukin. At the 2013 World Junior Championships in Milan, the French placed second in the short dance. On the day of the free dance, Papadakis sprained her ankle in an off-ice warm-up before the morning practice. During the competition, she paused after 2:52 minutes and was allowed a medical break, after which she and Cizeron completed the dance. They placed third in the free dance and second overall, stepping onto the podium along with gold medalists Stepanova/Bukin and bronze medalists Aldridge/Eaton.
2013–14 season: Senior International Debut
Papadakis/Cizeron decided to move up to the senior level for the 2013–14 season. They made their senior international debut at the International Cup of Nice, winning gold. The duo competed at two senior Grand Prix assignments, placing fifth at the 2013 Trophée Eric Bompard and seventh at the 2013 Rostelecom Cup.
Initially named as alternates for the 2014 European Championships, they were called up when Nathalie Péchalat / Fabian Bourzat withdrew. They placed 15th at the event, held in January in Budapest, and 13th at the 2014 World Championships, held in March in Saitama.
2014–15 season: World and European Champions & Re-location