Ilia Malinin has set his sights on a gold medal-winning feat at his debut Winter Games in Milan. He aced the first legal Olympic backflip in 50 years and later expressed that he embraced the Olympic moment as the crowd erupted in cheers.
Malinin has been defying physics with his performances at the highest level, earning two titles at the World Championships and four at the Nationals.
Ilia Malinin Gets Real about Crowd Reaction after His Performance at 2026 Milan-Cortina Games
Malinin, who comes from a family of figure skaters, was on the ice by the age of six, training at the rink under the tutelage of his parents. He burst onto the international scene in 2019 and has dominated the ice ever since.
The 21-year-old aimed to make the Beijing Olympic team in 2022, placing second in free skate and third in short program. As per the qualification criteria, the berth went to Jason Brown, but he made his way to his first World Championships.
Cut to 2026: the Virginia-born ruled both the short and long programs at the National Championships and was subsequently named to the team. On February 7, Malinin strongly opened with a quad flip and ended with a quad lutz–triple toe loop combination. He also landed the first legal backflip at the Winter Games since 1976, as the maneuver was banned for a while before its re-legalization in 2024.
During an interview later, the two-time World champion shared that the crowd erupted in cheers, which became a key motivational factor for him.
“It was fun. I mean, come on, the audience just roared, and they were just out of control. And that truly just helped me, you know, feel the gratitude of the Olympic stage,” he said.
Despite a performance that put the world on notice, Malinin finished second behind Yuma Kagiyama. He scored 98.00 points, while the top finisher, Yuma Kagiyama, posted 108.67.
Team USA sits atop the standings with 44 points, with Japan just five points behind, followed by Italy, Canada, and Georgia.
READ MORE: World Champion Ilia Malinin Reveals the Hidden Challenges Behind His Effortless Skating
Malinin, who stands as the only skater to have successfully landed a fully rotated quadruple Axel at the global level, said he did not expect to finish first in the team event and competed at just 50% of his capacity, as his main focus is on the individual events.
The 21-year-old will feature in the short program on February 10 and will then be in contention in the free skate on February 13.
