Novak Djokovic, along with his wife Jelena and their son Stefan, recently attended the figure skating team event at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. The Djokovic family was visibly surprised and dumbfounded while watching American skater Ilia Malinin’s performance.
The figure skating team event took place from February 6 to February 8, 2026, at the Forum di Milano in Milan, Italy. In addition to Malinin, the American team included Alysa Liu, Amber Glenn, Ellie Kam, Daniel O’Shea, and Evan Bates, among others.
Novak Djokovic, Wife Jelena and Son Stefan Watch American Skater Ilia Malinin’s Performance at Winter Olympics
During the men’s singles event, held on February 7, 2026, the Djokovic family was at the arena to watch. Throughout Malinin’s performance, all three members of the family–Novak, Jelena, and Stefan–were visibly surprised.
At times, they had their mouths hanging open in disbelief and placed their hands on their heads, as if struggling to comprehend what they were witnessing.
Entusiasmo sfrenato di Novak #Djokovic per l’esibizione dell’americano #Malinin nel team event di pattinaggio di figura ad Assago 🐐 pic.twitter.com/R2ACeJ2BWW
— Matteo Zorzoli (@teozorzoli) February 8, 2026
On the tennis side, Djokovic was scheduled to start his 2026 season at the Adelaide International, but withdrew because he wasn’t physically ready.
Olympic champion Novak Djokovic reacting to Ilia Malinin’s team event’s free skate at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games today!pic.twitter.com/qFCz4BEteA
— Ilia Malinin Daily (@TheIliaSociety) February 8, 2026
His first competition of the year was the Australian Open, where he was vying to win his 11th Melbourne Major title and his 25th Grand Slam title overall.
Djokovic was seeded fourth at the Australian Open, and he began his campaign by triumphing over Pedro Martínez in his opening match and then overcame Francesco Maestrelli in the second round. He then moved past Botic van de Zandschulp and Jakub Menšík in the third and fourth rounds, respectively.
In the quarterfinals, the 24-time singles Grand Slam champion defeated Lorenzo Musetti and secured his place in the final by knocking out Jannik Sinner in the semifinals. In the championship match, he finished as the runner-up after losing to Carlos Alcaraz.
Looking ahead, Djokovic is expected to compete at the 2026 Qatar Open, scheduled for February 16 to 21, 2026. The tournament matches will be played on the outdoor hard courts at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha, Qatar.
In addition to the Serb, other players expected to participate in the ATP 500 hard-court tournament are Alcaraz, Sinner, defending champion Andrey Rublev, Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Alexander Bublik, among others. Djokovic has previously won the Qatar Open title twice, in 2016 and 2017, defeating Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray, respectively, in the finals.
