Feb. 6 was the start of the 2026 Winter Olympics. This year, the Winter Olympics took place in Milan and Cortina, Italy. Ilia Malinin is one of the most influential figure skaters of his generation and competed in the Winter Olympics for the first time this year. At 21 years old, he has already become a dominating competitor for Team USA.
Malinin was born in Fairfax, Virginia, and was raised by two Olympic figure skaters. His parents, Tatiana Malinina and Roman Skorniakov are his primary coaches, which gives Malinin insider knowledge about competition and the Olympic experience.
In September 2022, Malinin made history by becoming the first male figure skater to land a quadruple axel,. which is known to be the hardest technical jump in figure skating, in an international competition. Years later in the 2025 Grand Prix Final, Malinin landed seven quadruple jumps in a single free skate program, including the quad axel.
Many know him as the ‘quad god,’ which is a name he gave himself after landing his first quad. Many interviewers began to question why he nicknamed himself ‘quad god’ when he had only landed one. As a response to this he said, “maybe I should try to land all of them.” He did just that in the Grand Prix.
Malinin would continue to break records and eventually compete in the Winter Olympics 2026. To start off the Olympics, he was a crucial part in helping Team USA win the gold medal during the team event despite having struggles later in the individual competition. In the team program, he scored a total of 200.03 and won gold.
Later in the individual competition, Malinin delivered a dominating performance in the short program with a score of 108.16, winning him first place. This high energy routine gave him a 5 point lead from second place, which was taken by Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama with a score of 103.07.
The odds of placing well in the final free skate program were looking good. However when it came to Malinin’s last skate on Olympic ice, in his words, “I blew it.”
Malinin didn’t land two of his jumps in the free skate, which plummeted his score and left him with eighth place overall. Malinin was upset with himself after his performance, but he should be proud of his performance. He spoke in an interview after he competed that the Olympic pressure was overwhelming and it hit him all at once when he stepped on the ice for the last time of the competition.
Though, something everyone can learn from an experience like his, is to be proud of yourself. Even if it doesn’t go your way, putting yourself in any stressful situation is impressive.
As the Winter Olympics come to an end, many athletes should be proud of their efforts. Just like many fans, you should look forward to what is to come from the new generation of Olympians in the coming years. Plus, keep an eye out for what record the “quad god” could break next.
