Under-pressure US figure skater Ilia Malinin’s dreams come to crashing halt at Winter Olympics

MILAN – The pressure had been building, the glare of Olympic expectation, the scrutiny of a sport that demands not only athletic precision but artistic perfection. And on Feb 13, all of it came crashing down on Ilia Malinin.

The American phenom, considered virtually untouchable and a near-certain gold medallist, unravelled in stunning fashion in the men’s free programme at the Milano-Cortina Olympics.

The 21-year-old landed only three of his seven planned quadruple jumps, fell twice, and watched in disbelief as more than two years of competitive dominance dissolved into an eighth-spot finish overall after placing 15th out of 24 in the men’s free.

Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Shaidorov surged from fifth after the Feb 10 short programme to clinch a surprise gold at the Milano Ice Skating Arena. Japan claimed silver and bronze respectively through Yuma Kagiyama and Shun Sato, who blamed the “toxic schedule” for Malinin’s collapse.

Making his Games debut, Malinin had helped the US retain the team title on Feb 8.

He said after his failed bid for a second gold: “In the moment, it definitely felt like not only nerves, but maybe the ice was also not the best condition for what I would like to have. That’s not an excuse, we’re all put in that situation, but the nerves were just so overwhelming.

“Going into my starting pose, all the traumatic moments of my life really just started flooding my head. So many negative thoughts rushed in, and I just did not handle it.”

Only two months ago, he laid down a jaw-dropping performance at the Grand Prix Final, landing seven quads, including the quadruple Axel, to smash his own world record score in the free programme.

On Feb 13, his planned quad Axel – a jump only he has ever landed in competition – turned into a single, prompting gasps from the crowd. He ended up getting a score of 156.33 that was a shocking 80-plus points less than that stunning Grand Prix skate.

The two-time world champion, who was not nearly at his best in the team event either, admitted that being an Olympic gold hopeful was “a lot to deal with, especially for my age”.

Taking a five-point lead into the free skate, Malinin could still have won with a half-decent performance as numerous others stumbled through shaky programmes.

But what unfolded on the ice was a cascade of mistakes as he held his head in his hands in disbelief after the music stopped.

The camera panned to gymnastics great Simone Biles – who has also stumbled under the harsh glare of Olympic expectations – on her feet applauding her compatriot.

“The noise itself is just a lot to handle,” Malinin said. “Social media has its ups, but it really has its downs. People don’t realise the pressure and nerves that happen from the inside at the Olympics. I felt like I had no control.”

When the skate was over, Malinin sought out Shaidorov for a hug.

“I went and congratulated him,” he said. “Watching him in the locker room, I was so proud of him, I’d heard he had not had a good season.”

Shaidorov, the 2025 world silver medallist, earned big points with a stunning opening triple Axel-quad Salchow combination.

“My first combination is my signature move and unfortunately for several competitions, I couldn’t really do it. But tonight the stars aligned,” said the 21-year-old, who earned 198.64 points for 291.58 overall to win his country’s first gold of the Milano-Cortina Games.

Kagiyama, who also won silver in Beijing four years ago, said he was relieved to have won a medal after what he called a disappointing performance, adding that the weight of expectations must have been too much for Malinin.

“The whole world was expecting him to win at these Olympics, and I imagine that must have been an immeasurable amount of pressure and tension for him,” said the 22-year-old. REUTERS