Malinin surges into lead in Olympic men’s figure skating

Ilia Malinin Leads Men’s Figure Skating Short Program at Olympics

American figure skater Ilia Malinin delivered his strongest performance of the Milan Cortina Games on Tuesday evening, executing two quadruple jumps and his signature backflip to surge into first place in the men’s short program at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

The two-time reigning world champion scored 108.16 points at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, placing him more than five points ahead of Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama, who earned 103.07. France’s Adam Siao Him Fa secured third position with 102.55.olympics

The Quad God Returns

Malinin, known as the “Quad God” for his unprecedented quadruple jumping ability, opened his program with a quad flip before landing a flawless triple axel and a quad Lutz-triple toe combination worth over 22 points. The 21-year-old from Virginia capped his routine to music from The Lost Crown with his trademark backflip and “Raspberry Twist” aerial move, sending the crowd into a frenzy.olympics

The performance marked a turnaround for Malinin after struggling in the team event earlier in the week. During the team competition’s short program on February 7, Kagiyama had outscored him by more than 10 points, with the Japanese skater posting 108.67 to Malinin’s 98.00.youtube

“I didn’t anticipate it would feel so intense,” Malinin said of the Olympic pressure. “I thought I could approach this like any other competition, but honestly, I certainly underestimated it. Now that I’ve completed three performances on Olympic ice, I believe I have truly mastered it.”olympics

Eyes on Gold

Malinin opted not to attempt his groundbreaking quadruple axel—a jump he alone has landed in competition—leaving speculation about whether he will unveil it in the free skate. The men’s free skate is scheduled for Friday, February 13, when medals will be determined.olympics

A gold medal would extend Malinin’s remarkable winning streak to 13 consecutive international competitions, dating back to November 2023. He would also become the first American man to capture Olympic figure skating gold since Nathan Chen won in Beijing in 2022. According to Olympics.com, a victory would mark the first time the United States has won consecutive men’s singles gold medals since Scott Hamilton and Brian Boitano achieved the feat from 1984 to 1988.olympics

Malinin already has one gold medal from these Games after helping Team USA defend their title in the team event on February 8, finishing with a score of 200.03 in the decisive free skate despite a mid-program stumble.espn