Ilia Malinin Postpones Media Session After Disappointing Olympic Skate
Milan, Italy – U.S. Olympic skater Ilia Malinin has postponed his scheduled media appearance, which was set to take place on Saturday. The announcement came a day after Malinin’s performance in the men’s free skate, where he finished in eighth place.
Malinin, who was considered a strong contender for a gold medal, experienced an unexpected setback during Friday’s competition. He fell twice, leading to a lower score than anticipated and surprising many who had followed his journey to the Olympics.
Before the event, Malinin shared that he felt overwhelmed by thoughts and memories just before he was about to start. He mentioned the pressure of being seen as a potential gold medalist and how difficult it was to manage those expectations.
“The pressure of the Olympics, it’s really something different, and I think not a lot of people understand that. They only understand that from the inside and going into this competition, especially today, I felt really confident, really good,” he said. “But it really just went by so fast I did not have time to process.”
During his routine, Malinin began with a successful quad-flip but then opted for a single axel. Later, he performed a double loop instead of a quad loop, and he fell during an attempt at a quad Lutz, as well as another jump shortly after. His score was 156.33, a significant drop from his world record of 238.24, which he achieved in December, and his usual 200-point range in free skate events.
Mikhail Shaidorov, representing Kazakhstan, won the gold medal with a total score of 291.58, which was a personal best for him. His score of 198.94 in the free skate was also the highest in his career.
Yuma Kagiyama from Japan secured the silver medal, and his teammate, Shun Sato, took home the bronze.
Malinin, who often scores above 300, finished with a total of 264.49. His personal best remains at 333.81. He congratulated Shaidorov on his victory after the competition.
Malinin also reflected on his experience, saying that if he had participated in the Olympics four years ago, he believes he would have performed better. He was 17 at the time but wasn’t chosen for the team, with preference given to more experienced skaters.
Malinin’s performance has led to widespread disappointment among fans of Team USA and ice skating enthusiasts. The young skater, who has shown incredible promise, will likely use this experience to learn and grow.
