“I spent so much time in practice connecting with it and evolving it and developing it to be as good as I can possibly make it,” said 24-year-old Maxim Naumov before taking the ice. And he fulfilled that promise at the 2026 U.S. Figure Skating Championships by earning the bronze medal. But hold up… it was not only his ability that won hearts, but also an interaction with a young fan that went viral.

As Naumov performed his free program, a voice in the stands kept calling his name. It sounded like an excited fan cheering him on. That voice belonged to 11-year-old Grace Zhang, a young skater wearing a Team USA jacket. He skated over and hugged her. It looked simple, but there was more behind it.

Grace was not just a fan in the crowd. She had once been coached by Naumov’s late parents, Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, when she competed in the novice divisions.

Zhang has been successful, winning third place in the Eastern Sectional Novice in November 2025 and a second medal at the Santa Claus Cup in Budapest. So, this hug was about missing her late mentors. Shishkova and Naumov were elite Russian pair skaters and world champions.

After retiring from competition in 1998, they moved to the United States and became highly respected figure skating coaches, mentoring a new generation of skaters, including their son Maxim. Tragically, on January 29, 2025, Shishkova and Naumov were among the 67 people killed in a mid-air collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter in Washington, D.C.

From that moment on, every time Naumov skated, he carried more than just a program.

Maxim Naumov’s Olympic push carries his parents’ legacy

During the 2026 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Maxim Naumov earned 249.16 points, which secured him third place behind gold medal winner Ilia Malinin and silver medalist Andrew Torgashev. But was it enough to make the Olympics?

Yes! Malinin won his fourth consecutive national title, effectively securing him an Olympic spot. Torgashev and Naumov (a heavy sentimental pick) will now complete the U.S. Figure Skating Men’s team.

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For Naumov, this was much more than medals or standings; having an Olympic spot would be the fulfillment of a dream he shared with his parents and a tribute to their life’s work.

If selected, Maxim Naumov would become the first athlete representing The Skating Club of Boston to skate at the Olympics since 2014, when Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir were the U.S. pairs skating competitors at Sochi.

“I entered this competition grateful that I even had the opportunity to compete,” Naumov said. “What I did today, I don’t even have the words for what I had to overcome to be here. I’m just grateful that I have two arms, two legs … I’m thankful, and it’s in God’s hands.”

Even after his parents’ deaths, it was unclear if Naumov would continue competing. He withdrew from the 2025 Four Continents Championships. But on March 2, 2025, he returned to the ice at “Legacy on Ice” in Washington, D.C., a tribute to the crash victims. He skated to his parents’ favorite song, “The City That Doesn’t Exist.”

He then performed at the 2025 World Championships exhibition in Boston and at the ISCC 30th anniversary event in Simsbury, which supported the Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation and Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. During those performances, videos of his parents skating played in the background.

For Maxim Naumov, every leap on the ice is a continuation of his parents’ legacy.