Ilia Malinin’s 2026 Winter Olympics didn’t go quite as planned! The American figure skater was widely expected to medal in the men’s individual event but fell during his long program and missed the podium, a moment that left both fans and the skater himself disappointed. But even in that tough moment, support came from an unexpected place: Carolina Kostner, Italy’s celebrated figure skating Olympic medalist.

Speaking from experience, she gave words of encouragement that transcended the competition: “For Malinin, it was definitely tough. It’s happened to me several times, and I remember wanting to disappear into the ice in those moments. In the midst of the storm, it’s very hard to see the light, the sun, but we know that in life, the sun returns, the wheel turns, and we all know he’s a fantastic and unique athlete. I’m sure he’ll recover and show us what he can really do.”

Kostner understands what Ilia Malinin was experiencing. At the beginning of her career, she had undergone colossal pressure during major competitions. Skating at home in the 2006 Olympics in Turin, where she was a medal challenger, she fell several times and placed ninth. She again failed at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, where she tripped three times and finished outside the top rankings. These experiences taught her the strain of pressure on the largest stage in the world, and Malinin is right now facing it.

Nicknamed the Quad God because of his ability to land the hardest jumps in the sport, he already helped the U.S. win gold in the team event and even pulled off a historic backflip in competition. But the men’s individual event didn’t go as smoothly. Following a good performance in the first segment, two stumbles during the free skate dropped him to the eighth position, one of the greatest upsets in the history of Olympic figure skating. Why the shock?

Ilia Malinin had won every major event since late 2023, and the Olympic crash seemed even more surprising. In figure skating, the judging of great difficulty jumps, such as quadruple Axels, is much more than the scoring, and a minute mistake can alter everything. Malinin confessed that Olympic pressure took its toll. In an interview right after the contest, he claimed:

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“Honestly, it’s not a pleasant feeling. The most honest way to say it is, it’s just a lot on you, just so many eyes, so much attention. It really can get to you if you’re not ready to fully embrace it, so I think that might be one of the mistakes I made going into that free skate was that I was not ready to handle that to a full extent.”

Despite all the disappointment, Ilia Malinin has not given up! He has already made his plans clear, showing he is prepared to get back on his feet!

Ilia Malinin shows resilience with a gala performance and exciting plans ahead

Following his unexpected eighth-place finish in the men’s competition, Ilia Malinin participated in the gala figure skating event of the Games’ closing. There, he created a personal show where he skated to the song Fear, demonstrating his experience with pressure and mental health issues. Even the fans and commentators appreciated his emotional performance and said it revealed a new side of him following a rough competition.

Looking ahead… Malinin will compete at the 2026 World Championships in Prague, Czech Republic, in March 2026.

“I’m looking forward to getting myself that ‘redemption competition’, as I like to call it… I’m definitely looking at that, and I can be satisfied with it if everything goes well,” Malinin said. “I’m playing everything by ear and how I feel just in general, and the passion I have for skating. So who knows, might be a fourth or fifth (Olympics). I mean, we’ll see how long I can keep going.”

Beyond Worlds, he’s also set to appear in professional ice shows like Art on Ice 2026 in Switzerland, giving him the chance to perform for audiences without the pressure of competition.

There’s also a rumor about him being part of Dancing with the Stars. As fans and media started speculating, DWTS professional dancer Rylee Arnold was seen giving Malinin a short dance lesson during the Milano Cortina Games.

The Olympic career of Ilia Malinin might not have been the fairy tale he had hoped, yet with his future events, exhibitions, and prospects of new endeavors, it remains evident that the so-called Quad God is not relenting any time soon.