The Fall of the Quad God: Olympic Skating Upset

The 2026 Winter Olympics men's figure skating competition, held at the Forum di Milano in Italy on February 10 and 13, resulted in one of the most significant upsets in the sport's history. Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan claimed the gold medal, marking the first time a Kazakh skater has ever won an Olympic title in figure skating.The Rise of the "Quad God" and the Short ProgramEntering the games, Ilia Malinin of the United States, known as the "Quad God," was the heavy favorite to win. Malinin lived up to his reputation during the short program on February 10, finishing in first place with a score of 108.16. During his performance, he made history by landing the first legal Olympic backflip, a move recently legalized by the International Skating Union. He led the field by five points over Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama (103.07) and France’s Adam Siao Him Fa (102.55). Shaidorov sat in fifth place after the short program with a score of 92.94.The Free Skate MeltdownThe free skate on February 13 proved catastrophic for Malinin. Despite his technical dominance—he is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition—Malinin’s routine disintegrated into what was described as a "four-minute long train wreck". He bailed on two planned quads, turning them into a single and a double, and fell twice later in the program. Malinin finished 15th in the free skate segment and 8th place overall with a total score of 264.49. Afterward, he attributed the collapse to the "unreal" pressure of the Olympics and his lack of experience from the 2022 Beijing Games.Shaidorov’s Historic VictoryCapitalizing on the errors of the leaders, Mikhail Shaidorov delivered a nearly flawless free skate to the music of "Confessa" and the "Diva Dance". His program featured four clean quadruple jumps, including his signature triple Axel-Euler-quadruple Salchow sequence. He earned a personal best free skate score of 198.64, totaling 291.58 points overall to take the gold. Shaidorov, who mentioned he prepared for the pressure by "putting Legos together," became only the second Kazakh athlete ever to win a Winter Olympic gold medal.The Podium and Notable Performances• Gold: Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan) - 291.58.• Silver: Yuma Kagiyama (Japan) - 280.06. Despite falling on a quadruple flip, Kagiyama secured his second consecutive Olympic silver medal.• Bronze: Shun Sato (Japan) - 274.90. Sato rallied from 9th place after the short program to clinch the bronze.Other notable storylines included American skater Maxim Naumov, who finished 20th overall but touched audiences by honoring his late parents, who died in a 2025 plane crash. Additionally, South Korea’s Cha Jun-hwan finished 4th, despite managing an ankle injury that limited his technical difficulty.ConclusionThe event was defined by the ruthlessness of Olympic pressure and the spirit of sportsmanship. Despite his own devastating loss, Malinin was one of the first to congratulate Shaidorov, stating, "We’re all in this sport together... That’s what makes this sport special". Shaidorov expressed hope that his victory would inspire young athletes in Kazakhstan, proving that "there are no limits at all".AI tools were used in the translation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-world-between-us--6886561/support.