U.S. Figure Skating Star Ilia Malinin Postpones Press Conference After Eighth-Place Olympic Finish

U.S. Olympic figure skating star Ilia Malinin unexpectedly postponed his scheduled press conference Saturday, just one day after his shocking eighth-place finish in the men’s free skate at the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics.

According to reports, Malinin did not attend his planned media session following Friday night’s dramatic collapse — a performance that stunned fans and commentators alike. Entering the free skate as the overwhelming gold-medal favorite, the 21-year-old had built a five-point lead in the short program and had dominated international competition for the past two seasons.

Instead of a coronation, the night unraveled.

Malinin opened strong with a quad flip but soon settled for a single axel, doubled a planned quad loop, and then fell on a quad Lutz attempt before suffering another fall moments later. He finished with a free skate score of 156.33 — well below the 200-plus marks he routinely posts and far from the world record 238.24 he set in December. His total score of 264.49 placed him eighth overall, a stunning result for a skater whose personal best stands at 333.81.

After the event, Malinin spoke candidly about the mental toll of the Olympic stage.

“I just had so many thoughts and memories flood right before I got into my starting pose, and almost, I think, it maybe overwhelmed me a little bit,” he told NBC Washington. “I’ve been through a lot in my life, a lot of bad and good experiences.”

He admitted the Olympic spotlight felt unlike any other competition.

“The pressure of the Olympics, it’s really something different,” he said. “I felt really confident, really good. But it really just went by so fast I did not have time to process.”

While disappointment spread quickly across Team USA supporters, a different story unfolded online.

Amid the setback, Malinin’s personal Instagram account surged past 1 million followers, marking a major milestone in his career. In his most recent posts, fans flooded the comment sections with messages of encouragement, heart emojis, and virtual hugs, showing strong support despite the heartbreaking result.

Many reminded the self-proclaimed “Quad God” that one performance does not erase years of dominance. Malinin has won two World Championships, three straight Grand Prix Finals, and three consecutive U.S. titles since missing selection for the 2022 Beijing Games at age 17.

On Friday, Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Shaidorov captured gold with a personal-best 291.58, while Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama took silver and Shun Sato earned bronze.

Malinin congratulated Shaidorov after the event, but the emotional weight of the moment was clear.