Ilia Malinin eyes Olympic gold after short program performance

Ilia Malinin positioned herself to be within the operating for a gold medal after a dominant males’s quick determine skating efficiency on the Winter Olympics on Tuesday.

Malinin, nicknamed the ‘Quad God’, confirmed his warrior spirit all through his efficiency on the ice. As soon as he hit the quad flip on his first leap, all bets have been off from that time on.

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Ilia Malinin of the US competes within the males’s quick determine skating program on the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, February 10, 2026. (AP Picture/Ashley Landis)

The 21-year-old Virginia native moved gracefully up and down the ice, nailing a triple ax earlier than touchdown in his camel spin change. He went up for the quad Lutz triple toe loop and when he got here down he appeared to present himself a fist pump and smile, figuring out he hit it as completely as attainable.

Because the power within the routine elevated, Malinin carried out a backflip, drawing cheers from the world. He completed this system with a number of spins.

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Ilia Malinin within the middle of the ice rink in the course of the males’s quick determine skating program on the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, February 10, 2026. (AP Picture/Christophe Ena)

“He’s the benchmark,” mentioned NBC broadcaster Johnny Weir as Malinin waited for his scores.

Malinin scored a 108.16. It was sufficient to remain forward of Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama, who scored 103.07, and France’s Adam Siao Him Fa, who scored 102.55.

Malinin already has a gold medal on the Olympics, so far as Group USA successful a combined group occasion final week. In that occasion he competed within the free skate portion and scored a 200.03. It gave the People 10 factors and allowed Group USA to attain the gold medal.

Ilia Malinin performs a trick in the course of the males’s quick determine skating program on the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP Picture/Ashley Landis)

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The lads’s singles free skating occasion will happen on Friday.

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