USA Olympic sprinter Ilia Malinin adjourns for a post-workout press session
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American Olympic figure skater Ilia Malinin did not hold his scheduled press conference on Saturday. The meeting has been postponed, according to Christine Brennan.
The postponement comes one day after Malinin finished eighth in the men’s freestyle. The American star was in the lead to win gold but fell twice during the match, fans and commentators were shocked.
Malinin’s stupidity was considered one of the most unexpected stories of the Winter Olympics as he presided over the competition on Friday.
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Ilia Malinin of the United States competes during the men’s free skating event at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Feb. 13, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Landis/AP)
Malinin revealed that his mind was filled with “thoughts and memories” before his performance.
“I just had a lot of thoughts and memories flooding before I entered my first place, and probably, I think, maybe it pressured me a little bit. I’ve been through a lot in my life, a lot of bad and good experiences,” Malinin told NBC Washington after the competition on Friday.
“So, I feel like it’s pressure especially with the hope of an Olympic gold medal. It was something I can’t control now.
“The pressure of the Olympics, it’s really something different, and I think a lot of people don’t understand that. They only understand that from the inside and going into this competition, especially today, I felt really confident, I’m really good,” he said. “But it just happened so fast I didn’t have time to process it.”
POWER LIGHT STOPPED MILAN CORTINA OLYMPIC COMPETITIONS AFTER THE GAMES BEGAN
Ilia Malinin of the United States reacts to his disastrous double fall in the men’s singles free skating arena at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026 Feb. 13, 2026, Milan, Italy. (Tim Clayton/Getty Images)
When his routine began on Friday, Malinin connected on a quad-flip to start but then landed on a single axel. Then he had a double loop instead of a quad loop.
He then fell on a quad Lutz attempt and then another jump right after that. She scored 156.33, a far cry from the world record of 238.24 she set in December and the 200 mark she usually hits in the free skate.
Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan won gold with a total score of 291.58, a personal best. Her score of 198.94 in Friday’s free skate was also a career high.
Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama got the silver, while Shun Sato, Kagiyama’s teammate, came away with the bronze.
Malinin, who regularly posts perfect scores in the 300s, scored only 264.49. His personal best is 333.81.
Malinin congratulated his Kazakh rival after the event.
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Ilia Malinin of the United States falls during the men’s figure skating at the Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games Feb. 13, 2026, Milan, Italy. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
While on the bench, Malinin said that if he had been in Beijing four years ago, he would not have skated as badly as he did. Malin was 17 when he was left off the roster in favor of veterans.
Malinin’s finish caused a lot of disappointment among Team USA and ice skating fans on social media.
Fox News’ Ryan Morik contributed to this report.
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