The 2026 Winter Olympics men’s figure skating final takes place Friday in Milan, with Ilia Malinin entering as the overwhelming favorite for gold. The free skate begins at 1 p.m. ET and features a field of 24 skaters, with order determined by results from the short program. Malinin will skate last, holding a five-point lead over Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama.
Below is a look at who is competing and the key storylines entering the final day.
Men’s Figure Skating Final Start List and Order
The men’s singles free skate features 24 skaters. Malinin closes the event, followed by his two primary challengers in the final group.
According to the official Milan Cortina Olympics site, the start list is:
Li Yu-Hsiang (Chinese Taipei)
Donovan Carrillo (Mexico)
Kao Miura (Japan)
Vladimir Samoilov (Poland)
Adam Hagara (Slovakia)
Lukas Britschgi (Switzerland)
Aleksandr Selevko (Estonia)
Deniss Vasiljevs (Latvia)
Matteo Rizzo (Italy)
Nika Egadze (Georgia)
Maxim Naumov (USA)
Boyang Jin (China)
Petr Gumennik (AIN)
Kyrylo Marsak (Ukraine)
Stephen Gogolev (Canada)
Shun Sato (Japan)
Andrew Torgashev (USA)
Kevin Aymoz (France)
Junhwan Cha (Korea)
Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan)
Daniel Grassl (Italy)
Adam Siao Him Fa (France)
Yuma Kagiyama (Japan)
Ilia Malinin (USA)
Ilia Malinin’s Gold Medal Outlook
Malinin is listed as a -10000 betting favorite, implying a 99.01% probability of winning. Those odds are rare at the Olympic level.
The 21-year-old American is the only skater in history to land a fully rotated quadruple axel in international competition, first doing so at the 2022 CS U.S. International Classic. He has landed it multiple times since.
Malinin owns two World Championship titles, three Grand Prix Final gold medals, and four U.S. Championships gold medals. He enters the free skate with a five-point cushion over Kagiyama after scoring 108.16 in the short program.
“I’m hoping that I’ll feel good enough to do it,” Malinin told reporters earlier this week when asked about attempting the quadruple axel. “But, of course, I always prioritize health and safety.”
Yuma Kagiyama and Adam Siao Him Fa Remain in Contention
Kagiyama, the 2022 Olympic silver medalist, sits in second place with a score of 103.07. He stepped out of his triple axel in the short program but remains within striking distance.
France’s Adam Siao Him Fa posted a 102.55, placing him third. Siao Him Fa is the last skater to defeat Malinin, accomplishing the feat in November 2023. Since then, Malinin has won 12 consecutive international events.
Maxim Naumov Skates With Personal Motivation
Maxim Naumov of the United States also competes in the final. The 24-year-old skater recently honored his parents, former Olympic pairs skaters Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who died last year in a plane crash.
“It was a dream that all of them had,” Susan Hamel-Bottari, a coach at the Skating Club of Boston, told CBS News. “He always says it’s not one, it’s three.”
Before his short program, a message appeared on the arena jumbotron: “Mom and Dad, this is for you.”
Who Is Competing In the 2026 Winter Olympics Men’s Figure Skating Final: Full Start List & Gold Favorite