On Friday, February 13, Ilia Malinin took the ice at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, on the hunt for a gold medal in the men’s individual. So, did Ilia Malinin win gold?
Well, going into the competition, Malinin, the “Quad God,” had already earned has a gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics as part of Team USA‘s men’s figure skating team, so he was already a winner before Friday. He also became the first figure skater in decades at the Olympics to complete a backflip.
So, regardless of what happened on Friday, the “Quad God” had already cemented his place in Olympic history and is a winner. But, did he win gold in the men’s individual?
Did Ilia Malinin Win Gold Individual at the Olympics in 2026? The Results for the ‘Quad God’ and All Medal Winners
On Friday, February 13, Malinin took the ice in the pursuit of an individual gold to add to his plethora of awards.
The answer is, “No.” Unfortunately, Malinin took a tumble in the free skate, which ended his chance for not only a gold, but he also didn’t get a silver or bronze.
“I blew it,” Malinin told NBC after his performance in the free skate, according to Yahoo Sports. So, with the fall, he finished in eighth place.
If Malinin hadn’t fallen, he likely would have been a gold medal winner, according to Olympic research. So, Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Shaidorov took the gold, Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama earned the silver and Japan’s Shun Sato took home bronze.
It’s certainly a heartbreaker for those in Malinin’s camp to see his journey at the 2026 Olympic end with a fall and no spot on the podium. But, that doesn’t take away from his victories, small and large. Plus, he already has one gold with Team USA, so that’s certainly an accomplishment.
Ilia Malinin Sees Skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics a Passion
Ahead of his appearance in the men’s individual, Malinin told NBC News that he sees skating as a passion and more about artistic expression that competition.
“It’s more like a passion and being able to show how I am as a person, and express myself through my technical abilities or my artistic values,” he said following the short program on Tuesday, February 10, according to NBC News. “I always tell people that figure skating is an extension of your personality, and everyone should have that in their skating. That is what can make skating so beautiful and intimate.”
He added that he’s not trying to be perfect. “I wasn’t thinking about executing anything perfectly,” he addd. “I just wanted to go out there and skate my heart out, really leave everything out there. I have no regrets after the end of that program.”
When asked about whether he’s go for the first Olympic quadruple axel during Friday’s competition, Malinin was upfront about the possibility. “I’m hoping that I’ll feel good enough to do it (on Friday),” he told reporters.
He added at the time, “But, of course, I always prioritize health and safety, so I really want to put myself in the right mindset where I’ll feel really confident to go into it and not have that as something that I’m going to risk.”
Did Ilia Malinin Win Gold at the Olympics? Full Results