At just 20 years old, Ilia Malinin already has made his mark on the sport of figure skating. Two world championship titles, two Grand Prix Final gold medals, three times on top of the podium at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships (he currently holds the record scores for both short program and free skate), and he’s been undefeated for the past two years. If that weren’t enough to cement his legacy, in 2022, Malinin became the first — and so far only — figure skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, and while he won’t confirm or deny it, Malinin hinted about an unheard-of quintuple on the horizon following the Olympic season.
But Malinin simply isn’t satisfied with pushing the technical boundaries of the sport or winning extra hardware. As he heads into the 2026 Olympic season, the favorite for gold in men's singles, Malinin is focused on bringing a new authenticity to his skating, establishing his identity not only as a superlative athlete, but as a performer.
“I really want to bring something unique and something of my own,” Malinin said. His short program, titled “The Lost Crown,” begins with a classical middle-eastern flare, drawing on themes Malinin compared to the movie, “Dune,” but shifts quickly into a hip hop-style rhythm, with an uptick in the energy the choreography inspires.
“The idea around my short program is that you almost come alive from the ice,” Malinin said. “It's like you're exploring and understanding what's around you, and defining that warrior spirit in you, and find that drive to fight through all the obstacles or pain or pressure — whatever that may be — and using that to redefine yourself.”
That exploration comes as Malinin makes the shift from the “teenage phenom” moniker so often used to describe him, to a dominant force in a sport often popularized by larger-than-life personalities. He enjoys the creative process, choreographing his last two show programs, and he's focused on bringing more of himself to his programs as time goes on.
While his short program represents growth and coming into one’s own, his free skate this season speaks to his 14 years in the sport so far. “I've been through so many different experiences, so many different processes, and ups and downs,” Malinin said. The free skate, titled “A Voice,” is set to rousing instrumental music dubbed with the spoken word, which Malinin himself voiced over, with a series of phrases that portray these personal experiences.
“From what I've heard, I am the first person to use my own voice in a program,” Malinin said. “I think that's something different, and no one was really expecting me to go that direction, and I really like the excitement of entertaining people and being unpredictable.”
Beyond that unpredictability, however, a great deal of thought went into just how the spoken word would work with the music, adding to the audience’s storytelling experience, and not creating a distraction.
Malinin worked on the exact phrasing for hours with longtime choreographer Shae Lynn Bourne and her husband, writer and director, Bohdan Turok. “The process of working with him and her together — I was so blown away. It was just such an honor, sitting there trying to figure out what would be the most effective,” he said.
While the phrases they finalized are personal to Malinin, he wanted those watching to hear them and connect to a message of self-reflection and perseverance. The message, he said, is to not let the noise, and the hardships of life, disturb one’s mental and even spiritual health.
This became especially important in the days following his debut of the program at the ISU Challenger Series Lombardia Trophy in Italy. The concept drew criticism from fans across the internet, who watched the event streaming online. Malinin said he read a lot of the comments, and while he appreciates that everyone is entitled to their opinion, he noted it can be hard as an athlete to see negativity, especially so early in the competitive season.
“People should keep in mind that we're also human beings and we're not robots,” Malinin said. “A couple of my friends who've been thrown off by just a few comments, don't want to skate anymore because they don't want to deal with that. The strongest ones can go through it, and either suppress it or push it away. But also addressing it is a way to show your power, because you're owning your own spot in this.”
Malinin chose the latter route, posting a response to social media, urging critics to try what he can do themselves before casting judgement. “All of this that we do takes a lot of hours, a lot of effort, a lot of dedication,” he said. “And it just makes sense that not all of us are going to be perfect or look perfect, especially at the beginning of the season.”
Malinin will have another opportunity to win over the audience in Angers, France, at the ISU Figure Skating Grand Prix France, which marks his first Grand Prix event of the season. He remains confident the choices he’s made for the free skate were right for this Olympic season, and is excited to see how it grows.
“I just found that whole process — it made me fall in love with skating again,” Malinin said. "And looking at these programs now, and the progress I've made, even since the last competition, I just feel so good. And I feel like by the Olympics, they're going to be some of the best programs I've ever felt.”