Who is Ilia Malinin? From landing the world’s hardest jump at 13 to Team USA’s Olympic gold hope

Ilia Malinin is not just a name in figure skating anymore. Ilia Malinin is the skater everyone stops to watch. At just 21 years old, Ilia Malinin has already done what no one else could do. He landed one of the hardest jumps the sport has ever seen. Now, he is heading to Italy with one clear dream, Olympic gold.

America will be watching closely when Ilia Malinin steps onto the ice at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. He is already a world champion, a record breaker, and a fan favorite. The only big prize missing from his list is an Olympic gold medal. And Malinin believes he is ready.

“No matter how nervous I’ll be, I can just trust everything I do, all my practice and muscle memory, and go out there and deliver,” Malinin told PEOPLE.

Ilia Malinin is known around the world as the “Quad God.” The nickname comes from his rare ability to land the hardest jumps in figure skating. His most famous move is the quadruple axel. This jump needs four and a half spins in the air in less than one second. For years, no skater could land it in competition.

That changed in 2022 in Lake Placid, New York. At just 17, Malinin landed the quad axel at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic. The skating world was stunned.

“It’s rare in our sport for something to completely shock and awe,” said two-time Olympic skater and NBC commentator Johnny Weir. “Ilia is the figure skating version of the first man on the moon.”

Ilia Malinin’s rise from Quad Jumps to olympic gold hope

Figure skating runs deep in Ilia Malinin’s family. His parents, Tatiana Malinina and Roman Skorniakov, are both two-time Olympians who competed for Uzbekistan. His grandfather, Valery Malinin, is also a skating coach in Russia. Even his younger sister, Elli Malinin, is a nationally ranked junior skater.

Ilia first stepped on the ice at age six. At 13, he landed his first quad jump. By his teen years, he was already landing multiple quads in competition. Soon after, he began chasing the quad axel, the hardest jump of all.

At the senior level, Malinin has been dominant. He has won four straight U.S. national titles and the last two world championships. In Japan last month, he made history again by landing seven quadruple jumps in one program.

“I knew I was going to make history,” Malinin told PEOPLE. “After landing the seventh one, I was like, ‘Oh my God, I just did it.’”

He is already teasing attempts at even harder jumps in the future.

Away from the ice, Malinin keeps life simple. He trains six hours a day, six days a week, while taking online classes at George Mason University. When he rests, he enjoys skateboarding, video games, and art.

“I know how nerve-racking the Olympics can be, but I’m really excited,” Malinin said. “I want to put my priorities into my career first and just see where that takes me.” With skill, calm nerves, and history already on his side, Ilia Malinin now stands as America’s strongest hope for Olympic figure skating gold.


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