Ilia Malinin, long the favorite to capture Olympic gold, finished outside the podium in an 8th-place result amid a sequence of surprising missteps and wobbles.
In Milan, the crown went to Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan, another young first-time Olympian, who claimed the gold in a dramatic upset.
Malinin, 21, had been viewed as a near-certain champion after a string of undefeated performances since 2023. Entering the free skate with a comfortable five-point buffer, many expected him to widen the gap with his trademark quadruple jumps.
But as the final skater of the night, Malinin encountered a rough turn of events. He fell twice and downgraded several elements, and he even swapped a planned quadruple axel for a single axel, missing the breakthrough moment that had been anticipated.
Reflecting on the performance, Malinin admitted the nerves overwhelmed him, describing a flood of traumatic memories as he began his routine and acknowledging he did not manage them well.
The final tally stood at 264.49 points for Malinin, while Shaidorov finished with 291.58. The silver and bronze medals went to Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama and Shun Sato, respectively.
This is a developing situation and will be updated with further details and reactions.
