Ilia Malinin appeared comfortable bearing the burden of Olympic expectations – until he no longer was.

Ilia Malinin responds following his performance on the seventh day of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at the Milano Ice Skating Arena on Friday, February 13. Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Milan, Italy

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When Ilia Malinin’s score appeared on the screen following his free skate on Friday, it left everyone in disbelief.

Reporters exchanged glances in shocked silence, while spectators in the audience gaped with their mouths agape, their eyes even wider.

The eighth-place result seemed completely out of place next to his name. He was expected to triumph and create history in the process. This simply couldn’t be real.

But then the cruel reality of sport soon kicked in, and the realization of what had transpired in the previous five minutes began to dawn on those inside the Milano Ice Skating Arena.

Ilia Malinin performs a backflip during the final. 

(Piero Cruciatti/AFP/Getty Images)

The individual who calls himself the "Quad God" did not secure the gold medal. In fact, he did not earn any medal whatsoever.

While others attempted to come to grips with the astonishing outcome, Malinin was still trying to catch up with the whirlwind of emotions swirling in his mind.

"To be honest, I still haven’t managed to process what just occurred," the 21-year-old shared with reporters just moments after completing his routine.

"It’s a whirlwind of mixed feelings. Leading up to this event, I felt really confident the entire time, very steady. I believed that all I needed to do was go out there and have faith in the process.

"However, this isn’t just any competition; it’s the Olympics, and I think people only truly understand the pressure and nerves that come from within. It was something that completely overwhelmed me, and I felt as though I had lost control.

Malinin of Team United States falls over during his performance.

        ( Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Before any of the athletes took to the ice, everyone was talking about how, not if, Malilin was going to win gold. He had established a five-point lead over his closest rival after a superb short program routine earlier in the week and just needed to see it out again on Friday.

The conversation before had mainly centered around whether he would become the first skater to land a quadruple Axel at the Olympics, a move so difficult that only he had ever successfully performed it in competition.

If he were to lose to anyone, though, it would likely be to Yuma Kagiyama. So when the Japanese star struggled in the routine before Malinin, it left the door wide open for the American to secure his second Olympic gold.

He couldn’t miss. Until he did.

‘So many negative thoughts’

Malinin told reporters that the nerves really kicked in when he took his starting pose in the middle of the rink. When everyone sat on the edge of their seat, waiting for him produce magic, the youngster’s head was somewhere entirely different.