Ilia Malinin Fan Thread!

[KCC]

I would love to see his schedule in Milan. Training on & off ice, media & social media, sleep, food, travel between venues, Olympic experience stuff, interacting with other athletes & fans, etc. The Olympic hype started a long time ago and builds in your head regardless of the pressure of that particular week, but I'd still like to know the general schedule structure of the week.

 

[vgerdes]

Really a lovely guy and, btw, an Olympic gold medalist. Onward.

There has been some chatter on socials about why Ilia was invited to skate in the gala, as an 8th place finisher. It's not that hard, people! He helped his team clinch Olympic gold. Maybe not the one he wanted, but a gold medal is still a gold medal. Hold your head high, Ilia.

 

[Debbie S]

There has been some chatter on socials about why Ilia was invited to skate in the gala, as an 8th place finisher. It's not that hard, people! He helped his team clinch Olympic gold. Maybe not the one he wanted, but a gold medal is still a gold medal. Hold your head high, Ilia.

And whether the haters want to admit it or not, Ilia is one of the skaters the ticket buyers came to see....not just b/c of the predicted result, but b/c he's also a great performer. And those gala tix were more expensive (at each price level) than the competitive events.

 

[Sylvia]

Ilia's post previewing his exhibition program on Saturday, Feb. 21st (Gala is 20:00-22:30 in Milan/2:00-4:30 pm ET): https://www.instagram.com/reel/DU0C9SODZHe/

On the world’s biggest stage, those who appear the strongest may still be fighting invisible battles on the inside. Even your happiest memories can end up tainted by the noise. Vile online hatred attacks the mind and fear lures it into the darkness, no matter how hard you try to stay sane through the endless insurmountable pressure. It all builds up as these moments flash before your eyes, resulting in an inevitable crash. This is that version of the story.

Coming February 21, 2026.

Music by @nfrealmusic
Choreography by @randistrong & @ilia_quadg0d_malinin
Audio by @jacob.skatess
Video by @iliaxquad & ilia malinin’s blonde hair dye (TikTok)

 

[Alilou]

Rafael Arutyunyan: “Ilia is not to blame, and I have already told him this. The fault lies with us, the adults, who failed to protect a young athlete from making wrong decisions.”

Rafael Arutyunyan commented on Ilia Malinin’s underwhelming performance at the 2026 Winter Olympics, where Malinin fell in the free skate and finished eighth in the individual event. The gold medal went to Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Shaidorov.Rafael Arutyunyan commented on Ilia Malinin’s underwhelming...

fs-gossips.com

 

[Wyliefan]

That's a nice thing for Raf to say. I don't remember him ever saying anything quite like that before.

 

[Sylvia]

Cross-posting the Google translation of the original RT.com article with Rafael Arutyunyan's comments from the U.S. Men's news thread in GSD - thanks @Alilou!

"All of us who were on Malinin's team now need to stop accepting condolences and openly acknowledge the mistakes that were made. Ilia is not to blame for anything, and I've already told him so. We, the adults, are to blame for failing to protect a rather young man from making the wrong moves.

"For various reasons, I don't feel it's possible to comment further on this topic, although Ilia and I discussed many important things in our personal conversations. I hope this will help him continue to live in sport and enjoy what he does," he told RT.

It was previously reported that Ilia Malinin will take part in exhibition performances at the Olympics [Feb. 21 gala].

 

[BittyBug]

I’ve been wondering whether some time with Raf away from his usual training environment wouldn’t do him some good. He might need a reboot.

 

[BittyBug]

I don’t think this article has yet been posted anywhere. Gifted NYT / Athletic link:

Ilia Malinin learning that the greats need to endure heartbreak

For Malinin, the path forward is clear. He is yearning to get back onto the ice.

www.nytimes.com

 

[Wyliefan]

Tara has some sweet pics of Ilia with her little girl.

Tara Lipinski | This moment 🥺 You can tell Ilia is a great big brother, he was just so sweet with Georgie. 🥇 | Instagram

4,921 likes, 67 comments - taralipinski on February 17, 2026: "This moment 🥺 You can tell Ilia is a great big brother, he was just so sweet with Georgie. 🥇".

www.instagram.com

 

[Sylvia]

^^^ Very cute!

Ilia and Simone Biles encountered each other on the Today Show’s set in Milan:

TODAY | Simone and Ilia run into each other on the Today Show. 🫶✨🐐 | Instagram

1,221 likes, 12 comments - todayshow on February 17, 2026: "Simone and Ilia run into each other on the Today Show. 🫶✨🐐".

www.instagram.com

TODAY | Simone and Ilia want to teach each other a thing or two. 🙂‍↕️ #Olympics | Instagram

260 likes, 4 comments - todayshow on February 17, 2026: "Simone and Ilia want to teach each other a thing or two. 🙂‍↕️ #Olympics".

www.instagram.com

“The Quad God” Ilia Malinin joins TODAY and reflects on his devastating finish in the men’s individual free skate at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics that shocked the figure skating world. "It's just a lot on you, so many eyes, so much attention...it really can get to you. I was not ready to handle that," he says. He also opens up about the moment he embraced the gold medal winner, Kazakhstan's Mikhail Shaidorov, and celebrates how men’s figure skating is back on the map.

Ilia's TODAY Show interview video (Feb. 17): https://www.today.com/video/olympia...his-mistakes-in-men-s-free-skate-257785413521

ETA - until today I missed seeing Craig Melvin's lengthy interview with Ilia (filmed before he left for Milan because Melvin did not make the trip there; uploaded on Feb. 13 before his FS): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDDaHydUPDU
"He reflects on a pivotal choice he made at age 13, how not making it to the 2022 Olympics turned him into a better skater, and the legacy he hopes to build for the next generation of figure skaters."

 

[Debbie S]

And whether the haters want to admit it or not, Ilia is one of the skaters the ticket buyers came to see....not just b/c of the predicted result, but b/c he's also a great performer. And those gala tix were more expensive (at each price level) than the competitive events.

And today's email from Fan26 (LOC email list) promoting the gala (well, if you hadn't priced tix so high you might have sold more....) has an image of Ilia backflipping in his Vampire FS as the top image in the email. They know Ilia's announced presence will sell tix.