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 [...]
Mikhail Shaidorov: “I told Ilia after his performance that it was incredible to skate on the same ice with him. And he told me that I deserved this victory.”
Kazakh figure skater Mikhail Shaidorov reflected on the unexpected performance of American skater Ilia Malinin at the [...]
Evgeni Plushenko: “Watching Malinin, I couldn’t help but think of Salt Lake City. I was driven by a single goal: to win. And I burned out. It wasn’t the team event that drained him – it was the overwhelming hype, the constant media attention, endless photo shoots, and interviews.”
Two-time Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko shared his thoughts on why American figure skater Ilia Malinin [...]
“The tremendous stress ruined his entire program. I believe the team event drained all his energy!” Tatiana Tarasova on Malinin’s performance
Tatiana Tarasova expressed her opinion on how participating in the team event affected American figure skater Ilia [...]
Evgeni Plushenko: “Despite success in the short program, I still don’t have full confidence in Ilia Malinin’s ultimate victory.”
Two-time Olympic champion and renowned coach Evgeni Plushenko believes that American skater Ilya Malinin may not win [...]
Evgeni Plushenko: “If Malinin is mentally prepared and lands the quadruple axel, no one will beat him. But now, there’s no longer 100% certainty. Especially since the two Japanese skaters – Kagiyama and Sato – are very strong.”
Evgeni Plushenko named the main contenders for medals in the figure skating competitions at the 2026 Olympics in [...]
“It seemed that Malinin was emotionally burned out – he had spent too much energy, participating in various Olympic activities during his free time from training,” sports journalist Elena Vaytsekhovskaya
Russian sports journalist Elena Vaytsekhovskaya evaluated two-time world champion Ilia Malinin’s performance in the [...]
Tatiana Tarasova: “It was the first time I saw Malinin make mistakes. In my opinion, he had no energy. Maybe he is dealing with acclimatization.”
Tatiana Tarasova commented on the results of the men’s short program in the team event at the 2026 [...]
“It’s a great honor to receive a gift from Ovi.” and “I’m sure that when things return to normal, it would be possible.” Ilia Malinin on Alexander Ovechkin and visiting Russia
Ilia Malinin on Alexander Ovechkin and expressed openness and visiting Russia when the global situation becomes less [...]
“He’s just a normal, good guy! A sweetheart, as I call him. Open to communication, very calm. I didn’t notice any arrogance. Ilia speaks Russian, understands everything, but gives interviews in English.” Tuktamysheva on Ilia Malinin
World figure skating champion Elizaveta Tuktamysheva announced that she will go to the 2026 Olympics in Milan as a [...]
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: “The showdown between Fournier Beaudry/Cizeron and Chock/Bates will be truly intense. This is something you definitely need to see! Most likely, it will be the last time we see these pairs compete together.”
2015 World and European champion Elizaveta Tuktamysheva will serve as a correspondent for Okko at the 2026 Winter [...]
Evgeni Plushenko: “When you see the Olympic flags, you immediately get nervous! You have to fight that.” and “Mailin is doing quad axel, it’s unbelievable! Can you imagine how far he’s gone? I really hope he stays mentally strong.”
Evgeni Plushenko shares his perspective on the upcoming Milan Olympics, the challenges for Russian skaters, the rise [...]
Petr Gumennik: “Malinin has moved a level ahead; he certainly looks unreachable. But this doesn’t affect my own preparation, because I’ve already found my optimal content – difficult enough and confident enough.”
Petr Gumennik believes that the current world champion from the United States, Ilia Malinin, is currently [...]
Ilia Malinin: “Figure skating brings the extraordinary ability to connect deeply with an audience, both live and online. But a dark side emerges from the digital animosity masked as harmless opinion.”
American figure skater Ilia Malinin published a post about hate on social media. original source: Instagram [...]
Tatiana Tarasova: “I think that, for now, no one in the world can compete with Ilia Malinin – he is a confident leader.”
Tatina Tarasova called Ilia Malinin a genius of figure skating. original source: RIA Novosti [...]
Ilia Malinin: “Yuzuru has built a unique status in the world, and I don’t think anyone can surpass him. But reaching the level he was at during his competitive years gave me a huge sense of liberation.”
Interview with Ilia Malinin at Grand Prix Final held in Nagoya where he made history by landing seven quadruple jumps [...]
“At first, you see it and think, “Well, yes, he did seven quads.” But when you realize what just happened before your eyes, you understand the scale of the achievement. He’s a genius!” Tuktamysheva on Milinin’s seven quads
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva shared her impressions of Adeliia Petrosian and Petr Gumennik’s performances at the Russian [...]
Ari Zakarian “I also read carefully what is written in Russian media. I’ve seen commentators’ statements who aren’t thrilled with Ilia. I’ve heard some not-so-pleasant reviews.”
Ari Zakarian on whether Malinin is ready for his first Olympics. original source: Metaratings [...]
Petr Gumennik: “Malinin’s skate is on the edge of being demotivating. But you have to try to take something positive from everything. If he can do that, then theoretically anything is possible.”
Russian figure skater Petr Gumennik shared details about his preparation for the 2026 Russian Nationals. original [...]
“Nothing is impossible for him. He is perfection, and he keeps perfecting himself.” Tatiana Tarasova about Ilia Malinin
Tatiana Tarasova believes that American skater Ilia Malinin could become the first figure skater in history to land a [...]
Tatiana Tarasova: “Malinin took figure skating into a new, completely different world. What I saw truly stunned me. I can’t say it inspired me… I thought: how and what do we teach children now?”
Tatiana Tarasova: Malinin has taken figure skating into a completely different world. original source: Okko / [...]
“If someone had told me 15 years ago that in 2025 someone would land seven quadruple jumps, I wouldn’t have believed it! And I’m more than sure that 5S will happen in the near future!” Plushenko on Malinin
Evgeni Plushenko believes that American figure skater Ilia Malinin has not yet shown his maximum at the Grand Prix [...]
Ilia Malinin: “I took a risk when I decided to go for the quad axel combination. In practice, it was going well, so I wanted to try it. For me, it was a real passion to see if I could land it.”
American figure skater Ilia Malinin called his quad axel combination in the Grand Prix Final a risky move. original [...]
Ilia Malinin: “Skating is a part of my life, so I always have practice or competitions, even on my birthday. Right now, I’m at about 85% – I haven’t reached my ideal condition yet. At the Olympics, I want to be at 120%.”
Two-time reigning world champion Ilia Malinin is gradually shifting into higher gear as he prepares for the winter’s [...]