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For Ilia Malinin, his first Winter Olympics makes for a family affair

Christine Brennan, USA TODAYJanuary 10, 2026 at 10:27 PM

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ST. LOUIS — The surest thing in the Winter Olympic world over the past several years has come to pass: Ilia Malinin, the son of Olympians, is now officially an Olympian himself.

Spinning mid-ice as his music came to an end, his blond hair rippling, the 21-year-old Malinin nodded approvingly as he finished his long program, knowing he had accomplished what he came to the 2026 U.S. figure skating championships to do.

The “Quad God” toned it down considerably Saturday night, landing “just” three quadruple jumps compared with the seven he uncorked a month ago at the Grand Prix Final. He is having issues with the new skates he has been breaking in for the rest of the season, and since there was no challenger even close to him at these nationals, he didn’t have to push himself or press his luck.

Watch our exclusive conversation with Ilia Malinin in the debut episode of our Milan Magic Olympics podcast. Subscribe and listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon

“I decided to take it a little more safe,” he said afterward. “I was a little unsure what I was going to do so I decided not to go for any risks. I’m sure in a few weeks (the skates) will be in perfect condition.”

Funny being so good and so much better than everyone else that you can basically glide through your national championships into the Olympics, but that’s how talented Malinin is. The Milan Winter Olympics will present an entirely different storyline, but Malinin is predicted to win there as well.

On a messy night of men’s skating, a distinct contrast from the excellent women’s event here the night before, Malinin won by more than 50 points. He finished with 324.88 points to 267.62 for the second-place finisher, Andrew Torgashev. Maxim Naumov, who lost both of his parents in the midair collision over Washington nearly a year ago, finished a surprising third with 249.16 points.

Jason Brown, 31, the venerable artist on the ice, endured a very difficult skate with multiple mistakes and dropped to eighth place.

So the story was Malinin, as it has been in American men’s skating since the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics ended. This was his fourth consecutive men’s national title. But this time, an Olympic berth was attached.

How fitting that is for him, and his family. It will be the fifth Olympics for all of them. His mother, Tatiana Malinina, competed at 10 consecutive world figure skating championships for Uzbekistan. She finished eighth at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, the competition in which Tara Lipinski won the gold medal and Michelle Kwan the silver. Malinina finished fourth at the 1999 world championships as well, and she also competed at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, but withdrew after the short program with the flu.

Malinin’s father, Roman Skorniakov, represented Uzbekistan at the same two Olympics, 1998 and 2002, finishing 19th both times. They were married in 2000 and became skating coaches in the United States, moving to the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., where, in December 2004, Ilia was born. He took the Russian masculine form of his mother’s last name because his parents were concerned that Skorniakov was too difficult to pronounce.

No one is having any problem pronouncing Malinin. It is, after all, the name of the United States' newest and most promising Olympic star.

1 / 17Ilia Malinin: World champion, from US looks to first Winter OlympicsIlia Malinin acknowledges the applause in the men's short program during the U.S. Figure Skating Championships at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022. Malinin finished in third place.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Figure skating star Ilia Malinin locks up spot for 2026 Winter Olympics

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Source: “AOL Sports”