Ilia Malinin, the 'Quad God,' Sets Olympic Record with Historic Backflip and Leads USA to Figure Skating Team Gold

At just 21 years old, Ilia Malinin has redefined what's possible in Olympic figure skating, executing the first legal backflip at the Winter Games since 1976 while leading Team USA to team gold and positioning himself as the overwhelming favorite for individual glory at the Milan-Cortina Olympics.

The Virginia-born skater, dubbed the "Quad God" for his unprecedented mastery of the quadruple axel jump, sent the Milan crowd into a frenzy with his historic backflip performance in Sunday's team event, becoming the first athlete to successfully land the move on one foot at an Olympic Games since the technique was banned nearly five decades ago.

Despite making technical errors in the team event, Malinin was still the only competitor to break the 200-point barrier, securing USA's second consecutive Olympic team gold by a single point over Japan in one of the closest finishes in Olympic figure skating history.

"It's his Olympics to lose," Olympic champion Robin Cousins told BBC Sport. "After watching him over the last five years — he has grown. The talent was always there; he is otherworldly in that respect. Anyone lucky enough to be in Milan, it will be one of those 'I was there' moments."

Malinin's dominance reached new heights Tuesday when he cleaned up his technical errors in the individual men's short program, blasting to the top of the leaderboard and putting himself in pole position for his second Olympic gold medal ahead of Friday's free skate competition.

The performance showcased why Malinin has not lost a competition in nearly two and a half years. His unique combination of athleticism, technical innovation, and showmanship has revolutionized men's figure skating, setting standards that his competitors struggle to match.

The backflip that captivated Milan audiences was more than just theatrics — it represented a historic moment in Olympic sport. The move was famously banned after American Terry Kubicka performed it at the 1976 Olympics, deemed too dangerous for competition. France's Surya Bonaly performed an illegal backflip at the 1998 Nagano Games, but Malinin became the first to execute the now-legal technique on one foot at an Olympic venue.

Born to Olympic figure skaters from Uzbekistan — Tatiana Malinina and Roman Skorniakov — Malinin carries the masculine version of his mother's maiden name, as his parents worried "Skorniakov" would be too difficult for American audiences to pronounce. His maternal grandfather, Valery Malinin, is a renowned figure skating coach in Russia.

This Olympic pedigree, combined with natural athleticism, has produced what many consider the physical ideal of the modern male figure skater. Scientific analysis reveals the astonishing nature of Malinin's abilities: when performing his signature quadruple axel, he launches himself 90 centimeters into the air — equivalent to an NBA player's standing jump — while spinning at 350 revolutions per minute, the speed of a kitchen blender.

The quadruple axel, which requires four and a half spins in the air before landing backwards, remains Malinin's exclusive domain. No other skater has successfully landed this element in competition, giving him an insurmountable technical advantage over his rivals.

Interestingly, Malinin hasn't even needed his most difficult jumps to dominate at these Olympics. He opted for triple axels instead of his planned quadruple versions in both the team event and individual short program, still executing them so perfectly that they provided a net scoring benefit despite the reduced difficulty.

The strategic decision reflects Malinin's maturity and confidence in his abilities. "I didn't want to go full capacity," he explained after the team victory. "I want to pace myself correctly going up to the individuals. It was just such an honor — all my teammates, we have this passion for figure skating."

His free skate program, where Malinin truly dominates, carries a technical score far higher than any competitor. At December's Grand Prix Final, he finished third after the short program but still won by 30 points after the free skate — a margin that reflects his devastating combination of technical difficulty and artistic execution.

The physics behind Malinin's jumping ability are extraordinary. While average skaters performing triple axels travel 2.77 meters in distance at 60 centimeters height, Malinin's quadruple axel sends him just 2.38 meters but to a towering 90 centimeters — demonstrating his ability to trade horizontal distance for crucial vertical height.

Landing these jumps requires absorbing tremendous force on a single leg while maintaining perfect form, all while stopping rotational momentum on ice using only a metal blade. The technical demands explain why only Malinin has mastered these elements at the highest level.

As Friday's individual free skate approaches, all eyes turn to whether Malinin will unleash his full technical arsenal, including the quadruple axel that has become his calling card. With Team USA's gold already secured and individual glory within reach, these Milan-Cortina Games are positioning themselves as the moment when figure skating's "Quad God" ascends to legendary status in Olympic sport.