U.S. figure skating phenom Ilia Malinin, the “Quad God” who helped secure team gold for the States before a devastating performance in the men’s free skate, is sticking around Milan for the figure skating exhibition gala next weekend, according to USA Today’s Christine Brennan.
The report arrives just days after an emotional Malinin held back tears as he left the ice, where he was a heavy favorite going into the free skate. But he took two falls among other mistakes on a night where he shocked fans for reasons he didn’t wish, leaving with his worst final score (264.49) in almost four years.
The 21-year-old is expected to take part in the non-medal exhibition event on Saturday, a day before the Winter Olympics closing ceremony, a source told the veteran sports journalist at USA Today.
The gala typically sees medalists (and, on occasion, fourth-place finishers and natives of the host country) performing for the crowd, making the inclusion of Malinin — who finished in eighth place overall in the men’s singles competition — “almost unheard of,” per Brennan.
The “Quad God” is also set to travel to Prague next month, where he looks to hold onto his crown at this year’s world championships. He’s won back-to-back world figure skating titles.
