Ilia Malinin’s Quiet Redemption At The Olympic Gala After Gold Slips Away

NEED TO KNOW

• Ilia Malinin stepped back onto Olympic ice on Feb. 21 for the annual figure skating exhibition gala
• He was met with thunderous applause after completing his performance
• The skater had previously shared that his program would center on mental health

A little more than a week after his pursuit of an individual Olympic gold medal came up short, Ilia Malinin made an emotional return to Olympic ice during the traditional figure skating exhibition gala.

The 21-year-old delivered a striking performance on Saturday, Feb. 21, skating to “Fear” by NF — a routine he had earlier hinted would explore mental health. Following his difficult final skate on Feb. 13, Malinin admitted he had been overwhelmed by “negative thoughts” just moments before taking the ice, a mental spiral that disrupted his focus and ultimately resulted in an eighth-place finish.

During the gala, Malinin skated in a sweatshirt and opened his program by physically swatting away the notification sounds woven into the music — a symbolic gesture representing the toll of social media on his mental well-being. As the routine came to an end, capped by his signature backflip, he appeared visibly emotional, standing still as the crowd erupted in sustained applause.

Malinin had offered fans a glimpse of what was to come in an Instagram post shared on Feb. 16.

“On the world’s biggest stage, those who appear the strongest may still be fighting invisible battles on the inside,” he wrote. “Even the 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.”

The exhibition gala is a long-standing post-competition tradition that brings together medalists from all three completed figure skating disciplines, along with other standout athletes from around the globe. This year’s lineup features Malinin alongside Alysa Liu, Amber Glenn, Madison Chock and Evan Bates, Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea, Mikhail Shaidorov, and Guillaume Cizeron with Laurence Fournier Beaudry.

With no judges and no medals at stake, skaters are encouraged to experiment, relax, and show a different side of themselves. Earlier in the evening, Malinin also joined his teammates for a group performance, adding to the celebratory tone of the night.

Speaking with PEOPLE several days after the competition concluded, Malinin reflected on his Olympic journey, saying he felt he gained more perspective through defeat than victory.

“I think honestly, you learn more from losing than you do winning, so I think I’m definitely gonna be able to learn a lot from this so I can come back better and stronger and really just know what I was up against,” he said. “It’s one thing to experience the Olympics for the first time, but it’s another to go again and know what’s gonna happen and really know how to prepare yourself better.”

He also spoke candidly about being there for teammate Amber Glenn, whose competition began with a difficult short program before she rebounded with a standout free skate.

“I’ve told her that, you know, this is something that we all go through,” he said. “It’s, you know, it’s not always a pleasant feeling, but it’s something that we need to embrace and we have to move on from no matter what, because no matter what happens, we always have to get up and go do it again.”

To learn more about all the Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, visit people.com for continuing coverage before, during, and after the Games. The Milan Cortina Olympics and Paralympics begin Feb. 6 and will air on NBC and Peacock.