Ilia Malinin: The 20-year-old American figure skater redefining the sport

"The best figure skater of his generation may just go down as the best of any generation. He's capable of landing jumps nobody else can, with creativity that is nearly unmatched and plenty of artistry to go with all of his otherworldly execution. All that Ilia Malinin must do now is deliver on the Olympic stage. The 20-year-old American phenom has waited four long years for the Milan Cortina Games, after he was controversially left off the U.S. team for the Beijing Olympics."

"Malinin's Russian-born mother, Tatiana Malinina, competed at the 1998 Olympics for Uzbekistan, and won the prestigious Grand Prix Final the next year. His Russian-born father, Roman Skorniakov, competed for Uzbekistan at both the 1998 and 2002 Winter Games. Malinin's genes go deeper, though. His grandfather, Valery Malinin, competed for the Soviet Union and still coaches in Russia. So it was never really a question whether he would go into the family business."

Ilia Malinin is a 20-year-old American figure skater known for landing jumps others cannot, pairing exceptional technical difficulty with creativity and artistry. He missed the Beijing Olympics due to age and inexperience, which motivated him to dominate the following quadrennial. Malinin won consecutive world titles, most recently in Boston, and has been undefeated across competitions for roughly two years, including Grand Prix events and four straight national championships. His scores rival the highest in history, matching benchmarks set by Nathan Chen. Malinin comes from a family of elite skaters: his mother and father competed for Uzbekistan and his grandfather competed for the Soviet Union and coaches in Russia.

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