The American figure skater, Ilia Malinin has got some serious skills, and it’s not just all from skating—this guy’s been doing gymnastics off the ice since forever. No wonder he pulls off those insane quadruple jumps like it’s no big deal. He even bagged the world champ title at 19 last March. And guess what? All that flipping he does? Turns out, the backflip, which was banned for years because it’s risky, is back in play thanks to the ISU lifting the restriction last season. Malinin didn’t waste a second—he whipped out a backflip at the Lombardia Trophy last month and, surprise surprise, took the win.

Fast forward to Skate America, he had everyone on the edge of their seats just a few days ago. He might’ve had a little slip-up on his quad flip, but he bounced back with a perfect triple Axel and a quad Lutz-triple toe combo, finishing off with that epic backflip. He scored 290.12 points and snatched his third Skate America title in a row, leaving stars like Kevin Aymoz and Kao Miura trailing behind. The Grand Prix season’s off to a crazy start, and Malinin’s leading the charge. At just 19, this Virginia native is now the fourth U.S. men’s skater to win three straight Skate America golds. So, how did his journey get started?

Ilia Malinin has just followed in the footsteps of his figure skater parents

Curious about where Ilia Malinin’s got all those mad skating skills? Well, look no further than his parents! Malinin’s talent isn’t just a fluke—his Russian-born parents, Tatiana Malinina and Roman Skorniakov, were Olympic skaters themselves, repping Uzbekistan on the world stage. They’ve been coaching him in Reston, Virginia since he was just 6 years old. But that’s not all! The skating magic goes even further back.

Ilia’s grandpa, Valery Malinin, is a coach, too. Back in the day, he competed for the Soviet Union and now trains skaters in Novosibirsk, a major city in Siberia. He’s actually the one who put little Tatiana on the ice when she was just 5, setting the wheels—or rather, blades—in motion for this family’s skating dynasty.

And like mother, like son! Valery proudly shared in an interview with Sport24 that Tatiana was landing double axels at just 9—pretty impressive for the time. He also credits much of Ilia’s success to his mom’s determination, saying she’s always been a goal-getter. “If she wanted it, she would achieve it,” Valery said, explaining how she poured all her energy into making Ilia a top-tier athlete. It’s safe to say, that talent and ambition run deep in the Malinin family and Ilia is just taking the legacy forward with his achievements.

Learn about the major achievements of Ilia Malinin in the world of figure skating

Ilia Malinin started skating at the age of six and spent a lot of time around the rink with his coach’s parents, and soon he began to rise through in the ice ring. He was on top in October 2022 becoming the only ever figure skater to land a quadruple Axel at competition: U.S. Figure Skating Classic. That year, he also went on to become the youngest men’s Skate America champion in history and set up even bigger moments.

And then Ilia was breaking records left, right, and center in 2023. He is the fifth man to break 300 points in a competition in history, achieved at Skate America. He also stunned the world by hitting a quad Axel in a short program at the Grand Prix Final becoming known as “Quad God”. This kid was really upping the ante.

Fast forward to the 2024 World Figure Skating Championships, where Ilia took the ice with an extended version of the Succession theme. His performance was mind-blowing! Not only did he grab the world title in the free skate, but he also set a new world record for the highest score ever. And courtesy of his signature quadruple Axel and five other quads that nearly took one’s breath away, he soared from third all the way to the top as the crowd gasped their approval and commentators buzzed. Remember the name, Ilia Malinin!