The nickname 'Quad God' implies a certain level of invincibility, a divine separation from the mere mortals of the rink who struggle with gravity. For Ilia Malinin, who arrived at these games as the overwhelming favourite, the title was not just a moniker but a promise he intended to keep. Yet, in a sport that demands perfection on a knife-edge, the ice proved unforgivingly slippery.

The world watched in stunned silence as the American phenomenon's gold medal hopes dissolved into a series of shocking falls, clearing the path for one of the greatest upsets in the sport's history.

The Heavy Burden Of History And Expectation

Malinin has never been one to shy away from his own hype. He completed his backstage warm-up clad in a tight black vest emblazoned with 'Quad God' in gold sequins, a wardrobe choice that screamed confidence. He entered the free skate chasing history, aiming to become the first man to land seven quads in a single Olympic programme.

This ambition included the devilishly difficult quad axel, the only jump that takes off from a forward outside edge. It leaves almost no margin for error on landing. Only four years ago, Malinin became the first skater to execute this dazzlingly difficult jump in competition. He has also made no secret of his ambition to become the first to land a quint, with its five dizzying rotations.

A Nightmarish Unravelling On The Ice

The Assago Forum held its collective breath in expectation but was left in shock rather than awe. Malinin landed the quad flip to open, but the cracks appeared almost immediately. He stuttered on the axel, managing only a single rotation in a moment that sent a ripple of unease through the crowd.

Things quickly went from bad to worse. He stepped out of the Lutz and could add only a double toe loop. The crowd sat stunned. Malinin's eyes widened with disbelief as everything he had worked for appeared to collapse around him, while he just fell down.

He bailed on the lutz, recovered to land the toe loop, then crashed again on the salchow. It was brutal to watch, as dramatic a meltdown as Olympic figure skating has witnessed. The mistakes dropped Malinin all the way to eighth place. For a skater who'd been so consistently brilliant, it was shocking.

Backstage Bewilderment

Backstage felt surreal. Malinin moved through the crowd of reporters and cameras like he was in a fog, still trying to process what had just happened out there on the ice.

'I'm speechless,' he said. 'I'm in shock, I just blew it, the first thing that came to my mind was there's no way that just happened.'

He continued, attempting to find a reason for the failure. 'Maybe I was too confident, I just can't process this right now, I just have no words, it's just crazy. I've trained all season to skate as well as I can. It just didn't happen for me. It's out of control. I just need to look to the future and make sure this never happens again.'

An Unlikely Champion Seizes The Moment

While the favourite faltered, a 100-1 outsider seized the opportunity of a lifetime. Kazakhstan's Mikhail Shaidorov had been fifth after the short programme, sitting nearly 16 points behind Malinin.

Shaidorov produced a stunning career-best routine built around five precise quadruple jumps. He then watched, almost shaking with disbelief, as those ahead faltered. What should have been a brief stay in the leaders' chair turned into a sit-in.

France's Adam Siao Him Fa, third at halfway, dropped to seventh. Japan's Yuma Kagiyama, the silver medallist in 2022, could not capitalise either in a programme littered with errors, though it was enough to secure silver again. His compatriot Shun Sato took bronze.

Echoes Of Skating Legends Past

The shock result stands in stark contrast to the history of the sport. It is 50 years since John Curry won Olympic gold for Great Britain with a routine that was balletic rather than athletic. That performance landed three triples and would resemble a different sport at these Games.

Four years later, Robin Cousins' brilliance, built around his signature triple lutz, carried him to gold in Lake Placid. Not until 1988 did Canadian Kurt Browning land the first quad, a toe loop, in competition.

Shaidorov, just 21, was second behind Malinin at last year's Worlds, but no-one gave him a chance of gold here. The minor medals seemed the limit of his ambition. Yet, in a sport built on rotation and risk, it was not the self-styled Quad God but the overlooked outsider who kept his feet. In the high-stakes theatre of the Winter Olympics, remaining upright proved to be the hardest skill of all.

Originally published on IBTimes UK