MILAN – Canadian figure skater Stephen Gogolev sits in 10th place after the men’s short program Tuesday at the Milan Cortina Olympic Games.
The 21-year-old from Toronto landed two quad jumps to score 87.41 points in his routine to “Mugzy’s Move” by Royal Crown Revue, in which he portrays a 1920s Prohibition-era gangster, completing the program despite having one of his boot laces shake loose midway through the skate.
The lively crowd at Milano Ice Skating Arena unleashed a loud cheer when Gogolev nailed his opening quad toe loop, triple-toe loop. An over-rotation on his triple axel, which forced him to put his foot down, was his only costly mistake.
Two-time reigning champion Ilia Malinin of the United States — the self-proclaimed “Quad God” — put on a dominant display with 108.16 points to lead after the short program.
Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama, the 2022 Olympic silver medallist, finished second with 103.07, and Adam Siao Him Fa of France was third with 102.55. Italy’s Daniel Grassl thrilled his home crowd, scoring 93.46 to land in fourth.
The men’s free program takes place Friday to decide the medals.
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It was an emotional, energetic evening from the very first group.
American skater Maxim Naumov delivered a touching performance in honour of his late parents Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who died in the American Airlines crash over the Potomac River on Jan. 29, 2025.
The words “Mom and Dad, this is for you,” projected on the big screen before his skate, and Naumov held up a picture of himself as a little boy on the ice with each of his parents in the kiss-and-cry. He sits 14th.
Two skaters later, Spain’s Tomas-Llorenc Guarino Sabate (25th) hit the ice in a yellow top and blue overalls for his lovable and mischievous “Minions” routine. The fan-favourite program almost didn’t have an Olympic moment because of a music rights dispute — ultimately solved Friday — that made international news at the Games.
Gogolev has enjoyed a coming-out party of sorts at the Games after dealing with injuries for years, sending Canada into the team event final in his Olympic debut last week with a personal-best 92.99 in the team event short program last week.
A child prodigy, Gogolev could land triple axels at 10 years old and became the youngest skater to land several quad jumps. Then a major growth spurt — Gogolev sprouted up from five to six feet — threw his coordination off balance, and subsequently led to persistent back problems.
In December of 2024, Gogolev shut another season down due to injury and wasn’t certain he’d ever be back. The University of Toronto student spent three months off the ice, starting with little more than walking, before transitioning to measured gym workouts and, eventually, skating sessions — deciding to give his once-promising skating career one last shot.
Finally healthy, he broke out this season with a gold medal on the Challenger series and captured his first Canadian title — seven years after winning a national silver medal at 14.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 10, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press