The Quad God’s first Olympics might be over, but he made quite a (high-fashion) statement for his final skate of the worldwide event.
For Saturday’s Figure Skating Exhibition Gala, Ilia Malinin wore a look that would have perhaps been more comfortable off the ice.
The 21-year-old seemed as though he strolled onto the ice in his street clothes, choosing trompe l’oeil black-and-white jeans and a gray sweatshirt.
The jeans in question are actually runway-ready Balmain jeans ($1,290). He paired them with a dark gray hoodie from NF ($90) that read “Fear” in upside-down letters across his chest.
Appropriately, the song he skated to was “Fear” by NF, during which he performed a powerful skate that reflected his mental health struggles and the pressures he feels from fans and critics alike.
“I have something pretty special planned,” he shared with NBC ahead of the Gala. “And I think that … I hope I can bring lots of emotion and lots of energy to the rink,” he concluded.
Though he did not attempt a quadruple axel — the move which earned him the “Quad God” nickname” — during his final performance on Olympic ice, he did complete one of his signature backflips.
In fact, it was one of two backflips he completed during the event, flipping through the air among his teammates for a group skate as well.
Malinin received a gold medal for the US Figure Skating team medal, for which he skated both the short as well as the free programs for the men.
He did not, however, medal at all for the men’s singles event, where he was heavily favored to take first place.
Speaking with NBC after the event, he shared, “I think it was definitely mental,” adding, “It’s not like any other competition.”
In a press conference later, he further explained, “I think people only realize the pressure in the nerves that actually happen from the inside, so it was really just something that overwhelmed me and I just felt like I had no control.”
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