Who is Mikhail Shaidorov, the new Olympic figure skating champion in Milano Cortina, and who inspired him: “He paved the way”

An interesting new figure is garnering more attention after his shock victory, in a good way, in the men's figure skating competition at Milano Cortina. Emotions seemed to be higher for Mikhail Shaidorov after he finished his evolution and sat on the scan reserved for the current leader.

After each skater who was going to present his program was ready to stand up and leave the provisional throne. It was not the case, and the emotions rose in intensity as the opponents failed to overcome him.

He came out on the ice second in the final group, skating on “The Diva Dance“, and he had quite a wait. But his evolution had left a strong mark thanks to the difficulty and ease – with 5 quadruple jumps in the program, all successful, he was rewarded with a score of 198.64 in the free, totaling 291.58. The best result of his career, after the short program he was 5th.

Italian Daniel Grassi not surpassed, neither the French Adam Xiao Him Fathis being the third after “short”. Then Yuma Kagiyama and especially Ilia Malininthey reacted badly to the pressure. Shaidorov watched everything with a stony face.

“When I realized I won the bronze, I felt like the happiest person in the world that day“, he admitted, once free of emotions, to the Olympics. “But when I got to the silver, it was like my head exploded. Then when I realized I won the gold, it was incredible for me. That means all my work was not in vain”, added Mikhail.

My target was to show all I can do, to show a good evolution and how much figure skating has grown in Kazakhstan – Mikhail Shaidorov

After his disastrous program, Ilia Malinin, the heavy favorite, came up to Mikhail and the two embraced, with the American congratulating the champion on his achievement.

Mikhail Shaidorov, tribute to compatriot Denis Ten

The triumph also has an undercurrent of sadness. The late Kazakh skater Denis Ten won the first Olympic medal in this sport for Kazakhstan, bronze in 2014 in Sochi. “It would probably mean a lot to Denis because he paved the way for us“, reflected Shaidorov.

Tan, medalist and silver (2013) and bronze (2015) world, he lost his life in a shocking waybeing fatally stabbed in the thigh by two thieves who wanted to steal his car mirrors, worth only $68. The episode took place in Almaty on July 19, 2018, and Ten lost 3 liters of blood, dying in hospital three hours after being admitted. He was only 25 years old.

Denis Ten performing at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games Photo: Imago Images

“He paved the way for young athletes, not just me. This road was probably full of thorns for him, and for me, but that's how it was. I want to thank Denis for what he has done for our sport, for our country“.

Shaidorov, who is coached by Lillehammer 1994 Olympic champion Alexei Urmanov (52), won Kazakhstan's first medal since Pyeongchang 2018.

“It means a lot to me and to my country. I will do everything I can so that many children can join this sport, so that there are conditions and so that this medal brings a lot of motivation to young people who now know that there are no limits,” Mikhail rounded off his plea.

Mikhail Shaidorov started skating at the mall

Born in Almaty, he comes from a family where figure skating played an important role. His father, Stanislav, was a six-time national champion. Mikhail started practicing the sport where he could: on the ice rink of a nearby shopping center.

When that wasn't enough, he left the country and went to Sochi, Russia, where he began working with Urmanov. “I don't have the same conditions as top athletes in Japan, USA, South Korea and so on“, he said last year in an interview for Tengri News. “I didn't move to Sochi, I just started there to improve my training conditions“, he added.

“My father played a very important role in my life. First of all, he taught me the basics of figure skating from a young age, and this foundation is the most important thing. Thanks to him, I was able to progress and train under the guidance of such an important personality as Alexei Urmanov,” revealed Shaidorov.

Mikhail Shaidorov during the free program at the 2026 Olympics Photo: Imago Images

“Even now, my father plays an important role. He supports me, criticizes me and gives me advice. We have excellent communication with all my coaches and specialists, and my father also gives me professional advice. This teamwork has been very positive for me. I am incredibly lucky to have a united team that feels like a big family,” he stated in the same interview.

“For me, the goal is to participate in the Olympics, to enjoy the experience of the biggest sporting event on the planet and, above all, to enjoy what I do. I'm not thinking about medals yet. I simply want to demonstrate my skills and talent and make the most of them“, he assured last year. Now he doesn't think about the medal anymore because he already has one. The most precious one.