Ilia Malinin is always on the move.
As a figure skater, globetrotting is nothing new for the back-to-back men’s figure skating world champion, but his jetsetting has only ramped up in 2026.
The “Quad God” entered the Winter Olympic Games looking to make history, and he did, both positively and negatively.
He carried the United States of America in the team event to begin the Olympics, performing in both the short program and free skate segments, leading his country to a one-point victory over Japan with his final performance.
And after all the fanfare surrounding him since his Olympic debut, it all came crashing down during his climactic competitive skate, when his uncharacteristic mistakes dropped him off the podium.
While he gained a little bit of redemption in the Olympic Exhibition Gala with a prideful, flawless skate to say goodbye to the Milan crowd, his first real step towards erasing what happened in the men’s individual free skate will be in a few weeks at the World Championships in Prague.
Before heading to Czechia, though, Malinin took a small detour to Switzerland for an ice-skating exhibition, where he tore the house down with his physics-defying maneuvers on the ice.
The ice skating rink wasn’t the only place he visited in Switzerland, though, as Malinin posted on social media on Friday that he also met with FIFA officials at their headquarters in Zurich.
Although he didn’t reveal all the details, the 21-year-old teased that he might have some sort of collaboration with FIFA when the World Cup comes to the United States this summer.
“Had a fun visit to the @fifa headquarters in Zurich during my Art On Ice trip,” he said. “Looking forward to watching the FIFA World Cup soon, and perhaps you might see me there (not playing obviously).”
Although Malinin confirmed he won’t be suiting up for the United States, manager Mauricio Pochettino might have to make a change if he sees Malinin’s jumping abilities in person.
