Ilya Malinin: The quadruple god will dominate the Winter Olympics

Thanks to his natural athleticism, Malinin has also been embraced in an ideal training environment.

Born in Virginia to immigrants from Eastern Europe, his parents — Tatiana Malinina and Roman Skorniakov — represented Uzbekistan in figure skating at the Olympics.

Malinin has the masculine version of his mother’s maiden name, as his parents were concerned that Skornyakov would be too difficult for Americans to pronounce – and his maternal grandfather, Valery Malinin, is a figure skating coach in Russia.

This environment may have produced the physical model of the figure skater. When broken down into scientific numbers, Malinin’s ability becomes truly astonishing.

Take a triple Axel. Analysis carried out at the most recent World Championships showed that the average skater, when successfully performing this element, jumped a distance of 2.77 meters and reached a height of about 60 cm.

In contrast, Malinin’s quad axel sends it just 2.38 meters away – but to a height of 90 cm, which is similar to an NBA player’s standing jump.

To perform an axel jump, the skater — traveling at about 15 miles per hour — swings his shoulders to turn, pulling his arms and legs inward to maintain angular momentum.

In order to successfully perform four and a half revolutions, Malinen must spin at about 350 revolutions per minute — a rate similar to a regular kitchen mixer.

Then he has to land it, with huge amounts of force going through one leg while maintaining perfect form with the other, and the rest of his body.

Most sports mitigate the shock of landing by using soft shoes or surfaces; Malinin lands on the ice on a metal blade – all while stopping the force of rotation. And while you don’t feel dizzy.

That’s why he’s called the “fourfold god.” That’s why these could be Malinin’s games.