American Figure Skater Ilia Malinin Lands 1st Quad Axel Ever in Competition

Ilia Malinin wrote his name into the record books Wednesday.

The 17-year-old landed a quad axel in the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic, becoming the first to do so in competition.

"When I’m practicing it, it's pretty easy for me to figure out how to get the right timing and everything to have it be a good attempt," Malinin said of the difficult jump. "To do it in competition is a different story, because you have nerves and pressure that can get in the way of that. So I have to treat it like I'm at home, and it feels pretty good."

Malinin finished with an overall score of 257.28 to coast to a gold medal. France's Kevin Aymoz won silver, with American Camden Pulkinen rounding out the podium.

Malinin is among the U.S. representatives for this year's Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series, which kicks off Oct. 21 with the Skate America. There, the Virginia native will have an opportunity to test himself against the best in the world ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics.