Coming into the Winter Olympics, Ilia Malinin was expected to bag a bunch of gold medals. But most surprisingly, the 21-year-old failed to even make it to the podium. But instead of being heartbroken, Malinin has a fresh stance towards his loss.

“I think honestly, you learn more from losing than you do winning, so I think I’m definitely gonna be able to learn a lot from this so I can come back better and stronger and really just know what I was up against,” said Malinin in an exclusive interview with People. 

“It’s one thing to experience the Olympics for the first time, but it’s another to go again and know what’s gonna happen and really know how to prepare yourself better.”

The ‘Quad God’ helped his team secure a gold earlier in the tournament. But when it came to the high-octane individual clash, Malinin fumbled big time.

Falling twice during his free skate routine, the 21-year-old ended his Milano Cortina campaign placed at number 8. 

Notably, this is quite a shift in Malinin’s mindset from how he perceived the games before.

Riding high on confidence, the American figure skater planned to land seven quadruple jumps in a single program. But when reality struck, Malinin accepted that he ‘underestimated’ the brutal pressure of the Olympics.

Stepping into Milano Cortina, the two-time world champion wanted to clinch the Olympic gold in his very first Games. He was also dreaming of landing his ‘quad Axel.’ A jump that the Olympic realm had never seen before.

Unfortunately, Malinin thought that he had everything under control. And it is for the same reason that he believes that he lost the battle on the ice. 

But amidst the heartbreak, Malinin received the support from none other than the GOAT.

Simone Biles enters protection mode after Malinin’s Olympic setback concerns

Starting from Tom Brady, Simone Biles, Snoop Dogg, and Tara Lipinski, many stood by Malinin. But the loudest support came from the person who herself has faced it all.

Simone Biles.

Right after Malinin faced the unforeseen setback on the Olympic stage, Biles got extremely concerned, as she shared, “I was really worried about how his mental health was going to be.”

On February 17, while having a conversation with Olympics.com, Biles further added, “When you’re expected to skate a performance of your lifetime, and you don’t deliver, I worry how that affects his mental and how the world is going to view that.”

Watching Malinin under the Olympic limelight with the pressure of the nation’s expectations on his shoulders, Biles could understand what the 21-year-old was going through because she herself was in those shoes just about 5 years back. 

Simone Biles decided to step back while she was forced to withdraw from the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. She was suffering from a mental health setback, ‘Twisties.’

However, she fought back and claimed her crown at Paris.

Reflecting on the situation Malinin is fighting against, Simone recalled, “I’ve been through that firsthand, and so I really went into protection mode.”