Backflip in "Crazy" figure! Is this for real? It's been 50 years since "Block of Gold" was broken. "It's full of emotions." [Milan Olympics]

*This content was translated by AI.

The so-called "backflip," which disappeared as a taboo technique in the figure skating competition at the Winter Olympics, has appeared for the first time in 50 years.

The team figure skating event at the 2026 Milan and Cortina D'Ampezzo Winter Olympics took place at the Milan Ice Skating Arena on the 7th (local time).

In the men's singles short program, Ilya Malinin (22, USA), the world's No. 1 player, appeared in the last order.

With the music swirling around the stadium, Malinin steadily performed high-level movements such as quadruple flip and triple axel.

Then an incredible sight unfolded. Malin seemed to catch his breath for a while, but he performed a backflip (backflip) technique.

The spectators gathered at the Milan Ice Skating Arena at his surprise backflip cheered and applauded.

Backflip on the figure skating stage was first performed by American figure skater Terry Kubitska during the 1976 Innsbruck Olympics in Austria.

However, this technique could no longer survive on the figure stage. The International Skating Union (ISU) banned backflip technology the following year because it was too dangerous. If the backflip technology is used, it is decided to impose a deduction, and no players are trying to backflip anymore.

In fact, some players were deducted points while performing backflip techniques. The 18th Nagano Winter Olympics in 1998. French female figure skater Surya Bonali was the main character. He tried the backflip technique during the performance and finished successfully without falling. However, the personality was somewhat different. At that time, the game was Bonali's retirement stage, and it is said that there was also a protest against the figure skating world at a time when African people were shunned compared to European and Asian people.

But how did this backflip technology appear again at the Milan Olympics. This is because ISU has recently allowed backflip technology to be deployed again.

ISU said in June 2024, "It is no longer logical to ban backflip techniques in modern figure games, where high-level techniques are becoming common," which was recognized as an official technology again.

And Malinin broke the taboo wall and used backflip technology for the first time in 50 years.

According to the Guardian and ESPN, Malinin said in an interview after acting, "It's really amazing and I feel like I'm going to fly. If the backflip is successful, all the spectators shout and fall into a trance. The moment I landed after the backflip, I felt that my choice was right," he said.

"I felt the backflip was a factor that boosted the popularity of the sport again. I also thought it was a performance that could attract fans who were not interested in figure skating. I wanted to break the limit. We compete in the same format all the time, and someone has to break down that wall. I hope my backflip will lead to more free expression for junior players," he said, expressing his impressions full of emotion.

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*This content was translated by AI.