In the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics, the competition was intense with talented athletes under immense pressure, having to juggle both their sports performance and academic responsibilities. Canadian figure skater Madeline Schizas recently became a media sensation due to a leave of absence letter, which also moved a professor who had no prior knowledge of her status as an Olympic athlete.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Schizas is currently a student at McMaster University in Canada. Last Friday, February 6th, she missed the deadline for a sociology course reflection report as she was busy representing Canada in the figure skating team event.
Early the next day, February 7th, after performing difficult moves like a double axel and a triple loop, Schizas promptly emailed Professor Vic Satzewich to request an extension for her assignment.
“I am a student in your Sociology 2FF3 course, and I would like to inquire about the possibility of extending the deadline for this week’s reflection assignment,” she wrote in the email. “I was competing in the Olympics yesterday and mistakenly believed the deadline was on Sunday instead of Friday.” To prove her claim, she even attached a link to the Canadian Olympic Committee’s press release in the email.
Professor Satzewich told The Wall Street Journal that prior to receiving the email, he had no idea that among the over two hundred students enrolled in this online course, there was a world-class figure skater. He revealed that Schizas had introduced herself very modestly at the beginning of the semester, not mentioning her participation in the Beijing Winter Olympics, only writing about “typical young people things”.
The professor was deeply touched by this: “I appreciate her not seeking special treatment for this. The fact that she was still thinking about her studies during the Olympics shows her character.” In the end, the professor gladly approved the extension request.
Schizas later shared this good news with her fans on Instagram, captioning it, “I ❤️ being a student-athlete.”
22-year-old Schizas, born in Oakville, Ontario, is on her second Olympic journey. In the team event short program on February 8th, despite an unexpected music interruption, Schizas remained composed, filed a complaint, and successfully completed her performance, ultimately securing sixth place and contributing 3 valuable points to Team Canada.
Although this sociology assignment only accounted for 3% of the final grade, Schizas’s dedication to her studies has won her widespread praise from netizens and the university. McMaster University released an interview video in 2024, praising her for perfectly balancing training and learning. In the video, Schizas stated, “The support from the professors makes it all much easier.”