At the Winter Olympics in Milan, a legendary moment of cross-domain tribute occurred when the “Quad King” encountered the tennis legend on the ice. American figure skating star Ilia Malinin showcased his incredible skills on the ice, leaving tennis ace Novak Djokovic stunned with hands on his head, sparking a heated discussion on social media.
During the team event of the men’s free skate on Sunday, Djokovic, who had just finished his Australian Open campaign, appeared at the Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan with his wife Jelena. The broadcast captured the moment when Malinin, known as the “Quad King,” performed his challenging moves, leaving the tennis superstar visibly amazed with hands on his head and mouth wide open, clearly impressed by the “ice acrobatics” before him.
The 21-year-old Malinin was pleasantly surprised to learn from reporters that Djokovic had watched his performance live at the venue and had such a strong reaction. Speaking to Sports Illustrated, Malinin said, “I did see Djokovic, it was surreal. I heard he was stunned with hands on his head after my backflip. It’s a rare moment: to have a sporting legend watching my performance, I was completely blown away.”
Footage from the event shows Djokovic starting to hold his head as Malinin performed the quad jumps and applauding multiple times until Malinin landed a perfect backflip.
Media described this as “greatness witnessing greatness”. Djokovic is widely acknowledged as the greatest tennis player in history, holding a record 24 Grand Slam titles and the record for the most weeks as the world No. 1 player in tennis history.
Even for a legendary figure like Djokovic, who has witnessed countless historical peaks and pushed his physical abilities to the human limit, he felt incredulous in the face of Malinin’s performance that showcases beauty and strength to the extreme.
It is worth noting that the backflip was banned by the International Skating Union (ISU) for many years until it was officially “legalized” in 2024. Malinin is among the first top athletes to incorporate this move into Olympic competition routines. For this young American skater, receiving recognition from the legendary figure who has dominated the tennis scene for two decades in his Olympic debut might be just as meaningful as winning a medal.