In between classes, George Mason University students gathered at the Johnson Center in Fairfax to cheer one of their own going for the gold in the winter Olympics.
Ilia Malinin, a 21-year-old figure skater competing in the Milan Cortina Olympics, is also studying for a not-yet-declared major at GMU’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences. The university held a watch party yesterday (Tuesday) as Malinin competed in the qualifying round of the individual men’s short program.
Malinin, a 2023 Marshall High School graduate who lives in Vienna and trains at SkateQuest in Reston, became the first GMU student or alumnus to win a gold medal in a Winter Olympics when he helped the U.S. secure its second consecutive gold in the figure-skating team competition on Saturday (Feb. 7).
“Knowing that he’s a George Mason University student and he’s a gold medalist and he’s arguably the best figure skater in the country, I think is just incredibly inspiring to our student population,” Rose Pascarell, the vice president of university life at Mason, told FFXnow.
Malinin led the field at the end of Tuesday’s short program qualifier to advance to the final and is favored for the gold medal. Nicknamed the “Quad God,” he remains the only figure skater to land a quadruple axel in competition.
From start to finish – Ilia delivers.#WinterOlympics pic.twitter.com/S559oa056b
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) February 11, 2026
The Johnson Center filled with applause as Malinin performed his short program.
Kierstin Strassburg, a junior studying anthropology, has been following Malinin’s skating career since her freshman year.
“Seeing him work his way to the Olympics has been really exciting,” Strassburg told FFXnow. “I think it’s fun that we’ve been able to really do this viewing event and come together as a school to watch it together, because I think it’s bringing a lot more attention to the Olympics from a George Mason student perspective.”
Doogie Hong, a senior who studies computer science, added, “It shows that even though he’s 21, he was able to get to the Olympics, it shows that there’s many different paths in life.”
Pascarell said the university wants to help students get their degree, even through non-traditional means like Malinin.
“Ilia’s taken a non-traditional path. He’s pursing his gold medal. He’s in the Olympics, but he’s also taking classes when he can,” Pascarell said. “He’s really representative of a lot of our students.”
Students were impressed with Malinin pursuing higher education even at the peak of his figure skating career.
“Those people that excel in education, it’s always amazing how they can handle so many classes,” Hong said. “Same thing for the people who do sports. Even just a regular afternoon practice, it’s still time taken away from possible study but it shows they have great passion for their sport.”
Strassburg added, “I struggle to balancing my course load and I’m not even in the Olympics. Kudos to him for being able to do it and still be willing to pursue his education all while doing his training and going to the Olympics.”
The 21-year-old figure skater threw down a near-perfect short program filled with high-flying jumps and a jaw-dropping backflip to take a big lead at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
Malinin opened with a big quad flip, landed a perfect triple axel — perhaps he is saving the quad axel that only he has ever landed for the free skate — and a quad lutz-triple toe loop combination that scored more than 22 points by itself.
The two-time reigning world champion was rewarded with 108.16 points for his program, set to music from the action-adventure video game “Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.”
Yuma Kagiyama of Japan was second with 103.07 points, but that five-point difference going into the free skate is enormous given the huge technical advantage Malinin has over a longer program. Malinin was beaten by Kagiyama in the short program during the team competition last weekend.
There will be another watch party for the men’s short program final 1 p.m. Eastern Time Friday (Feb. 13) in the Johnson Center atrium. GMU’s Arlington campus will also hold a watch party at the same time in Room 1311 of Fuse at Mason Square.
