Figure skating’s self-styled ‘Quad God’ fell to earth on Friday as Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Shaidorov came from nowhere to claim gold in a dramatic finish to the men’s singles competition in Milan.
All-conquering Ilia Malinin headed into the free skate with a five-point lead over his rivals and audacious plans to make history by becoming the first skater to land seven quad jumps.
Instead Malinin, unbeaten in all competitions for over two years, fulfilled just three – falling on two more – as he plummeted out of medal contention to finish in eighth place.
“I blew it,” he said afterwards.
As the 21-year-old Malinin left the ice in tears, Shaidorov, who started the night in fifth place, over 15…