Steve Futterman

The gold medal goes to Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan.

Ilya Malinin may still be the best in the world, but he's not an Olympic champion.

For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Milan.

Rarely is there a performer who virtually everyone expects to win, but Ilya Melinin is an exception.

His ability to leap and twist and turn on the ice is unlike anything the sport has ever witnessed.

Paul Wiley is the U.S.

silver medalist from the 1992 Winter Games.

He says melanin is a once-in-a-lifetime athlete.

In his free skate, the 21-year-old is expected to include six to seven quadruple jumps, including possibly a quadruple axel, which has never been successfully performed at the Olympics.

For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Milan.

Rarely is there a performer who virtually everyone expects to win, but Ilya Malinin is an exception.

His ability to leap and twist and turn on the ice is unlike anything the sport has ever witnessed.

Paul Wiley is the U.S.

silver medalist from the 1992 Winter Games.

He says Malinin is a once-in-a-lifetime athlete.

In his free skate, the 21-year-old is expected to include six to seven quadruple jumps, including possibly a quadruple axel, which has never been successfully performed at the Olympics.

For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Milan.

The U.S.

squad was led by Brock Nelson of the Colorado Avalanche.

He scored twice.