Stephen Gogolev caps Olympic debut with immaculate free skate

Stephen Gogolev saved his best career performance for his final appearance at Milano Cortina 2026.

On Friday, he delivered the second best free skate of the day in the men’s singles event, clinching him fifth place overall to cap off an incredibly promising Olympic debut.

With a score of 186.37, the Canadian set a new career-best in the free skate and moved up five spots from where he was ranked after the short program.

It’s the best Olympic result for Canada in the men’s event since Patrick Chan’s silver at Sochi 2014.

“This was definitely by far the best competition I’ve had,” said the 21-year-old.

Gogolev has consistently been on the verge of breaking out for Canada in figure skating.

As a 14-year-old, he finished second in the senior division at the 2019 Canadian Championships. That came a month after he won gold at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final. But a big growth spurt followed by recurring back injuries forced Gogolev to miss training time and several major competitions from 2022 all the way through to 2025.

Despite the frustrations, 2025-26 proved to be a breakout season for Gogolev. He won his first ISU Challenger Series event in September and won bronze at the Finlandia Trophy in November for his first ISU Grand Prix medal.

He also was instrumental in helping Canada advance to the final of the Olympic team event in Milan after posting the third best score in the men’s short program.

READ: Canada falls short of podium but delivers exceptional performance in team skate

The men’s singles is made up of two programs: the short program, which was held Tuesday, and the free skate.

Gogolev entered the free skate in 10th place. He needed to deliver a near-flawless performance in the free skate to put himself in medal contention, and that’s exactly what he did.

With a score of 186.37 points, Gogolev sat in the leader chair immediately after he skated.

“It’s definitely a special moment that I will cherish for the rest of my life,” he said.

Those who watched the team event had already seen Gogolev in the free skate—to which he performs to Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergei Rachmaninov.

On Friday, his execution was crisp, his landings were perfect, and his skate exuded confidence.

Gogolev’s overall score was eventually surpassed by only four skaters.

In a stunning result, American Ilia Malinin—the self-named “quad god”—popped three of his planned quad jumps and fell twice, dropping him from first place all the way to eighth. The two-time reigning world champion had been unbeaten for more than two years.

Kazakshatan’s Mikhail Shaidorov, last year’s world silver medallist, was the only skater to top Gogolev’s free skate and landed atop the podium. Yuma Kagiyama and Shun Sato achieved a double podium for Japan, claiming silver and bronze, respectively. Gogolev finished just 1.12 points behind Sato.

Gogolev was his usual, mild-mannered self after the skate, but said his performance further proves he can compete with the world’s best

“I think this definitely gives me a big confidence boost, especially considering I’ve been pretty consistent throughout the season.”

With a fifth-place finish at the Olympics under his belt, the 21-year-old’s potential to be a medal contender at the next Games will remain top of mind for Canadian fans. Gogolev played down the pressure.

“I don’t think much will change. I think I will go back to my routine, going to school, going through training, and continue training as much as I can.”