— In Milan, American figure skater Maxim Naumov, 24, turned a qualifying short program at the Milano Ice Skating Arena into a public moment of consolation and resolve. Naumov — a Skating Club of Boston athlete who lost his parents, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, in the midair collision of American Airlines Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army helicopter over the Potomac — advanced to the free skate and used the platform to thank supporters and offer a message about resilience. Holding a photo of his parents over his heart as scores were posted, he described a calming presence that carried him through the performance and into a role comforting others.
Key Takeaways
- Maxim Naumov, 24, qualified for the free skate at the 2026 Winter Olympics after his short program at the Milano Ice Skating Arena on Feb. 11, 2026.
- He is a product of the Skating Club of Boston and has publicly connected his Olympic run to the memory of his parents, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, who died in a midair collision involving American Airlines Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army helicopter over the Potomac.
- Naumov held a photograph of his parents over his heart while waiting for scores, repeating the gesture he used at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in St. Louis the previous month.
- He described a distinct mental calm during warm-up and at the start position, crediting a felt presence that helped steady his body and focus through the program.
- Publicly, Naumov shifted from someone receiving comfort to someone offering solace, urging people to move “through” hardship and to act out of love rather than fear.
Background
Naumov trains with the Skating Club of Boston and has been competing at senior international levels while still in his early 20s. Over the past year he has been publicly mourning the loss of his parents, who were prominent figures in skating, and that grief has intersected with his competitive career. At the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in St. Louis last month he drew attention for both his skating and his visible remembrance of his parents, signaling that his personal story would be part of his public presence in Milan.
The 2026 Winter Olympics have given athletes in several sports a high-profile stage to link personal narratives with performance, and Naumov’s situation fits that pattern. Figure skating’s judging emphasis on both technical elements and emotional presentation means athletes often use personal context to shape their programs. For Naumov, the confluence of mourning and elite competition has forced a balancing act between private grief and public expectation.
Main Event
On the night he skated at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, Naumov completed a short program that secured him a spot in the free skate. He described feeling a steady calm during the six-minute warm-up and said that physical stillness followed mental calm—allowing him to execute elements in sequence. Before his music began he said the usual pre-performance tremor was replaced by a composed focus, a change he attributed to sensing his parents’ presence.
As the audience watched, Naumov waited for his scores with a photograph of his parents pressed to his chest, a repeat of the ritual he used in St. Louis that has become a signature of his current season. After seeing the results he knelt and looked upward, a private moment broadcast across an Olympic arena and then amplified in interviews and social media. The gesture framed the skate as both athletic achievement and an act of remembrance.
Rather than confining his remarks to his own loss, Naumov used post-performance comments to address anyone who has endured hardship. He spoke about small daily wins and urged people to face difficulties with willpower and love instead of fear, turning his narrative outward. The effect was a pivot from being the recipient of public sympathy to functioning as a source of encouragement for others in attendance and watching globally.
Analysis & Implications
Naumov’s public handling of grief at the Olympics highlights how modern sports spectacles serve dual purposes: sites of competition and stages for human stories. For sponsors, broadcasters and governing bodies, such narratives raise engagement by connecting audiences to athletes beyond scores and placements. Naumov’s sincerity and restraint reduce the risk of appearing performative, increasing the likelihood audiences will respond empathetically rather than cynically.
From a sporting perspective, demonstrating composure under emotional strain can influence judges’ interpretations of presentation and performance quality, particularly in figure skating where intangible factors matter. If Naumov sustains this mental approach into the free skate, it could yield stronger component scores and a more cohesive competitive trajectory for the remainder of the Games.
Broader social implications stem from the public model of coping he offered. When an athlete at the Olympics talks about mental steadiness and choosing actions out of love instead of fear, it contributes to destigmatizing conversations about loss and resilience. Mental-health practitioners note that visible role models in high-pressure environments can normalize help-seeking and adaptive coping, although individual outcomes vary widely.
Reactions & Quotes
The crowd response in Milan was a mix of applause and quiet attention as viewers processed both skate and story; commentators highlighted the gesture of holding a photograph and his calm approach to the short program. Across social feeds, many users framed Naumov’s words as a moment of leadership from a young athlete.
“The only way out is through.”
Maxim Naumov
That phrase—uttered succinctly after his skate—became a focal line in post-event coverage, repeated by commentators and fans as a distillation of his message about persistence.
“Do things out of love instead of fear.”
Maxim Naumov
Naumov repeated this exhortation when describing how he hopes his experience might encourage others; the line framed his role as someone trying to convert private loss into a public call for courage.
Unconfirmed
- Official findings, investigations, or legal outcomes related to the midair collision that killed Naumov’s parents are not detailed in this piece and remain outside its scope.
- The exact number of individual supporters who have reached out to Naumov since his parents’ deaths has not been independently verified here.
Bottom Line
Maxim Naumov used a qualifying short program at the Milano Ice Skating Arena not only to advance in Olympic competition but to reshape his public role: from an athlete receiving consolation to one offering it. He wove personal grief into a concise message about persistence—an approach that resonated on the ice and in subsequent coverage.
How that message translates into competitive results will play out in the free skate and beyond, but Naumov’s handling of his story has already amplified conversations about resilience in high-performance sport. For viewers and supporters, his appeal lies as much in the steadiness he demonstrated as in the technical content of his program; for the wider public it is a reminder that elite athletes often carry complex personal narratives into the arena.