Ilya Malinon - Another Young Athlete's Life Ruined By the Media

Damn them! They did it to Simone Biles. They put her on a pedestal, called her the GOAT, said she was unbeatable, invincible, and dared her to fall off. She did. Horribly, even injuring herself physically, and needing years of therapy to restore her sense of self mentally and emotionally.

And now, they've done it to Ilya. They put him on a pedestal, called him the Quad God, said he was unbeatable, invincible, and dared him to fall off. He did. Disastrously. I felt so bad for him.

I sensed this possibility the moment I saw him walking in backstage at the arena for his first televised skate to the sound of an announcer's voice loudly lauding him as the "Quad God," and saying he was going to be unbeatable. I saw a vulnerable young man, and hoped he would be strong enough to overcome that kind of pressure.

He lost his first individual competition too, but at least won the Silver, and to his credit, he did help his Team win the Gold in the Team skate. But in the one he had set his heart on, and was being touted as the inevitable winner of by the media, before he even set foot on the ice? He failed. Miserably. The pressure was too much. He crumbled while the world watched.

I blame the damn media for this. They just cannot learn from their mistakes. They did it to Simone. Now they've done it to Ilya, too. No one, no matter how great they are, can survive that kind of pressure without harm.

Don't forget: They did this to Kamala, too!

Ilya handled his great loss with grace, hugging the stunned winner, a young man from Kazikstan who skated brilliantly, but was also stunned by his unexpected win and seemed subdued and probably felt he really didn't deserve to win the Gold. All because of the media hype.

Ilya held it together to even do an interview, probably several, before he could collapse privately, hopefully in the arms of his dad, who looked sad, but not angry, about what had happened to his son.

Simone was there yesterday. I saw her kn the crowd. I suspect she saw what I did. I hope she was able to go to him backstage to comfort and support him. Only she could know what that loss, that great fall, felt like.

I feel so bad for him. And for all of us who watched this. I had hoped for a win, too, for all of us, something we could take pride in for our country and experience that unity, even if just for a few moments. And I feel bad for pinning my hope on his shoulders, too. He was shattered...

I do think he will be back in 4 years, though, and I think he will kick ass when he does. I hope he does that. For himself next time. Not for us or for the hype, for his own vindication. It is obvious that he is extremely talented and deserving of Olympic Gold. I will be there to cheer him on in 4 years.

And I have to say, DU, I hope I am not the only one here who is disturbed by this. My heart hurts for Ilya tonight. 💔