Mexican figure skater Donovan Carrillo competed in the men's individual figure skating final at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics on February 13, scoring a total of 219.06 points and placing 22nd. His routine to Elvis Presley songs featured high-difficulty jumps, earning 143.50 points in the free program. Gold went to Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan with 291.58 points.
Donovan Carrillo, the Mexican figure skater, competed in the men's individual figure skating final at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. On February 10, in the short program, he scored 75.56 points, with 39.71 in technical elements and 36.85 in components, including a -1.00 deduction for an error on the triple axel. On February 13, in the free program, he performed a routine to Elvis Presley songs such as 'My Way', 'Trouble', 'Jailhouse Rock', and 'A Little Less Conversation'. It started with a quadruple toe loop and double axel, followed by a triple axel and triple toe loop, completing two quadruples without major errors. His score in this phase was 143.50 points, for a total of 219.06, placing him 22nd overall.
The podium featured Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan with 291.58 points, thanks to a solid routine including combinations like triple axel-single euler-quad salchow and quadruple jumps in lutz, flip, and toe loop. Yuma Kagiyama of Japan took silver with 280.06 points, highlighting quadruple salchow, quadruple flip, and combinations with quadruple toe loop. Bronze went to Shun Sato of Japan with 274.90 points, featuring quadruple lutz and quadruple toe loop-triple.
After his routine, Carrillo greeted the crowd saying: “I love you all! Kisses to Mexico!”. In an interview with Claro Sports, he described the experience as 'magical' and 'special', enjoying every second like 'a fish in water' and 'like a child playing'. He mentioned his parents' presence for the first time at an Olympic final, which gave him calm and security. He reflected on his two and a half years of training in Canada as a 'turning point' in his career, and expressed hope to continue with institutional and sponsor support. He dedicated the routine to his grandparents, inspired by the recent loss of one and his grandmother's insistence on skating to 'My Way'.
Carrillo emphasized the lessons from the competition and motivated the Mexican public to pursue their dreams, stating: “We have achieved historic things, but I would also like to leave you with homework: if you have goals and dreams, rethink them and don't let them fade away”.
