Mikhail Shaidurov took first place in men's singles skating, scoring a total of 291.58 points, including 92.94 for the short program and 198.64 for the free skate. At the beginning of the competition, after the short program, he was in fifth place, trailing behind the leading athletes. The second place went to Japanese figure skater Yuma Kagiyama with 280.06 points, while his compatriot Shun Sato won the bronze medal with 274.90 points.
Mikhail performed his free skate to the music of the famous Kazakh singer Dimash Kudaibergen.
This medal is historic for Kazakhstan as it is the first one won at the 2026 Olympic Games.
Previously, only one figure skater from Kazakhstan, Denis Ten, managed to reach the podium, winning a bronze medal at the Sochi Olympics in 2014. Shaidurov's gold medal also became the second in the history of Kazakhstan's participation in the Winter Olympics, the first being won by skier Vladimir Smirnov in 1994.
In the short program, which took place on February 10, Mikhail Shaidurov scored 92.94 points, placing him fifth after the first stage of the competition.
Mikhail, originally from Almaty, trains under the guidance of Olympic champion Alexei Urmanov. He is a silver medalist of the World Championship, a champion of the Four Continents, as well as a silver and bronze medalist of the China Grand Prix and a bronze medalist of the Asian Games. In addition, he is the champion of Kazakhstan.
