Photo by Eric Salard on Flickr

Written by: Jasmine Wong

This winter, we saw many Canadian athletes compete at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics in hopes of medaling and representing Canada among all the top athletes around the world. Canadian figure skater Stephen Gogolev captured the attention of Canadians, not just for his athletic performance in figure skating, but for his inspiring journey and resilience that brought him to the Olympics.

As a child prodigy who landed his triple axel when he was ten years old, he had many achievements. At just 13 years old, he became the first Canadian to land three different quadruple jumps. This success earned him junior world records as well as a gold medal at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final. However, his growth spurt at 15 brought him recurring back injuries and setbacks to his skating career. Not only injuries, but the drastic change in height also threw off his balance and jump timing, which made it difficult for him to perform the difficult elements he had at a younger age. There were many times when Stephen doubted whether he could ever compete at the high level again.

But Stephen did not give up.

With his goal set on performing at the Olympics, he spent much time off and on the ice to refine his skills and regain his confidence. At Milano Cortina, Stephen fulfilled his dream of competing at the Olympic Games. In the team and individual event, his artistry was on display on ice, with Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto 2 for his free program and his short program, where he dressed as a gangster. His memorable performances helped the Canadian Team advance to the finals, and his consistent individual performance brought him a 5th place finish.

15 years into his skating career, Stephen Gogolev’s story of resilience and discipline shone through his skating at the Olympic Games. It serves as a reminder to us of the human spirit and the hard work put into each Olympic performance.

Works Cited

Macdonald, Cynthia. “Political Science Student Stephen Gogolev Skates for Gold in Milano Cortina.” Faculty of Arts & Science, 2

Feb. 2026, http://www.artsci.utoronto.ca/news/political-science-student-stephen-gogolev-skates-gold-milano-cortina.

“Stephen Gogolev – Team Canada.” Team Canada, 12 Jan. 2026, olympic.ca/team-canada/stephen-gogolev/.