When Ilia Malinin landed a backflip at the Olympic Winter Games in Milano Cortina last weekend, the world was stunned. Social media crowned him fearless, revolutionary — even untouchable. But for some skating fans — Black enthusiasts especially — the moment felt familiar. Because decades ago, a Black figure skater performed the same gravity-defying move and received anything but applause. And if you ask us, Olympian Surya Bonaly walked so Malinin could run.
Suggested Reading
The International Skating Union (ISU) banned backflips back in 1976, per U.S. Figure Skating, primarily due to safety concerns regarding dangerous landings across the ice’s unforgiving surface. So when Bonaly defiantly executed a one-footed backflip at the 1998 Nagano Olympics — fully aware it would earn her a deduction — it was more than a stunt. It was a statement in a sport that had long decided which risks were acceptable, and who was allowed to take them.
Bonaly’s skating career was riddled with controversy, marked by everything from her athletic and atypical skating style to her decision not to wear tights under her skating attire due to a lack of shades for Black women — a struggle we can all resonate with still today.
After so many disputes of feeling unfairly judged, Bonaly felt so utterly disrespected that she stripped herself of her silver medal on the podium — in front of the whole world.
At the 59th ISU Ordinary Congress in Las Vegas, the union removed the backflip from Rule 610, officially reinstating the somersault as a legal element beginning in 2024. According to U.S. Figure Skating, the move is now recognized as a spectacular choreographic element — a notable shift for a skill once deemed too dangerous for competition.
Let’s not get it twisted, “Quad God” Malinin has far surpassed what many have been able to accomplish on a 4 millimeter steel blade. That said, it’s hard to ignore that when Bonaly brought explosive athleticism to the ice decades ago, she was met with resistance and automatic deductions.
The question is: why now? The risks involved with landing a backflip on ice has not changed — and likely never will. What has changed, is who is recognized for taking it. Bonaly was decades ahead of her time, a Black woman in a white-dominated sport, and she was denied credit she felt she earned.
Even in 2026, no female skater has matched her explosive athleticism. Surya Bonaly — who executed her backflip on one blade — stands as a testament to the cost of pushing boundaries. Considering this, it’s clear that sometimes, being ahead of the game means not being celebrated at all. Today, however, we’re giving the ice queen the flowers she truly deserves.
Straight From 
Sign up for our free daily newsletter.