Ilia Malinin’s backflip has been openly embraced, but it was received differently decades ago when Surya Bonaly performed the move at the 1998 Games.

This is the first Olympics in 50 years where the move hasn't been illegal—and Malinin’s backflip has long been known as the “Bonaly flip.”

Ilia Malinin, the U.S. figure skater nicknamed the “Quad God,” became the first person to legally land a backflip on one skate in the Olympics — although one trailblazing woman pulled it off when the move was still forbidden.

Don’t forget who flipped first. On Tuesday night, figure skater Ilia Malinin thrilled the crowd and judges with a flawless, impossibly challenging short program that included a much-ballyhooed backflip on the ice.

Surya Bonaly successfully landed a backflip on one blade during the 1998 Winter Olympics despite knowing the move was banned.

Figure skating fans will not allow history to be rewritten during the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. Headlines are buzzing over the acrobatic ice […]

American figure skater Ilia Malinin was the first to do a legal backflip in almost half a century at the Olympics. But he wasn't the first to do it on Olympic ice.

Introduction At 52, Surya Bonaly proves that the ice still belongs to her. Captivating audiences with fluid movements and an infectious energy, she reminds us of her legendary status just ahead of the Winter Olympics.