Mikhail Shaidorov

Mikhail Stanislavovich Shaidorov (Russian: Михаил Станиславович Шайдоров; born 25 June 2004), nicknamed Misha, is a Kazakhstani figure skater. He is the 2026 Olympic Champion, 2025 World silver medalist, 2025 Four Continents champion, 2025 Asian Winter Games bronze medalist, a four-time Grand Prix medalist, a three-time Challenger Series medalist, and a five-time Kazakh national champion (2019–23). At the junior level, he is the 2022 World Junior silver medalist.

Shaidorov is the first skater from Kazakhstan to ever medal at a World Junior Championships as well as the first skater from Kazakhstan to qualify for a Grand Prix Final on the senior level. Additionally, Shaidorov is the first skater in history to land a triple Axel-quadruple toe loop jump combination and a triple Axel-Euler-quadruple Salchow jump sequence in an ISU competition.

At the 2026 Winter Olympics, Shaidorov made history as the first figure skater from Kazakhstan to win an Olympic gold medal and became the second Kazakhstani athlete to win gold at a Winter Olympics following Vladimir Smirnov.

Personal life

Shaidorov was born on June 25, 2004, in Almaty, Kazakhstan. His father, Stanislav, is a former competitive figure skater and a three-time Kazakh national champion. Prior to becoming a figure skater, Shaidorov trained in artistic gymnastics as a young child.

Shaidorov has publicly condemned Russian media outlets for often labelling him as a Russian athlete, saying, "It's disrespectful to me... I was born, lived, and still live in Almaty, and I spend a lot of time in Kazakhstan, in my beloved city. I'm very happy to have the opportunity to train under Alexey Evgenievich Urmanov, with whom I've been working together for a long time. But I started skating at the Ramstore shopping center, where many figure skaters got their start, including Denis Ten. It had one of the very first rinks in Kazakhstan."

In 2024, Shaidorov received a secondary vocational education diploma, specializing in physical education, at the Sochi Institute of Peoples' Friendship University of Russia. He is currently a student at the Kazakh Academy of Sports & Tourism. He also speaks Russian and some English.

Following his win at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Kazakh singer Dimash Qudaibergen announced that he would gift Shaidorov with a car as thanks for using one of Qudaibergen's songs as his free skate music during the Games. He was also offered a three-bedroom apartment in Astana from construction company, ULYTAU Group. Moreover, Kazakh businessman Arsen Tomsky announced that he would gift Shaidorov's father with an Audi Q8 after having learned that Stanislav had once sold his car to help fund Shaidorov's career as a competitive figure skater.

Career

Early career

In 2010, at the age of six, Shaidorov began learning how to skate after being constantly brought to the outdoor rink in the parking lot of a Ramstore shopping centre by his father, Stanislav, who worked as a figure skating coach. Shaidorov initially did not enjoy the sport, instead choosing to pursue artistic gymnastics. However, Shaidorov's interest in figure skating returned after a year and a half, at age seven.

After watching the 2015–16 figure skating season on TV and seeing Yuzuru Hanyu compete and break world record scores, Shaidorov developed a competitive drive for the sport. Around this time, Shaidorov attended master classes from Kazakh 2014 Olympic bronze medalist Denis Ten. Ten's contribution to the development of figure skating in Kazakhstan served as an additional motivating factor for Shaidorov.

In early 2017, Shaidorov and his dad attended a training camp hosted by former Russian Olympic champion, Alexei Urmanov. During the training camp, Shaidorov landed his first double Axel and successfully landed his first triple jumps less than a year later. Due to the lack of training rinks with elite-level skaters in Kazakhstan at the time, Shaidorov's parents made arrangements for their son to move to Russia when he was fourteen years old. He initially trained in Moscow before eventually settling in Sochi in 2018 to train under Alexei Urmanov full-time.

2019–20 season: First national title

Shaidorov won his first national title at the 2020 Kazakhstani Championships. He was then selected to compete at the 2020 World Junior Championships, finishing in twenty-second place.

2020–21 season: Back injury and World Championship debut

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic greatly curtailed both training and competitive opportunities for Shaidorov and other skaters, and he dedicated himself to improvement via off-ice training for long periods. He began his season by winning his second consecutive national title at the 2021 Kazakh Championships. He went on to win the bronze medal at the 2021 Sofia Trophy.

Despite being selected to compete at the 2021 World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden, Shaidorov would injure his back shortly before the event, which would ultimately impact his performance. He would place thirty-second in the short program and fail to advance to the free program segment.

2021–22 season: World Junior silver medal

Due to Shaidorov's ongoing back injury preventing him from training to full capacity, Shaidorov did not compete at the 2021 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, the final Olympic qualifying event for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

With the resumption of international junior competition, Shaidorov was given one assignment on the Junior Grand Prix, winning the silver medal at the 2021 JGP Poland. This was the first JGP medal for a Kazakhstani male skater since Denis Ten in 2008. He went on to make his Challenger series debut, placing ninth at the 2021 CS Denis Ten Memorial Challenge.

At the 2022 Four Continents Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, Shaidorov finished fifth. He set a new personal best score of 234.67, a nearly thirty-point improvement over his previous personal best. Reflecting on his limited competitive opportunities in recent years, he said that "since it happens so seldom, sometimes things don't go as it should. The competitions [sic] this season went well."

Although initially selected to compete at the 2022 World Championships in Montpellier, France, Shaidorov was forced to withdraw after being denied a visa by the French Embassy. However, he was able to attend the 2022 World Junior Championships in Tallinn. Shaidorov placed eighth in the short program but second in the free skate, ultimately winning the silver medal and becoming the first Kazakhstani skater to win a medal at the World Junior Championships.

2022–23 season

Shaidorov began his season at the 2022 CS Finlandia Trophy, finishing eighth. Although he was selected to compete on the Grand Prix series at the 2022 Grand Prix de France and the 2022 Grand Prix of Espoo, Shaidorov withdrew from both events after becoming ill with the Epstein–Barr virus and requiring hospitalization.

Despite illness, he went on to compete at the 2022 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb and finished fourth. Selected to compete at the 2023 Winter University Games, Shaidorov finished fourth after placing sixth in the short program and third in the free skate.

At the 2023 Four Continents Championships in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Shaidorov only arrived the day of the short program due to issues obtaining a visa to compete at the event. He also developed a bad case of acute otitis media. Shaidorov placed twelfth in the short program and fifth in the free skate, scoring a personal best free skate and combined total score. He ultimately finished fifth overall. Shaidorov said he was "thrilled" with his free skate performance.

Competing at the 2023 World Championships in Saitama, Japan, Shaidorov finished fourteenth after placing eighteenth in the short program and twelfth in the free skate.

2023–24 season: First senior Grand Prix medal

After a groin injury forced Shaidorov to withdraw from the 2023 CS Nepela Memorial, Shaidorov made his Grand Prix debut at the 2023 Skate Canada International, where he finished fifth. He set new personal bests in the short program and total score. At Shaidorov's second assignment, the 2023 Cup of China, he was third both in the short and free portion of the men's competition and finished with the bronze medal. He again set new personal bests, and said he was "pleased" with his first senior Grand Prix medal. Shaidorov won the silver medal at the 2023 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb, winning his first ISU Challenger Series medal.

Shaidorov placed sixth at the 2024 Four Continents Championships in Shanghai, China. He deemed his performances "somewhat acceptable", admitting he was "seldom satisfied with [his] performances." He later won gold at the 2024 Challenge Cup at the end of February. Shaidorov concluded the season at the 2024 World Championships, where he came fourteenth.