Olympian Surya Bonaly praises Ilia Malinin, remembers her historic backflip

Olympic figure skater Surya Bonaly, who famously performed backflips despite penalties during her competitive career, praised fellow skater Ilia Malinin for his impressive aerial maneuvers during the 2026 Winter Olympics in an interview with CBS News' Ramy Inocencio. The French-born skating icon, who competed in the 1990s and early 2000s, expressed her delight at seeing Malinin successfully execute the very move that had been controversial during her own time. Bonaly's comments come as Malinin has been turning heads at the 2026 Games with his daring backflip combination jumps, which have been both technically difficult and artistically integrated into his routines. The interview highlighted how Malinin's success represents a significant shift in figure skating judging standards, with Bonaly noting that her own pioneering efforts had laid groundwork for such innovations to be accepted and celebrated in the sport.