Maxim Naumov is heading to the 2026 U.S. Olympic team.
The 24-year-old figure skater, who is the son of 1994 World Figure Skating pairs champions Evgenia “Zhenya” Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, advanced onward to become one of the three males competing on behalf of Team USA at the Milan Olympic Games next month.
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The news comes just one year after a horrific American Airlines flight 5342 crash on January 29, 2025, which led to the death of 67 people, including his parents.
Many of the passengers were skaters who were going to Washington D.C. after attending the U.S. Figure Skating National Development Camp, per People.
Maxim made headlines with his short program, holding up a photo of himself and his parents while breaking down in tears while receiving his score.
The other contenders moving on into the men’s team for 2026 are Ilia Malinin and Andrew Torgashev.
The 2026 Winter Olympics, officially called the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games, will take place from February 6 to February 22, 2026, in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, with events happening across northern Italy, including Verona for the opening ceremony.
Watch his moving program from the U.S. Championships above.