“Look what we just did.”
When Maxim Naumov finished his short program Tuesday night, the arena was still echoing with applause. But he wasn’t looking at the crowd. He wasn’t searching for scores.
He dropped to his knees, lifted his eyes toward the rafters, and whispered those five words softly — as if speaking to someone only he could see.
More than a year ago, Maxim lost both of his parents in the tragic plane crash outside Washington, D.C., that claimed 67 lives. Among them were Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov — former world champion pairs skaters, Olympians, and beloved figures in the U.S. skating community. To many, they were legends of the sport. To Maxim, they were simply Mom and Dad.
In an emotional video interview afterward, Maxim shared the meaning behind the phrase.
It was his father’s favorite line — something he would say before every competition and during every challenging chapter of life. Big moment or small. Victory or defeat. It wasn’t about the result. It was about the effort, the courage, the shared journey.
“Even now,” Maxim said, his voice shaking, “I still hear him say it.”
And on Olympic ice, under the brightest lights and the heaviest pressure of his career, he did.
Every edge, every jump, every breath felt like part of something larger than a program. It was a tribute. A conversation without words. A performance shaped not only by training and talent, but by memory and love.
The audience felt it too. This wasn’t just skating. It was resilience in motion. Grief transformed into grace. Loss carried with strength instead of silence.
When Maxim looked upward and whispered that familiar phrase, it wasn’t just about the routine he had completed. It was about everything that brought him there — the early mornings at the rink, the lessons, the sacrifices, the unwavering belief his parents had in him.
In that moment, he wasn’t alone on the ice.
And as the arena rose in applause, many wiped away tears — not just for the beauty of the performance, but for the courage it represented.
Because sometimes sport gives us more than medals and scores.
Sometimes, it gives us moments that remind us love never truly leaves the ice.
