Mexican Figure Skating Icon Donovan Carrillo Turned “That’s Not for Boys” Into an Olympic Final
Some athletes chase medals. And then some athletes chase ice in a country that barely has any.
When Donovan Carrillo stepped onto the rink in Milan, smiling wide under the Olympic lights, he carried something heavier than the pressure of a triple axel. He carried a country that once told boys to pick up a soccer ball instead.
According to Outsports, Carrillo has made history again, becoming the only Mexican ever to reach the men’s singles final at two Winter Olympics. He is also the only figure skater from Central or South America competing at the Milano Cortina 2026 Games. That alone would be extraordinary. The way he did it makes it unforgettable.
Donovan Carrillo Was Told to Play Soccer Instead
Carrillo has spoken openly about the stigma he faced growing up in Mexico as a boy who chose figure skating over “masculine” sports.
“When I was a kid, the mentality in Mexico was that men shouldn’t practice artistic sports,” he said, according to Outsports. “A lot of people judged me, but I’m just grateful that my parents allowed me to discover this noble sport. Figure skating has helped me understand how to express my emotions through movement and to grow as a person. I feel like myself when I’m on the ice.”
He has also addressed the teasing directly. “I don’t mind being called gay because I am NOT,” Carrillo wrote in Spanish. “It infuriates me that they see the word gay as a mockery or an insult to my effort.” He added, “I admire and respect the LGBT community because I live with many of its members, but I am not part of that community.”
He responded with grace, and he kept skating.
Donovan Carrillo Almost Missed the Final. Then He Made History Again
According to Outsports, he finished 23rd in the short program, with only the top 24 advancing. Mexico News Daily reported that he earned 75.56 points in the short program, far behind American favorite Ilia Malinin’s 108.16. Still, that score secured his place in Friday’s free skate.
“This is for all of Mexico!” Carrillo shouted after finishing his routine. “Dreams do come true!”
He struggled with his triple axel and had to use both hands to avoid hitting the ice, which counts as a fall for scoring purposes, Mexico News Daily reported. Yet he recovered, kept his composure, and finished strong.
“Of course, things could have gone better; they always can,” Carrillo told Olympics.com, as cited by Mexico News Daily.
He does not stand as a medal favorite. But in a country without a winter sports infrastructure, making the final twice is its own kind of podium.
The Ice Was in a Shopping Mall
Carrillo’s road to Milan did not begin in a high-performance training center. It began in a mall.
According to Yucatán Magazine, Carrillo started skating at age 8 in Guadalajara. When he was 13, his rink closed. He followed his coach, Gregorio Núñez, to León, Guanajuato. There, he trained on a small, dark rink inside a shopping mall. He shared ice time with teenagers on dates and children learning to skate. Often, he practiced without music to avoid disturbing other skaters.
“In Mexico, most of the ice rinks are inside shopping malls,” Carrillo told Olympics.com, as reported by Mexico News Daily. He described the ice quality as “much lower” than international standards.
For years, his family paid for everything. According to Yucatán Magazine, his parents took out loans. They organized raffles and breakfast sales. Friends donated. Carrillo worked teaching children at the rink to cover his own training costs. He carried financial stress while trying to perfect quadruple jumps.
“It was so hard to get anyone to trust in my dream,” he told Olympics.com, as quoted by Outsports. “Of course, I would have liked to have more support, but I feel like everything happened for a reason.”
Donovan Carrillo and the Funding That Never Felt Secure
At the Beijing 2022 Games, Carrillo finished 22nd, the best result ever by a Latin American male skater, according to Yucatán Magazine. He scored 218.13 points, a personal best.
Yet government funding remained fragile. As reported by Yucatán Magazine, Conade director Ana Guevara said his stipend would not increase and could drop if his world ranking did not improve. She called the support an incentive, not a salary.
Then came Montpellier. His luggage never arrived. A courier company failed to deliver his skates. According to Yucatán Magazine, Carrillo withdrew from the world championships after attempting to compete in ill-fitting, borrowed boots.
He Faced a Choice: Stagnate or Leave
In 2023, he moved to Toronto. Mexico has 19 ice rinks across eight states, while Toronto alone has 54, Yucatán Magazine reported. In Canada, Carrillo gained access to full-size ice, specialists, strength training, and consistent music during practice. He trained six hours a day.
“Scarcity be damned, when I’m skating, and on the rink, is the only time I feel truly myself. You just can’t put a price on that,” he told the Olympic Committee in a podcast, according to Yucatán Magazine.
“When my career is over, I want to be able to look back on this time and know I opened the doors for others,” Carrillo added.
