It’s a celebration for Olympic figure skating champion Mikhail Shaidorov, as Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports has finally vowed to honor Shaidorov’s financial dues that the Olympian says have been pending for several months, since his victory at the 2026 Milano Cortina games. The story of Shaidorov’s unpaid salary quickly took wings due to his stature as Kazakhstan’s premier Olympic athlete.
Mikhail Shaidorov stepped into the world of figure skating as a promising hopeful from Kazakhstan and has since lived up to his reputation by delivering his homeland its first gold medal in figure skating. His triple Axel-Euler-quad Salchow combination became an Olympic first and has created history in the figure skating books.
After skating his way to gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Shaidorov spoke about not receiving his salary, revealing that the lack of financial support from the ministry took a great toll on his preparations, which made it impossible for the figure skating star to even attend training camps. Like fellow Kazakh athletes, Shaidorov also receives payments from both the respective federation of the specific sport and the Sports Development Directorate.
The cause behind the unpaid dues was reportedly not a dispute over compensation but rather a clause in a proposed contract that allegedly requires Shaidorov to win a medal at the 2030 Winter Olympics. After reading through the clause, Shaidorov and his team called for a reconsideration of the medal-winning clause, as it’s impossible to script a podium finish years in advance. The team, however, claimed that they did not hear back from the governing body since.
Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports has finally broken its silence after Deputy Minister Serik Zharasbayev confirmed that they have signed a contract with Shaidorov, and the discussions surrounding the clauses within were the cause behind the delay.
“The signing took place within the legal framework. The parties reached mutual agreement and discussed all the clauses… Immediately after it was signed, we took it into processing,” said the ministry.
The ministry further confirmed that all the due obligations and payments of Shaidorov will be settled. Zharasbayev also stated that the ministry is in talks for arranging a formal sit-down with the athlete to discuss a wide variety of issues that should shed light on the Olympian’s long-term career planning.
Mikhail Shaidorov Talks About His Winter Olympic Mindset
After bagging the much-awaited gold medal for his country at the Winter Olympics, Shaidorov revealed how everything in Italy turned out exactly how he hoped, as he delivered a clean, flawless routine, despite having a tough season prior.
“I came here to enjoy Milan. The Olympic symbol gives me energy. I wanted to skate as well as possible, as cleanly as possible, and not let nerves overwhelm me and that’s what happened. The whole season was difficult but I was working for the Olympic games and I did it,” said Shaidorov (0:40).
Shaidorov and his team are scheduled to travel to the United States to attend a high-level training camp on June 5 to kickstart his figure skating training for the upcoming 2026–2027 competitive season.
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