Jin Boyang

2011–12 season

Jin won the junior division of the Asian Open Trophy 2011 by "a landslide".^[11] He earned a total of 177.17 points; if he were competing in the senior men's division, he would have come in second place. His feet were so small that he had to wear girls' skates with black boot covers because there were no men's skating boots in his size.^[11]

2012–2013 season: Junior Grand Prix debut

Jin debuted on the Junior Grand Prix (JGP) series in the 2012–2013 season. After taking gold in France and silver in Slovenia,^[18][19] he finished fifth at the JGP Final, held in Sochi, Russia.^[20] He won a bronze medal at the 2013 Chinese Championships,^[21] and placed fourth at the 2013 World Junior Championships in Milan, Italy.^[22]

2013–2014 season: Junior Grand Prix Final gold and first senior National title

In the 2013–14 JGP series, Jin won his assignments in Latvia^[23] and Estonia.^[24] He qualified for the JGP Final in Fukuoka, Japan, where he placed fifth in the short program but rebounded in the free skate with three quads and six clean triples. He won the gold overall and stated he was "very happy" to skate well.^[25][26] Jin won his first senior national title at the 2014 Chinese Championships.^[27] He finished sixth at the 2014 World Junior Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.^[28]

2014–2015 season: Silver medal at Junior Worlds

Jin won both of his Junior Grand Prix events in Slovenia^[29] and Japan,^[30] and was the top qualifier for the Junior Grand Prix Final held in Barcelona, Spain, as the only skater to win both of his events.^[31] He placed second after the short program. However, a fifth-place free skate left him in fourth overall.^[32] He won his second national title at the 2015 Chinese Championships.^[33] Jin concluded his season with a silver medal at the 2015 World Junior Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, having placed fifth in the short program and first in the free skate.^[34]

2015–2016 season: Senior international debut and bronze medal at Worlds

A video of Jin landing a quadruple Lutz-triple toe loop combination in practice circulated during the summer.^[2] At a national event early in the season, Jin completed this jumping pass in his short program and landed four quadruple jumps in his free skate, although with a step-out on the quad Lutz. He landed a total of six quadruple jumps during the competition.^[35][36]

Jin received two 2015 Grand Prix assignments.^[37] At the 2015 Cup of China, he won the silver medal behind reigning World champion Javier Fernández.^[38] He became the first person to ever land a quad Lutz-triple toe combination in competition and also the first to land a quad lutz with a positive grade of execution (GOE) in international competition.^[39][40] Jin was also the first person to attempt four quadruple jumps in one program.^[41] He set a record for the most points scored on one element, with the jump combination in the short program scoring 19.19 points.^[42][43]

At the 2015 NHK Trophy, Jin took silver behind reigning Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu.^[44] Hanyu stated after the competition "When I look at the future of figure skating (and quads), I see Boyang".^[45] Jin thus qualified for the 2015 Grand Prix Final in Barcelona, where he finished fifth.^[46] At the 13th National Winter Games of China, he represented the city of Harbin and finished first in both short program and free skate, completing all of his planned quadruple jumps.^[35][47]

Making his Four Continents debut in Taipei, Jin landed a total of six quadruple jumps in his programs^[2] and achieved new personal bests in his short program, free skate, and combined total scores.^[48] With a quad Lutz, quad Salchow, and two quad toe loops in his free skate, he also became the first skater to land three kinds of quads in a single program as well as becoming the first person to land four quads in a single program in international competition, and he ultimately placed second overall behind Canada's Patrick Chan by a narrow difference of 0.38 points.^[3][49]

At the 2016 World Championships in Boston, Jin won the bronze medal and became the first Chinese man to medal in men's singles at the World Championships.^{[2][50][51][52]}

2016–2017 season: Second bronze at Worlds

After the 2016 World Championships, Jin went to the United States to take footwork classes. He said about these classes "The footwork class was very tiring. During training, I had to squat with a shot put and control the balance of the body with my hands".^[53]

Jin placed fifth at the 2016 Skate America^[54] and won silver at the 2016 Cup of China.^[55] He ranked seventh in the series standings and thus did not qualify for the 2016–2017 Grand Prix Final.^[56] Later in the season, at the Chinese National Championships, Jin placed second in the short program but rebounded in the free and was able to win his fourth straight national title.^[57] He was assigned to both the 2017 Four Continents Championships and the 2017 Asian Winter Games, where he finished 5th and 2nd, respectively.^[58][59][60] At the Four Continents Championships, he attempted a quad loop in competition for the first time.^[61]

Jin repeated as world bronze medalist at the 2017 World Championships in Helsinki, achieving new personal bests for his short program, free skate, and total score.^[62][63][64] He received 2.57 GOE for his quad Lutz attempt in the free skate and surpassed a total of 300 points for the first time.^[65][61] Finishing behind Hanyu and Shoma Uno, Jin was a part of the first all-Asian men’s podium at a World Championship.^[52] He said that he was "very satisfied" with his performance, calling his repeat bronze medal a "real bronze medal" because he won it based on his own abilities instead of by relying on other skaters making mistakes.^[61][66] Jin's program components score improved by ten points compared to the previous world championships, and he obtained a score of 8.71 in skating skills.^[53]

2017–2018 season: First senior international gold and Olympic debut

Jin had a car accident in August 2017, resulting in left thigh injuries.^{[67][better source needed]} He started his season at the 2017 CS Finlandia Trophy, where he placed second in the short program and third in the free skate and won the gold medal overall.^[68] His Grand Prix assignments for this season were the 2017 Cup of China and 2017 Skate America. Jin said that he had sprained both of his ankles due to loose boot laces,^[69][70] which was confirmed by Zhao Hongbo as having happened before the Cup of China.^[71] He placed second at the Cup of China^[72] and fourth at Skate America,^[73] thereby qualifying for the 2017–18 Grand Prix Final.^[74] However, he withdrew from the Grand Prix Final and the Chinese Championships due to the injuries.^[75][76][77]

At the 2018 Four Continents Championships, Jin surpassed 100 points in the short program, earning a new personal best of 100.17.^[78][79] In the free skate he scored 200.78 points,^[80] for an overall score of 300.95, winning his first senior international gold medal at an ISU Championship.^[81] His quad Lutz in the free skate received 2.71 GOE, with six judges awarding it maximum GOE, for a total element score of 16.31.^[82] He said that he had worked hard on both recovery and training after withdrawing from the Grand Prix Final. Jin added that the result gave him confidence to challenge himself to give two perfect performances in Pyeongchang.^[83][84]

Jin placed fourth at the 2018 Winter Olympics with a new personal best of 103.32 points in the short program,^[85] and a total score of 297.77.^[86][87] His placement was the highest of any Chinese athlete competing in men's single skating in Olympic history.^[88] At the 2018 World Championships, he placed fourth in the short program but dropped to nineteenth overall after ranking twenty-third in the free skate.^[89]

2018–2019 season

Over the summer, it was initially announced that Jin would be moving to train with Brian Orser and Tracy Wilson at the Toronto Cricket, Skating & Curling Club in preparation for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. However, these plans were subsequently called off, with Shen Xue stating on behalf of the Chinese Skating Association that Jin was "more familiar with the training environment and methods in China."^[90] Debuting on the Grand Prix series for the season, Jin placed fifth at the 2018 Grand Prix of Helsinki and ninth at the 2018 Internationaux de France.^[91][92]

In an interview after both of his Grand Prix assignments had concluded, Jin revealed that he had experienced travel-associated difficulties and arrived at both his assignments later than expected. He further stated that he was training at a rink in Beijing, separate from the national team, and that he traveled between Beijing and Harbin whenever he "felt stagnant" and had also hired his own dance teacher. Jin said that he felt more confident after the Olympics and that he and choreographer Lori Nichol worked together to choreograph his programs, with Jin contributing some of his own ideas for the choreography.^[16]

After winning the Chinese national title again,^[93] he competed at the 2019 Four Continents Championships, where he placed third in the short program and second in the free skate, winning the silver medal overall. Jin stated that he had adjusted himself mentally a little bit.^[94]

Finishing the season at the 2019 World Championships in Saitama, Jin placed ninth in the short program after falling on his quad Lutz attempt but rose to fifth overall after a strong free skate. Jin remarked that he needed to continue improving in things like speed, technique, and style. He summarized that his takeaway from the season was he had "finally gained a good feeling in the last few competitions", and that he had tried to skate his best. He added, "I just needed to skate better in my next competition".^[95][96]

2019–2020 season: First senior Grand Prix gold

Jin opened his season with a win at the 2019 CS Lombardia Trophy, surpassing 100 points in the short program with 101.09 points and setting a new personal best.^[97][98] He was less successful at the 2019 Shanghai Trophy, placing third with a strong free skate after a weak showing in the short.^[99]

At his first Grand Prix assignment, 2019 Skate America, Jin placed ninth in the short program after doubling a planned quad Lutz and falling on his triple Axel.^[100] He placed fifth with a stronger free skate and moved up to sixth place overall.^[101] At his second Grand Prix, the 2019 Cup of China, Jin again fell on his quad Lutz in the short program and narrowly placed second behind a returning Yan Han.^[102] He then won the free skate, landing two quads but doubling a planned quad toe loop. Jin rose to first place overall to win the Cup of China and claim his first ever Grand Prix gold medal.^[103][104]

His performances were enough to qualify for the 2019–20 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final for the third time in his career, and he was able to attend for the first time since the 2015–16 Grand Prix Final.^[105] At the Final, he popped his opening quad Lutz and finished sixth in the short program. He remarked that he went into the quad with too much force, but "not on the right point", and that he had skated quite "tight".^[106] Jin fell twice in the free skate but rose to fifth overall. He stated that he had not expected to qualify for the Final and had not adjusted his training properly after the Cup of China. Jin also noted that he was adjusting his skates, which had affected his ability to train. He said that he hoped to learn from the experience and "be more matured mentally" to deliver a stronger performance at his next competition.^[107]

At the 2020 Four Continents Championships, Jin landed all his jumps to place second after the short program.^[108] In the free skate, he doubled two of his attempted quads, though he successfully landed the quad Lutz again, and dropped to fourth overall. He remarked that, except for the two popped quad jumps, he felt that the rest of his performance was good.^[109] Although Jin was assigned to compete at the World Championships in Montreal,^[110] these were cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.^[111]

2020–2021 season

With the 2020–21 figure skating season having to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, senior skaters were invited to a maximum of one Grand Prix event, based largely on geographic location.^[112] Jin was invited to the 2020 Cup of China. He won the competition with a clean short program and a long program that had the highest technical difficulty of the competitors despite some errors.^[113][114] He challenged himself technically as well as artistically, choosing short program music that had a slower tempo than his previous programs.^[10]

Before the 2021 World Championships, Jin's biography was updated to reflect the addition of Brian Orser and Tracy Wilson to his coaching team.^[13] Jin finished in twenty-second place at the World Championships.^[115] The combined placement of Yan Han and Jin was not enough to qualify more than one spot for the 2022 Winter Olympics.^[116]

2021–2022 season: Beijing Olympics

During the closed-loop training due to the ongoing pandemic, Jin began to train by himself, because his coach, who suffered from diabetes, was not able to be with him every day.^[15] He was assigned to the 2021 Cup of China as his only Grand Prix event of the season. He was noted to be increasing his physical fitness and doing special training according to the "program arranged by the coaching staff and outside experts".^[117] After the 2021 Cup of China was cancelled, he was reassigned to its replacement event, the 2021 Gran Premio d'Italia.^[118]

He was assigned to participate in the Olympic test event, the 2021 Asian Open Trophy, which took place in mid-October. In early October, before the competition, he contracted appendicitis and decided to put off surgery in favor of conservative treatment so he could compete.^[15][119] At the Asian Open Trophy, Jin won the bronze medal.^[120] In November, at the Gran Premio d'Italia, he placed first in the short program in but dropped to seventh place after a problematic free skate.^[121]

It was announced that China's competitor in the men's discipline at the Olympics would be decided based on the results of five trials.^[122] Jin maintained a lead over Chen Yudong in all five rounds and accumulated enough points to be announced as the Olympic entry for China.^{[123][124][125]}

Jin began the Olympic games as the Chinese entry in the men's short program of the Olympic team event. He placed sixth in the segment, securing five points for the Chinese team.^[126] After the short programs concluded, Team China qualified for the long program segment with an accumulated 22 points. Jin placed fourth with his free skate, taking another seven points.^[127] Team China finished fifth overall after the long programs concluded, with 50 points total.^[128]

For the men's event, Jin scored a total of 90.98 points in the short program, finishing in 11th place.^[129] He remarked that his team leaders had helped him adjust internally and that it was "great" to skate at such a technical level.^[130] In the free skate, Jin set a new personal best technical score of 97.23.^[98] He earned a score of 179.45, and a total of 270.43, for an overall finish of 9th place.^[131] He finished ninth overall.^[132] Jin said that he felt relieved and encouraged for having overcome the ups and downs of the previous four years and that he was in a relaxed state during the competition. He added that he felt he had achieved his goals and shown his best side, which was memorable as an athlete from the host country.^[15][130]

2022–2023 season: Coaching change

After the Beijing Olympics, Jin's parents wanted him to stop skating, but he personally wanted to continue competing.^[133] He said in an interview that he wished to "represent China and let everyone know that there is still a person fighting in men's singles" for "the next four years". He also felt the responsibility to encourage more children to participate in figure skating and make more people love the sport.^[15] It was announced that Jin's new coaches would be Brian Orser and Tracy Wilson,^[134] after he had been unable to go to Canada for face-to-face coaching with them previously.^[135] He was assigned to the 2022 Skate Canada International and 2022 NHK Trophy as his Grand Prix events of the season; however, he withdrew from both events, citing injury.^[136]

Jin was unable to complete many jumps in practice during his first months with his new coaching team due to a lack of strength, and his programs were not finished until December.^[133] He competed at the 2023 Four Continents Championships, placing fourth in the short program. He revealed that he had continued to struggle with injury and health concerns, including two bouts of COVID in recent months, but that he was enthusiastic about how his new coaching team was managing the situation, calling this "a brand new start."^[137][138] His fast-paced short program to Seven Nation Army had been changed twice because of his condition and recovery, and he started doing full run-throughs only two weeks prior to the competition.^[133] He dropped to seventh place after the free skate; he afterward indicated that he had been dealing with pain while at the event that limited his jump practice.^{[139][140][141]} The high altitude of Colorado Springs, where the Championships had taken place, also affected him. While Jin had trained at high altitude before, he stated that his stamina had reduced because of the two bouts of COVID.^[142]

In an interview after the 2023 Four Continents Championships, he commented that his long program was constructed with the aim of expressing his feelings after moving to Canada for training. David Wilson had recommended several pieces of music before they settled on "This" by Ed Sheeran. Jin said they gradually filled the program with improvised movement, and that unconscious movements he did during training was added to the program later on.^[133]

Jin was assigned to skate at the 2023 World Championships, where he scored 75.04 in the short program.^[143][144] He scored 129.18 in the free skate and finished 22nd overall with a score of 204.22.^[145][146] He said that his strength was still very lacking because of his series of health concerns and that he hoped to "make progress every day" in order to have a good performance at the 2026 Olympics.^[147]

2023–2024 season

Rika Kihira, one of Jin's new training mates, interviewed that Jin inspired her a lot. She continued, "I witnessed him starting off from doubles, and now he's showing us stunning jumps like Quad Lutz. There's a lot that I can learn from him in off-ice too."^[148]

Jin began his season with the 2023 CS Autumn Classic International, where he earned 79.32 in the short program and 151.67 in the free skate. He finished in fifth overall with 230.99 points.^[149] Jin said in an interview that his recovery was "totally fine", and that he was looking forward to the season.^[142] He finished third at the 2023 Shanghai Trophy with a score of 238.33.^[150]

His first Grand Prix event for the season was the 2023 Grand Prix de France, where he finished in eighth place overall with a score of 226.79.^[151] In his second, the 2023 Cup of China, he finished in seventh place with a score of 237.28.^[152][153] He then competed at the 2023 Golden Spin of Zagreb and won both segments of the event and the gold medal with a total score of 258.67.^[154]

Jin scored 89.41 points for a fifth place in the short program at the 2024 Four Continents Championships in Shanghai. He remarked, "Being capable of performing difficult tricks means that I'm in a good state. But for me at the moment, I would rather pursue the completeness of the program more". He landed a quad Lutz in his long program, which earned a grade of execution score of 3.61, and placed fifth in the segment with a season's best score of 167.48. He finished fifth overall with a total score of 256.89. Jin expressed satisfaction with his performance, and he noted that rushing through the program had led to making mistakes on his easier jumping passes.^[155]

In February, Jin participated in the 14th Chinese National Winter Games held in Hulunbuir, where he competed in both the Team and Individual Events. He finished first in both the short program and the long program of the Team Event, and his team won gold overall.^[156][157] In the short program of the Individual Event, he placed first with a score of 93.60 points.^[158] He said in an interview that he had decided to do a quad Lutz-triple toe loop combination as the first jump of his short program during the last two minutes of the warmup.^[159] He scored 173.89 points and placed first in the long program, and he won the event with an overall score of 267.49.^[160][161]

Jin participated in the 2024 World Championships, where he scored 58.53 points in the short program and did not qualify for the free skate.^[162]

2024–2025 season

Jin revealed that he had chosen Sam Ryder's Fought & Lost as the music for his short program, because the lyrics represented his situation, and that he liked it very much.^[163]

Jin began his season with the 2024 Grand Prix de France. He landed a quad toeloop, a triple Axel and an "impressive" triple Lutz-triple toeloop combination in the short program and leapt to the top of the leaderboard, with 88.12 points, which was considered a surprising result after his struggles the previous season. He said after his skate that he was surprised at his performance, because he had felt unwell after he arrived to compete two days before.^[163] In the free skate, he placed eleventh and dropped to eighth place overall.^[164] Although he was assigned to perform in the gala, he withdrew, citing injury.^[165]

He finished eighth again at the 2024 Cup of China.^[166][167] Jin was assigned to compete at the 2024 Chinese Championships, but he withdrew due to a longtime back injury, which had worsened over the course of the Grand Prix series.^[168] He did not compete for the remainder of the season.

2025–2026 season: Milano Cortina Olympics

Prior to the season, Jin left Toronto and returned to Beijing to train under longtime coach, Xu Zhaoxiao, full-time.^[169]

He opened his season at the 2025 Cup of China, where he finished in fifth place.^[170] "I'm relatively happy because I didn't pop or fall on any of the jumps," he said after the free skate. "I still need to work on some mistakes for the next competition and improve the program."^[171] Two weeks later, Jin placed fourth at 2025 NHK Trophy with a season's best score for both the free skate and total score.^[172]

Jin posted a victory at 2026 Chinese Championships held in Harbin. He built a lead in the short program, and stayed on top in the free skate despite an error on one triple Axel. He scored 185.21 points in the free skate and clinched the title with a total of 277.76 points. Jin said, "I wasn't entirely ready, and after successfully landing the first two jumps, my adrenaline was really pumping, so I still felt a bit out of control," adding that being back in his hometown gave him motivation.^[173] Following this, he was named to the 2026 Winter Olympic team.^[174]

In January, Jin finished sixth at the 2026 Four Continents Championships in his eighth appearance at this event. "In these five days of training and competition, I think I have performed well," he said after the free skate. "If I maintain this state until the Winter Olympics, I will have more confidence. I think what needs to be improved most is the details."^[175]

On 7 February, Jin placed seventh in the short program in the 2026 Winter Olympics Figure Skating Team Event. "I’m enjoying the Olympic Games very much!” he said. "This is the third and also the last Olympic Games for me. I was not that nervous, but very excited about the performance. I love the vibe and the enthusiasm of the audience and the fans. This is what I am doing this for."^[176] Team China ultimately finished in eighth place overall.^[170]

On 10 February, Jin competed in the short program segment of the 2026 Winter Olympics – Men's singles event, finishing thirteenth. Two days later, Jin's skate lace broke during the six-minute warmup prior to his free skate. Despite this, he went through with performing his program, placing twentieth in the free skate to finish in seventeenth place overall. In an interview following the event, he remarked, "In figure skating, it's not common for someone my age to still be competing in the Winter Olympics... I feel very happy and liberated this time. It's a rare opportunity to be in this state during my athletic career. I'm very happy to have found this state now... I gave it my all in this Winter Olympics, and I did everything I could without reservation. Even with this situation today, I still boldly went ahead and finished it."^[170][177]