![Cha Jun-hwan performs to Song So-hee’s ‘Not a Dream’ during the figure skating gala at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, on Feb. 21. [Photo=Yonhap]](https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2026/02/22/20260222070337459120.jpg)
Cha Jun-hwan of Seoul City Hall and Lee Hae-in of Korea University, two of South Korea’s top figure skaters, took the ice in the Olympic gala show with programs set to Korean music.
They skated in the 2026 Milan-Cortina figure skating gala at Milan’s Ice Skating Arena. The gala is an exhibition in which selected Olympic skaters perform without required jumps and with freedom in costumes and music choices. It features medalists in men’s and women’s singles, pairs and ice dance, along with specially invited skaters chosen with competition results and fan requests in mind.
South Korea did not have a skater in the gala at the 2022 Beijing Games, but Cha and Lee performed this time.
The show opened with a performance by Italian women’s singles standout Carolina Kostner, who competed in the same era as South Korean star Kim Yuna.
Skating fourth in the second half, Cha performed to musician Song So-hee’s “Not a Dream.” He mixed triple jumps, step sequences and spins, drawing applause from the crowd.
“Falling in love with figure skating was about freedom, and when I heard this song I felt a lot of that freedom, so I chose it for the gala,” Cha said. “At the Olympics, a festival for people around the world, I wanted to perform to a song that could introduce Korea as a Korean representative, and I’m grateful I had the chance.”
Cha said his 2018 Pyeongchang gala showed the bright, bold feel he could bring as a teenager, but that eight years later he has grown and took a bigger role in choreography. “I wanted to show my own story and message,” he said.
Lee, who has often used K-pop in past gala appearances, skated this time to the theme song of the popular animated series “K-pop Demon Hunters.” Wearing a black gat hat and carrying a fan with a durumagi-style outfit, she delivered a lively performance that drew cheers. Lee said it was “special” to skate in the gala at her first Olympics. “It’s already disappointing that it’s over, and I’m excited to see what I’ll show at the next competition I enter,” she said.
Also performing were the men’s and women’s singles champions, Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan and Alysa Liu of the United States.
Spain’s ice dance team of Olivia Smart and Tim Dieck staged a penalty kick with a soccer ball, performing in support of Spain’s national team and its hopes of winning the 2026 World Cup in North America.
Malinin, who had been viewed as a leading contender in men’s singles but missed the medals after repeated jump mistakes in competition, landed a high-difficulty quadruple toe loop and then a backflip, earning loud applause.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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