Figure Skating - ISU Figure Skating European Championships - Sheffield Arena, Sheffield, Britain - January 15, 2026 Spain's Tomas-Llorenc Guarino Sabate performs during the men's short program Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers
MILAN, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Uncertainty surrounding Spaniard Tomas-Llorenc Guarino Sabate’s Minions-themed programme struck a chord across figure skating, where clearing music rights can be one of the most stressful and least predictable parts of competition preparation.
Guarino Sabate said on Tuesday he would be allowed to skate to music from the "Minions" film franchise after Universal Studios reversed its earlier objection, just days before the Milano Cortina Winter Games are set to kick off.
American skater Amber Glenn said even when skaters follow correct procedures, final decisions can be out of their hands.
"We have tried our hardest to get everything cleared, do what we can and, honestly, a producer can just decide, never mind, no. We don't have 100% control over this," she said in a press conference on Wednesday.
Glenn, 26, said the threat of a last-minute reversal often hangs over skaters throughout the season.
"I'm just hoping and praying that I don't get an email saying ... oh, by the way, they've reached out and they said they don't want you to use it."
She added that athletes rely heavily on their support teams to handle the process while they stay focused on training.
"It's been a very strenuous process for many of us, but we have a great team around us that's supposed to handle that, because we have a job to do, we have to go skate," said Glenn.
"So for me, I just focus on what I can control and what I can do and let the people around me handle that kind of stuff."
MUSIC CAN ADD LAYER OF RISK, SAYS MALININ
Twice world champion Ilia Malinin said selecting distinctive music can add another layer of risk, particularly for skaters looking to stand out.
The 21-year-old American will skate his short programme to a video game‑inspired montage featuring “Dies Irae,” performed by nattura and Vila, and “The Lost Crown (Prince of Persia)” by 2WEI, Joznez and Kataem.
"I like to pick really unique pieces of music I skate to and there's a lot of challenges of whether people will like it but also of whether you'll be able to skate to it," Malinin said.
Malinin added that he often contacted the artists or the rights holders directly in the hope of avoiding problems.
"Most of the time it usually works out in my favour, and especially this year everyone was so hopeful and so supportive of this, and they're really excited for me to skate their pieces of music."
Still, he said, there were no guarantees.
"You really don't know what you're getting into, but you kind of just have to hope everything works out."
Glenn, whose short programme is set to Madonna's "Like a Prayer", said she would take even bad news in her stride.
"If I do get a message from Madonna saying she doesn't want me to skate to her music ... I'll just be excited to get a message from Madonna."
(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Ken Ferris)
