The figure skating mechanic flipping between the rink and the garage
USA’s Misha Mitrofanov is not racing cars yet but it’s a dream he hopes to pursue after his figure skating career, which could include a trip to the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Games.
The pairs skater was initially studying for a medical degree, but quickly realised his post-sports path lies elsewhere.
“I have an undying passion for cars and so I want to go into the automotive industry instead,” Mitrofanov, wearing The Rodfathers t-shirt, told Olympics.com. “I want to open up my own shop. I have a huge plan for it. It’s not just going to be fixing cars. I want to do rental, detailing. I want to be able to buy and sell cars as well.”
His mother, Yelena, does not share the enthusiasm. But Mitrofanov is convinced she will eventually see the allure of the auto world as well.
“My mom, she’s iffy on it, the best way to put it, because when I told her, ‘Oh, I want to be a sports medical doctor’. She’s like, ‘Yes!’ And now I’m like, ‘This’. She’s like, ‘OK… let’s think about it’,” Mitrofanov said. “So I got to have a full scheme on what to do, how to move forward with it. But I’m dead set on it.
“I’m going to do what I love. I love figure skating. I’ve been doing it all of my life. I’m like, ‘Why would I do anything different?’ I love cars, so that’s what I’m going to pursue after skating.”
While Mitrofanov is still figuring out how to best bring his mother on board with the car shop idea, he has already successfully converted his skating partner Alisa Efimova into an auto racing fan.
“We are a huge Formula 1 household. I got Alisa into it. She started to watch Drive to Survive. Me, I love how the cars work. I’m really into the drivers and the athletic part of the sport,” he said. “I definitely think it would be super cool to be in Formula 1 after skating. We’ll see how realistic that is, but that’s another dream of mine.”
Efimova hopes to become a doctor when she retires from competitive figure skating – but even then, she still plans to keep the F1 watch parties in her schedule.
“I will come to Misha’s garage from time to time to unwind my mind and watch Formula 1,” Efimova said with a laugh. “It’s funny. Misha is interested how something mechanical, a car works. I’m interested how a human body works so that is something similar in us.”