Mikhail Shaidorov: Kazakhstan’s Ice Prince Steps into His Spotlight

Kazakhstan’s own Mikhail Shaidorov isn’t just skating — he’s rewriting the country’s entire figure‑skating storyline with the kind of quiet intensity that makes an arena hold its breath. A world silver medalist, a Four Continents champion, and now the face of a new athletic era, Shaidorov arrives with the precision of a technician and the soul of a storyteller.

And here’s the part casual viewers miss: He stands 5’7″, but on the ice he reads tall — statuesque, elongated, almost modelesque. That natural visual presence is exactly why seeing him in a full‑fashion editorial feels less like a surprise and more like destiny.

In his Tatler Kazakhstan feature, the young phenom lets the curtain slip just enough to reveal the real engine behind the medals. The inspirations he carries. The childhood places that still anchor him. The injuries that nearly rerouted everything. And yes — the behaviors from fellow skaters that make him grit his teeth. It’s honest, unfiltered, and refreshingly unpolished in a sport built on glitter and gloss.

Tatler frames him like a modern myth. Photographer Aruzhan Zhanova places him among lush tropical greens at Nicole Garden Center — a surreal contrast to the frozen worlds he usually commands. Styled in UshaTava with jewelry from 995core, Shaidorov moves through the space with the same fluidity he brings to the ice. It’s fashion, it’s sport, it’s youth culture — all colliding in one quietly electric moment.

Behind the lens, a powerhouse team shapes the vision: Creative director Rick Dekard, producer Aigerim Tanatar, editor Egor Khodakov, makeup artist Mark Mahfud, hair stylist Olga Shayakhmetova, and stylist Zarina K. Together, they craft a version of Shaidorov that feels both elevated and unmistakably real — a young athlete stepping into cultural icon territory without losing the softness that makes him compelling.

What emerges is a portrait of a skater who’s not just competing — he’s evolving. Growing. Becoming.

Shaidorov isn’t chasing anyone’s legacy. He’s building his own.

And if this Tatler moment is any indication, Kazakhstan’s ice prince is only getting started.

For more from Tatler Kazakhstan visit them at: tatlerasia.kz/ru