Catalan figure skater allowed to perform Minions routine at Olympics

After initially being denied permission due to licensing issues, figure skater Tomàs Guarino Sabaté, competing for Spain at this month’s Winter Olympics, will, after all, be allowed to use his preferred music for his Minions-inspired routine at the Games. 

The Spanish Ice Sports Federation announced on Friday that the Barcelona-born athlete will be able to perform his Minions mix at the Olympiad, as he has throughout the 2025/26 season thus far. The Catalan will also be able to use the music at future international events during this season.

Guarino said he was “very happy” to obtain the licenses for the music in a statement on the Federation’s website. “It has not been an easy process,” he added, “but the support from everyone who has followed my case has been essential in keeping me motivated and optimistic throughout these days.” 

The four musical pieces included in the program have been authorized for use by the respective rights holders: Universal Fanfare from The Minions and Vicious Funk by Héctor Pereira (Universal Pictures), Freedom by Pharrell Williams (Sony Music), and the Minions Bounce mix by Spanish DJ Juan Alcaraz.

Guarino will perform his routine, dressed in a yellow t-shirt and blue overalls, like Minions characters, on Tuesday, February 10, between 6.30 pm and 10.44 pm, depending on the draw, at the Milano Ice Skating Arena.

“I’m going out there to give it everything, and I want the audience to do the same,” Guarino told Catalan News after being given the green light to use his preferred music. “I’ve seen through social media how much people wanted this program, and I want to feel the arena vibrating at its maximum with my performance. That’s my goal right now: to present a program worthy of that reaction.”

The figure skater told Catalan News that he began with his unconventional three years ago with a program about cowboys. “I wanted Western music, and even though we weren’t aiming for anything spectacular, since it was a very serious program with mystery, action and adventure, we gave space in the last 30 seconds to the chaotic side of cowboys, and people really liked it.” Guarino says this was his first viral moment, “and the feedback was very positive.” 

The 26-year-old describes himself as “quite shy” both on and off the ice, “but when someone really gets to know me, they know I like to joke and drop the seriousness.” 

Following that cowboy program, he introduced the Minions routine. While developing the competition program through the summer, “everyone who saw the choreography was blown away,” giving Guarino the confidence to bring the idea to the biggest stage. 

The Catalan arrives at Milan feeling “really good,” both physically and emotionally. Indeed, emotionally, he says he is at his “peak” just for arriving at the Games. After his first Olympic training session early on Thursday, February 5, he found the ice “difficult,” but nuanced that “it has something I like, even if it sounds contradictory.” 

Guarino felt a groundswell of public support after it was initially ruled at the beginning of the week that he could not perform his Minions mix, and he notes his gratitude. “I’m eager to give that affection back multiplied by five on the ice. I feel full of energy, the sensations couldn’t be better.”