As it turns out, Spanish athlete Tomas Llorenz Guarino Sabate doesn’t need to find a new song to skate at the Winter Olympics.
Despite initially facing copyright issues, the 26-year-old figure skating champion said he has been granted permission to perform his fan-favorite “Minions” routine in Milan. He’s been skating to the sounds of the diminutive Agents of Chaos all season, wearing their signature uniform of yellow shirt and blue overalls. Sabate said Universal reconsidered and granted the rights after an outpouring of support on social media.
“Thank you so much to everyone who reposted, shared, and supported me,” Sabate wrote on her Instagram Story. “Thanks to you, Universal Studios has reconsidered and officially recognized the rights to this special opportunity. We’re so happy to see Minions hitting the Olympic ice become a reality again!!”
(Universal Pictures shares a parent company with NBC, which broadcasts the Olympics.)
Sabate, who will make his Olympic debut in Milan, said he was informed earlier this week that Universal Pictures, the studio behind the Minions movie series, would not give him permission to use his high-pitched, high-energy songs on Olympic ice. That means they will have to find new music for the short program before the men’s event begins on February 10th.
“This season, I competed in the ‘Minions’ routine to bring joy and fun style to the ice, while adhering to all the mandatory elements and demonstrating that ice skating as an Olympic male figure skater can also be fun,” he wrote in a lengthy statement on his Instagram Stories. Sabate said he “followed all the necessary procedures and submitted the music through the ISU (International Skating Union) ClicknClear system in August” and “competed with this program throughout the season.”
He continued, “Unfortunately, a few days before the opening of the Olympics, we were informed that due to copyright issues, we were no longer permitted to use this program.”
Sabate said in an Instagram Story that the situation was “incredibly disappointing.”
Before the decision was reversed, Sabate said he remained optimistic. “I will face this challenge head on and do everything in my power to make the best of the situation.”
