The Milan-Cortina Games got their first controversy before the cauldron is even lit, and it arrived wearing goggles and overalls. Spanish figure skater Tomàs-Llorenç Guarino Sabaté faced a last-minute block on his Minions-themed short program over music rights — a snag that triggered an online uproar and a rapid partial reversal from the rights holder.
After days of uncertainty, Sabaté confirmed he has secured special permission to use key elements of the soundtrack, clearing the way for the season-long routine that turned heads on the Grand Prix circuit to make its Olympic debut. Not every component is locked, but the most complex piece — the signature studio fanfare sung by the animated characters — has been greenlit.
A Last-Minute Licensing Snag Threatens Olympic Routine
Sabaté’s short program is a stitched-together homage to the animated franchise: it opens with the Universal theme as performed by the characters, leans into Pharrell Williams’ “Freedom” as heard in the Despicable Me universe, and caps the narrative with the bass-forward “Papaya (Vaya Papayas).” He submitted the medley for approval months ago through the International Skating Union’s ClicknClear system, the platform the ISU uses to streamline music licensing for competitions.
Late last week, the 26-year-old was notified that key clearances were not in place for the Games, forcing him to contemplate re-editing or replacing his short program within days. For any elite athlete, a wholesale musical switch this close to competition can scramble timing, choreography, and mental preparation — the trifecta that underpins high-scoring execution in the judging system.
Online Outcry Pushes a Reversal on Program Music Rights
The backlash was immediate. Fans, skaters, and analysts rallied across Instagram, X, and TikTok, questioning how a program performed all season could be tripped up on the eve of the Olympics. Sabaté publicly thanked supporters after Universal granted what he described as one-time permission for the routine’s signature elements, crediting the groundswell for prompting a rethink.
Figure skating analyst Jackie Wong, reporting from Milan-Cortina, noted that two of the four musical cuts have been cleared so far, adding that the opening studio fanfare — long considered the trickiest clearance due to overlapping rights — is now resolved. That decision keeps the routine’s identity intact and buys time to tidy the remaining paperwork before the men’s short program begins.
Why Music Rights Get Tangled At The Games
Olympic music rights are a maze. Beyond the athlete’s domestic federation approvals, there are separate master and publishing licenses, plus synchronization and broadcast rights that must satisfy the International Olympic Committee and Olympic Broadcast Services for global transmission. Medleys multiply the complexity: each track, edit, and sound bite can involve different labels, publishers, and studios, from Universal Pictures and Illumination to record labels tied to individual songs.
The ISU’s partnership with ClicknClear was designed to standardize permissions and reduce last-minute surprises, but high-profile programs that mix iconic studio audio with commercial songs still require bespoke negotiations. Rights experts often warn that studio fanfares and character vocals sit in a sensitive category, where even small edits create derivative works that trigger fresh approvals.
What It Means for Sabaté on the Olympic Ice
Sabaté’s Minions concept isn’t a gimmick; it’s a calculated blend of charm and technical ambition. The yellow-and-blue costume, comedic timing, and character beats are choreographed around jump setups and step sequences to maximize grade of execution and program components. Swapping tracks at the last second can disrupt jump tempos and footwork accents that skaters drill for months.
With the opening fanfare cleared, the spine of the program remains. Even if minor trims or substitutions are needed for the remaining cuts, the essence — and scoring strategy — should hold. Sports psychologists who work with Olympic teams emphasize that preserving familiar cues reduces cognitive load under pressure, a vital edge when a medal field can be separated by tenths.
The Fan-Powered Moment And The Bigger Picture
This episode underscores how public sentiment can shape decisions in the streaming era. Broadcasters, federations, and rights holders are more sensitive than ever to viral narratives that could overshadow the sport. For skating, it’s also a reminder that the post-vocals era — since the ISU began allowing lyrics — has made popular culture central to program design, raising both the entertainment value and the licensing stakes.
For now, the outcome is clear enough: the goggles are staying on. If the remaining clearances fall into place, Sabaté will deliver the season’s most talked-about short program on the Olympic stage — and the first drama of these Winter Games will turn into one of its most joyful performances.
