"I Hate Skating": She Left the Ice, Then Won a Surprise Gold at 20

Alysa Liu Defeats Sakamoto in Women's Singles to Win Gold

The "genius girl" who left the ice at sixteen saying she "hated skating" has returned to the stage of her dreams and hung a gold medal around her neck.

This is the story of Alysa Liu (20), the women's singles figure skating gold medalist at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

Liu Lisa (USA) is smiling broadly after winning the women's singles figure skating at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, which concluded on the 19th (local time) at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

On the 19th (local time) at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, Liu scored 150.20 points in the women's singles free skate, winning a come-from-behind victory with a final total of 226.79 points. She defeated Kaori Sakamoto (224.90 points), who had announced her retirement after this competition, and Ami Niikai (219.16 points), both from Japan.

An American skater has won the Olympic women's singles figure skating title for the first time in 24 years, since Sarah Hughes at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games. Having also contributed to the United States' gold medal in the team event, Liu became a double Olympic champion at these Games.

Liu, a Chinese-American who also goes by the name Liu Meixian, made her name known by becoming the youngest champion ever (14 years old) at the 2019 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. However, three years later, at her first Olympics in Beijing, she finished only seventh. Struggling with an obsession over winning a medal, Liu could not overcome burnout and voluntarily took off her skates.

Instead, Liu laced up hiking boots and trekked to Everest Base Camp in the Himalayas. The following year, in 2023, she enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), studied psychology, and enjoyed an ordinary daily life.

Alysa Liu (United States) is performing in the women's singles free skate in figure skating at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics at the Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, on the 19th (local time). AFP, Yonhap News Agency

Liu said, "After realizing how wide the world is outside the ice rink, I understood that skating is not my whole life but just a part of it," and in March 2024 she announced her return to the ice. She then captured the world championship title last year, raising expectations for Olympic gold this time.

Having won a medal that day, Liu said in an interview with foreign media after the competition, "I think my story is much more important than my results or my medals. That is what I will treasure the most," adding, "This journey has been truly unbelievably amazing."

She went on, "I did not need this medal. What I needed was the stage, and I got that," and added with a laugh, "Even if I had fallen on every jump today, I would have been fine because I was wearing this dress."

Liu also said, "My life has always unfolded this way. In the end, everything about me has led me to this place."

Amber Glenn, who represented U.S. figure skating alongside Liu and finished fifth, said, "Liu's story of stepping away for a while to take care of her mental health really shows that no one knows what the journey to success will look like," and added, "I hope Liu's story can send the message to the skating world that 'it's okay to take time.'"