On February 6, 2026, the world’s best winter athletes gathered in Milan-Cortina, Italy for the Olympic games. For 19 days, athletes from all over the world showcase their skills for their respective sports, one in particular that catches the attention of many, Figure Skating.
This year, a young ambitious athlete, known for her spunky style and breaking the skating norms, has grown to fame due to her fun, outgoing personality and unique skating style.
Having retired at the age of just 16 after her appearance at the Beijing games in 2022, 20 year old Alysa Liu made her Olympic comeback this year after a two year hiatus from figure skating.
The Oakland native placed sixth in the 2022 Beijing games. However, shortly after her first olympic appearance, she shocked the figure skating community by announcing her retirement from the sport at just 16 years old. In a post on Instagram, she announced that she was satisfied with her career and was ready to step back from skating.
In a 60 Minutes interview she described that “skating [felt] more like a responsibility or a burden even”. When the pandemic hit and her local rink closed, she got the opportunity to feel what it was like to not be skating everyday. “Honestly I was hoping, like, the rinks wouldn’t open,” Liu told 60 Minutes reporter, Sharyn Alfonsi.
Taking nearly a two year break, she enjoyed “normal” teenage experiences, such as spending time with her friends and traveling for non-competition related purposes. “I was truly just living it up, I would say it was my best life… I deleted my Instagram so I wouldn’t see any skating, no one ever brought it up so I never had the chance to think about it.”
Eventually, she felt the desire to skate again. Getting in contact with her former coaches, she began training again in June 2024. In order for her to return, she had a few requests that needed to be agreed upon. “I get to help with the creative process of my programs. If I feel like I’m skating too much, I’ll dial it down. If I feel like I’m not skating enough, I’ll ramp it up. No one is going to starve me, tell me what I can and can’t eat,” she told 60 Minutes.
Returning to the Olympics in 2026, Liu is breaking the internet with her comeback. Many fans all over the internet were going crazy over her Short Program, which she did to the song “Promise” by Laufey, bringing all kinds of emotions to the people witnessing it. Doing a Triple Lutz-Triple Loop combination, a Triple Flip, and a Double Axel in this program secured her a 76.59, being considered an exceptional score under today’s figure skating standards.
She gained even more attention during the Free Skate portion of the competition, performing a program to the song “MacArthur Park Suite”. This performance landed her the win as she successfully completed seven high scoring Triple jumps, such as the Triple Axel, and four Doubles, like the Double Toe Loop. Her final score of the program was a 150.20, bringing her combined score to 226.79, securing her the gold medal for the Women’s Singles competition.
Not only is her win impressive, but it is also historic. No American woman has won an Olympic Figure Skating Singles title in 24 years, the last to do so being Sarah Hughes in the 2002 Salt Lake City games.
Many people online notice that Liu seems to be very carefree while skating at these olympic games and can tell that she is truly enjoying the sport again, which many feel is what largely contributes to her success on the ice.
By returning to skating on her own terms and winning gold, Alysa Liu shows that true achievement comes from both skill and joy in what you do.
