Alysa Liu, the 2026 Winter Olympic figure skating champion in singles and the team event, has given a completely different definition to the sport.Â
In her early juvenile career, Alysa began skating at the age of five, and later became the first woman to land a quadruple jump (4Lz) and a triple Axel in one competition. She dominated as a young prodigy: winning gold at the 2025 World Championship, the 2025â26 Grand Prix, and two U.S. National Championships in 2019 and 2020, becoming the youngest champion at 13. However, she retired when she was 16 due to burnout, controlling behaviour from her coaches, and a desire to experience life outside of never-ending training.
During her break from figure skating, she attended UCLA and explored her own personal interests, trying to find herself and where her soul lies. In 2024, she made a triumphant comeback to train under a renewed, joy-driven and self-determined approach â focusing on pleasure over pressure and results.Â
Alysaâs performance at the Winter Olympics was phenomenal and unique, especially compared to what we are so used to seeing in figure skating. It felt refreshing to see an athlete skate with such freedom and have a genuine sense of enjoyment from what they do. She skated to Donna Summer’s “MacArthur Park Suite”, propelling this jubilant and cheerful classic back to the viral frame. Not just driven by results, but also by a true love that she has rediscovered for her sport after coming back to figure skating. Alysa embodied her authenticity in her programme and skated with her soul.Â
There is something deeply powerful resonating in me, particularly as a retired acrobatic gymnast. I watch Alysaâs interviews where she discusses the mindset that she took with her to the Olympics and rebrands a skaterâs relationship with their sport. She says, âI connect with everything, but Iâm not attached to anythingâ, implying that she would not have been disappointed in herself had she not won the Olympics; for her, it was about showcasing her talent and doing something she likes. Practising the Law of Detachment at the 2026 Olympics (a universal principle that teaches us to act with intention, but without attachment to the outcome) has definitely played a role in taking her to the podium. While most other athletes around her were incredibly nervous and on edge, she managed to skate with a type of freedom and lightness not often seen in womenâs figure skating.
Alysa Liu is perhaps celebrated more than most other recent figure skating champions, and not just because American skaters havenât won gold for twenty-four years. It is more so because she was the first one to state that a skater doesnât have to follow strict restrictions to do well; She chooses her own music and helps with her programme choreographies. This is a massive paradigm shift in the stigma surrounding figure skating.
The standard is set so high in female-dominated sports, and particularly figure skating, by the traditional âice princessâ personas that have won the Olympics previously, such as Anna Scherbakova, the 2022 champion. Like most Russian skaters, she was almost broken by the time she reached the Olympic ice â both mentally and physically. She was not the only skater to endure immense pressure before and during those Olympics. The 2022 figure skating season was dramatic at its core: Kamila Valieva, the favourite for gold, was embroiled in a doping scandal, while Alexandra Trusova broke down after taking silver despite landing a record-breaking number of quads and having reportedly been promised gold. The 2022 Olympics sparked ethical debates about the care of minors in the Russian school of figure skating. It has become a pattern for Russian figure skaters to peak at the age of 16-17 and are forced to retire very early, due to injuries and mental health issues. This is why the supportive atmosphere on ice at the latest Winter Olympics was invigorating! Seeing athletes such as Alysa Liu, Amber Glenn, Kaori Sakamoto and others showing true sportsmanship and supporting one another.
Alysa Liu has shown that you can win the Olympics without training under tremendous pressure, starving yourself, and making unworthy sacrifices. We are very used to thinking that in sport you must sacrifice giving your life away, but Alysa is reframing this idea by affirming self-compassion, individualism and authenticity.
Perhaps, figure skating is not about having the most technically difficult programme, but about finding joy in what you do. Alysaâs mindset towards sport and life is something our generation can truly learn from.
Editor: Tamima Islam