The daughter of a father who left for the United States because he disliked China brought a gold medal to the U.S.
Alisa Liu (21, U.S.) is an American women's singles figure skater. She won gold medals in the team event and the women's singles at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics.
The United States had not had a gold medal in the women's singles since Sarah Hughes won gold at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. After Sasha Cohen won silver at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics, the United States did not reach the Olympic podium. But with Alisa Liu's gold medal, the United States reclaimed the top spot after 24 years.
Chinese American Alisa Liu's background is a hot topic. She began figure skating at age 5 after her father, who was a fan of Michelle Kwan, took her to the ice rink. Showing prodigious talent, she grew into a skater representing the United States.
However, Alisa's father, who is from China, is known to have politically sought asylum in the United States after criticizing the Chinese government over the Tiananmen Square incident. As U.S.-China diplomacy has deteriorated, Alisa's background has drawn even more attention.
U.S. media asked, "Alisa found true freedom thanks to her father, who sought asylum in the United States. If she had remained in China, could she have become an Olympic champion?"
Alisa is being contrasted with Gu Ailing (22), who was originally an American and naturalized as a Chinese citizen. Gu Ailing scored 94.75 points in the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics and took the gold medal. It is her second consecutive halfpipe title after the 2022 Beijing Games.
Gu Ailing competed on the U.S. national team through her youth career. But ahead of the previous Beijing Olympics, she suddenly naturalized as a Chinese citizen and then won a medal, drawing attention.
According to U.S. business magazine Forbes, Gu Ailing earned $23 million in endorsement income over the past year, mainly in China, recording the highest earnings among athletes competing in the Winter Olympics.
Gu Ailing has become more controversial because she obtained only Chinese nationality while continuing to live in the United States. "She earns money in China and lives in the United States," and "She is using nationality to make money," have made her a target.
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