After shedding anxiety, American Alysa Liu rides wave of joy to Olympic gold medal

Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times on Feb 19, 2026

Published in Olympics

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MILAN — She flipped her hair. She shrugged. She dusted her hands off.

Alysa Liu makes winning an Olympic gold medal look easy.

The 20-year-old became the first U.S. woman to win the Olympic singles title since 2002, electrifying the crowd at Milano Ice Skating Arena with her “MacArthur Park” program Thursday and overtaking Japanese rivals Kaori Sakamoto and Ami Nakai, who won second and third, respectively. The first thing Liu did when she was crowned as the new Olympic champion was hug Nakai, who was in shock when the score was announced.

After placing third in the short program, Liu scored a monster 150.20 points in her free skate, the highest mark for a women’s free skate all season in international competition. Her choreographer Massimo Scali’s jaw dropped when he heard the score read in Italian. Moments later when the score flashed across the screen, Liu simply cracked a subtle smirk.

She doesn’t care about the scores.

Liu has floated through her second Olympics as if she had not a single care in the world. A two-year retirement in which she climbed Mount Everest, got her driver’s license and started college at UCLA made skating feel inconsequential. She returned only to have fun on her own terms and show her art.

The crowd at Milano Ice Skating Arena followed every beat, edge and jump of the joyful disco program. U.S. teammate Amber Glenn stood on a platform near the corner of her rink clapping overhead.

Glenn got redemption after the short program, putting up a season’s best 147.52 during her free skate that vaulted her from 13th to fifth with a 214.91 total score. The only blemish was when Glenn put one hand down on her final jump — the same triple loop that cost her in her short program. But as she held one leg behind her during a spiral in her last sequence, Glenn smiled as she looked into the crowd. After the program, she whipped her fist through the air triumphantly.

Glenn became the first U.S. woman to land triple axels in both Olympic programs. When her score flashed across the screen, Glenn screamed and hugged her coach Damon Allen around the neck. She punched the air. For one time at these Games, Glenn was fighting back happy tears.

With a commanding lead, Glenn stayed safely in the leader’s chair for the entire third group. From the white arm chair positioned near the corner of the rink, Glenn hyped Liu up during the final group’s six-minute warmup, dancing along to K-pop songs and cheering each time Liu skated by.

After Nakai’s score was announced, Glenn pulled Liu out of the white armchair and onto her feet, presenting the Olympic champion.