Alysa Liu clinches historic Olympic gold for US in women's figure skating
'I don’t need this (medal). But what I needed was the stage and I got that, so I was all good. No matter what happened,' said Alysa Liu
February 20, 2026
Alysa Liu finally ends the U.S. drought while clinching a stunning figure skating gold at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics on Thursday, February 19.
On Thursday night, with all eyes on Liu the 20-year-old trailblazer figure skater from California defied the odds with a breathtaking, error-free skate.
In a dazzling performance on ice, Liu, while skating to Donna Summer’s (who is also known as the Queen of Disco) MacArthur Park Suite, executed a clean triple flip to open her skate, then landed her triple lutz-triple toe loop combination, which left the crowd buzzing along to the disco beat.
When she left the rink, Liu faced the camera and exclaimed, “That’s what I’m f***ing talking about!”
Liu defeated three-time world champion Kaori Sakamoto and young prodigy Ami Nakai of Japan.
Once off the ice, she jumped up and down, celebrating with her coaches Phillip Guglielmo and Massimo Scali.
Liu was thrilled when her score of 150.20, breaking her previous season best, was announced.
Her total score of 226.79 instantly gave her the victory lead, and with just Naki and Sakamoto remaining, Liu was destined for gold.
Liu, while talking to reporters later, said, “I don’t need this (medal). But what I needed was the stage and I got that, so I was all good. No matter what happened.”
Thursday’s result was no surprise to those who watched Liu’s rise in the sport. Liu became the youngest woman in United States history to win the national championship as a 13-year-old in 2019.
She won it again the next year, and a ticket to the Olympics came when she turned 16 in 2022.
